Australia’s bioenergy industry is still active and full of ideas on how to keep pace with the world. However, biofuels advocates believe that the country lacks clear strategies and policies that use the environmental benefits and economic potential provided by biomass.
'Compared with the United States and Brazil, the supportive policy environment has led to the continuous growth of biofuel production and consumption over the past few decades, while the development of the Australian biofuel industry has not reached the same level,' At the time, Queensland University of Technology published a paper entitled 'Biofuel Products: Australia's Growth Industry'.
Heather Bone, head of the Australian bioenergy company representing the country’s bioenergy industry, recently told the Sydney Morning Herald, Biofuels have always been a forgotten renewable energy source. It has always been a neglected cousin of solar energy and wind energy. In the past 10 to 15 years, this industry in Australia lacks a supporting policy or development framework, and the risks come from triggering policies and moving targets.
The Burdekin Biofuels Project supported by Inkerman Canegrowers Organisation Ltd is a bioenergy project that has supported the Queensland Government and has been funded through the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA). The preliminary feasibility study for the proposed plant has been completed.
The plant is expected to produce 140,000 tons per year (MT) of granules, made from sugarcane heads and sugarcane residues grown in Burdekin County, Inkerman, Queensland, Australia. The area produces about 1.7 million tons of sugar cane annually. The plan is to collect it usually before harvesting. Burned cane waste - and turns them into granules. But these granules may be exported to Japan, where they will be used to produce electricity, not used in Australia.
Burdekin project manager Stewart Peters said: 'Australia's bioenergy prospects are relatively limited in terms of power generation. Because of green activism and their concern about the potential use of native forest residues, there is very little support for the industry at the regulatory level.'
From bagasse to treasure
Peters believes that the Burdekin plant highlights many of Australia's clear advantages. 'This is a very environmentally sustainable project that immediately reduces the production of carbon dioxide - even compared to forest-based wood particles, which have a significant advantage, they need 50 It will take another 100 years to regenerate the trees, 'he said. 'Also, it provides substantial social results in employment and elimination of dense black smoke - locally known as 'Bold Gold Snow', which includes A large area, including the population center, has descended from the sky. 'This project has created a way for academic research and development - the cultivation of biochemical substances such as polyketide into sugar cane leaves.
Peters said that by harvesting enough sugarcane waste, about 1 million tons of particles can be produced each year. He explained: 'Since the environmental law provided for 20 years - guarantees about 280 US dollars per megawatt-hour of feed-in tariff, so imports Biomass to Japan is expected to grow by more than 10 million tons per year. Treaties for reducing emissions and generating renewable energy are increasingly being demanded by the government to reduce carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions.
For Peters, whether Australia will use sugar cane heads and bagasse as a technological direction for the further development of large-scale biomass resources will be a problem. 'Burdekin has a unique positioning capability to provide 750,000 tons of potential biomass energy projects. The sugarcane head and bagasse,' he said. 'This method provides growers and processors with extra value. Sugarcane is a world-class biochemical platform, and when the entire plant is used, it can become more and more it is good. '
Burdekin's biofuels project uses sugar cane waste Australian Forest Resources
In the Fremantle region of southwest Australia, Australian Plantation Energy Australia operates a wood pellet manufacturing company that uses non-commercial wood raw materials and residues harvested from sustainably managed wood plantations. The factory has two production lines and can produce 125,000 tons of particles per year. Currently its operating capacity is 50%. However, it is expected that the output will increase in the next 12 months to meet the growing demand.
'The main objective of this project is to establish a sustainable business, support local employment opportunities, create certified renewable energy in a reliable manner, and ship it to regional markets, and create value for shareholders. ' PEA management Richard Allen said. 'The business directly or indirectly supports about 50 jobs and makes a significant contribution to the local economy within the region.'
The company currently exports wood pellets to Belgium, but according to Allen, Japan and South Korea have become potential future markets because of closer proximity. He explained that Australia has two large forest-growing areas, including the southern part of the west and The 'green triangle' between Victoria and southern Australia and the southeast. The Radiata pine grows and is used for structural timber. The blue dragonfly was originally planted for pulpwood but also used by PEA for wood pellets. 'With demand for papermaking With the decline, the energy use of these plantations is becoming more and more important, and new demand from South Korea and Japan will promote the expansion of plantations,' Allen said.
Like Peters, Allen expects Australia’s own opportunities for bio-particle fuels are still limited. 'Australia is like a large coal-fired generator. There is no burning of biomass in this country. This is mainly due to the political pressure from the Greens. They There is concern that the fuel will come from ancient forests, and there will be work from unions to protect coal miners,' he said. 'The domestic heating market is also very small, and southern states have a limited number of heaters for home heating and office heating in winter temperatures.'
Australian plantation can Source company's particle plant International expansion
Altus Renewables, located in Loganholme, Queensland, specializes in the production and sale of biomass fuels. It produces 125,000 tons of wood pellets per year in Tuan's fiber processing facility. The pellets are exported to the UK, Denmark, South Korea and Japan markets for power plants. Heating and co-firing.
Ian Sandeman has been Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the company since 2007. He said: 'Austria still has a long way to go before realizing our bio-energy potential. As a producer of wood pellets, we completely Depend on the international market, because our particles do not have a domestic market.
Altus Renewables is planning a project for the Mount Gambier area in southern Australia. This is a 500,000-ton plant that will export wood pellets from Port of Portland, Victoria, to serve the European and Asian markets. The preliminary feasibility study was recently completed and formal feasibility studies will be started in the next few months,' Sandeman said. 'If everything goes according to plan, the final investment decision may be made before the end of the year. The formal feasibility study is completed. Assuming positive results, the factory will take about 24 to 30 months to complete.'
Whether or not the Mount Gambier plant will receive government support remains to be seen. 'The South Australian government has changed two weeks ago, but we think the incoming government will support the project,' Sandeman pointed out in early April. 'At this stage we are Trying to determine if the new government is willing to provide assistance for the project.
Altus Renewables Annual production from a processing plant on the east coast of Australia 125,000 tons of wood Particles Which future?
The QUT Bioenergy paper emphasizes that Australia has sufficient conditions to benefit from the growth in the biofuels and chemical industries because of the large amount of biomass in the country. It cites a recent study showing the total amount of potentially available biomass for all raw materials in Australia each year. The volume is 78 million tons, and it is expected to increase to nearly 100 million tons by 2030 and increase to 114 million tons by 2050.
“Given the investment and policy dynamics of other countries, the biofuels and dual product industries can only develop in Australia if they create an enabling environment,” the newspaper stated. To achieve this goal, QUT recommended a five-point plan - this plan will soon be Support from Bioenergy Australia. Its recommendations are:
• Develop national biofuels, bio-based products and bio-economic strategies.
• Implement national biofuel missions to support the use of higher quality fuels.
• Provide support mechanisms - including education, incentives, and infrastructure.
• Establish a policy framework to develop emerging industries - advanced biofuels, biochemistry and bio-based products.
• Support business development through cooperation between industry and research.
'The development of Australia's vibrant bioeconomy provides an important economic growth opportunity that will help diversify the Australian economy and create regional and rural employment opportunities. It is critical that Australia now take action to seize this opportunity.' The QUT file concludes.
In short, this will be a matter of concern to all parties and whether Australia will continue to use the country’s bio-energy potential to serve the international market, or use its indigenous biomass products to generate environmental and economic benefits.
Author: Patrick Miller
Biomass Special Contributing Writer
