Performance of Generating Plant - World Energy Council

Performance of Generating Plant: Managing the Changes Executive Summary World Energy Council 200712Table 3 Land area required for different renewable power plantsSource: WEC and US DOEEnergy source Wind Solar (PV) Biomass GeothermalLand area for a 1 GW plant100 km²but can be used foragricultural purposes30 km²but panels can beinstalled on roofs5000 km² 200 km²biomass actually delivered only 1% of the globalelectricity, far behind fossil fuels (66.4%), largehydro (16.2%), and nuclear (15.2%).Europe and North America are the two leaderswith almost 75% of the global bioelectricityproduction ahead of Asia (about 18%) and Africawith only 0.2%.Wood and other biomass materials can beprocessed and used to generate electricity.There are three major transformations presentlyin use: combustion, gasification and pyrolysis ofbiomass.Combustion is the most common way ofconverting solid biomass fuels to energybecause of the low cost and high reliability.Gasification and pyrolysis are still underdevelopment but are generally expected tobecome more common in the future.Biomass is a part of the renewable energyportfolio and it can offer an array of benefits:• No greenhouse gases during the life cycleand lower overall emissions than fossilfuelplants• Forest sustainability• Energy independence and regionalintegration• Proven technologies for combustion andco-firing• Use of low-cost productsBiomass systems are most often fuelled bywaste wood, from logging operations, forestthinning, low-grade wood or sawmill residues,which are far too frequently burnt in the openwithout pollution control. These systems createa commercial market for wood, while alsoboosting the forestry economy.Moreover, biomass cultivation can reduce therisk of wildfires by removing small diameter treesthat act as a fuel. It prevents harmful effects offorest fires on the atmosphere, including releaseof mercury, toxic materials, GHGs and NOx.Biomass conversion to electricity providessignificant benefits, but is also has several majordrawbacks:• Seasonal availability• Transport and processing• Emissions• Land area requirementThe land area that is required for exploitation bya biomass power plant is huge when comparedto other energies. Table 3 shows this land arearequired for exploitation of a 1GW renewableenergy plant (average values).Theoretically biomass energy has enormouspotential. The long-term biomass electricityproduction potential is estimated at 11,000TWhper year, i.e. more than 60% of the worldwideelectricity production in 2005 (18,140TWh). Thispotential is higher than that of other renewableenergies: hydro (7,500 TWh), wind energy(around 4,500 TWh), Solar energy (4,400 TWh).However, biomass must be divided amongst alluses (food, heating, electricity, bio-fuels).