Industry association Bioenergy Europe today welcomed political agreement on a revised renewables directive that deleted reference to primary woody biomass. But the deal overcomplicates provisions and represents additional burden on smaller operators, the industry said.
The outcome of negotiations shows an "emotionally-driven debate, which was not based on facts, had no chance" for Bioenergy Europe secretary general Jean-Marc Jossart. But Jossart regrets general lowering of the threshold for the directive's sustainability criteria to 7.5MW and not 20MW, as under the still applicable 2018 renewables directive. Such complicated provisions will be an "additional burden" on smaller operator.
For Jossart, parliament and EU member states have avoided "controversial approaches", echoing BioEnergy Europe's earlier concerns over drafts negatively referencing "primary woody biomass", which would have jeopardised a large part of the sustainable biomass supply. But the industry added the provisional agreement overcomplicates and risks "hindering the EU decarbonisation process and destabilising market actors".
The industry also noted the agreement rejects the "conceptually flawed" definition of primary woody biomass. Under the principle of cascading use of biomass, with no further implementing legislation, "woody biomass" is to be "used according to its highest economic and environmental added value". The text sets an order of use with first, wood-based products, extended service life, re-use, recycling and only then bio-energy followed by disposal.
Importantly, the agreement prohibits member states from providing direct financial support for "industrial grade roundwood" defined as saw logs, veneer logs and pulpwood. And there will be no new support for power-only biomass installations with existing support only to be continued but not renewed.
And the new directive will require new installations to meet an 80pc greenhouse gas (GHG) savings threshold relative to a fossil fuel comparator. For biomass installations over 10MW that started operation in 2021, the GHG savings threshold is at least 70pc until 31 December 2029, and then at least 80pc from 2030. Installations that started before 2021 will have to meet the 80pc GHG threshold after 15 years of operation or after 2030.
To appease parliament that sought exclusion of primary woody biomass from support schemes, the revised law commits the commission, by 2027, to presenting a report on the impact of member states' support schemes for biomass, including on biodiversity, climate, environment and possible market distortions. The commission is to assess "the possibility for further limitations regarding support schemes to forest biomass".
In September, parliament had voted a draft to keep counting all forms of biomass energy — including primary woody biomass — as renewable for the EU's 2030 target. But members wanted to cap, at 2017-22 levels, primary woody biomass' share in the renewables target and exclude member state financial support for primary woody biomass.
