Sustainable feedstock critical to second-generation biofuel success, IEA finds

With hard questions being asked about the sustainability of current bioenergy technologies, so-called second-generation biofuels are being heralded as a major solution to future demand for non-fossil transport fuels. The International Energy Agency (IEA) has examined progress being made towards new bioenergy technologies, concluding that sourcing sufficient, sustainable feedstock will be critical to their success in the long term.

In its report “From 1st to 2nd Generation Biofuel Technologies. An overview of current industry and RD&D activities”, the IEA states that numerous steps are still needed to make the transition to second-generation biofuels. Furthermore, there is the need for a study to show policymakers the potential implications of their action and provide recommendations on ways forward.

“Second-generation biofuels hold high hopes but have not achieved commercial-ready status,” commented Lew Fulton, Senior Transport Energy Specialist at the IEA. “Technical progress has been made, but they remain costly and unproven at a commercial scale. Competing land use remains an issue.” Fulton presented the report, prepared in cooperation with the Italian Ministry for the Environment Land and Sea as a contribution to the GBEP programme of work, at the GBEP’s side event held during the UNFCCC COP 14 in Poznan, Poland, on 11 December.

The IEA study found second-generation biofuels are unlikely to become fully commercial within a decade. If they do, and with strong policy support, the agency estimates they could account for a 5-7% share of world transport fuels by 2030 and 25% by 2050. The present share of second-generation biofuels is less than 0.1% of total biofuel production, the report states, and the first commercial plants seem possible after 2012-15.

The report focuses on two second-generation pathways: biochemical (making ligno-cellulosic ethanol from enzymatic hydrolysis of waste biomass, switchgrass, short rotation trees, etc.) and thermo-chemical (biomass-to-liquids via gasification and Fischer-Tropsch synthesis to build hydrocarbon chains). Both of these conversion routes have reached the demonstration stage but key technical and economic issues remain.

Given the risky nature of investing in this field at this stage, government support will be crucial and must be part of an overall bioenergy strategy, Fulton said. A better understanding of feedstocks, their geographic distribution and costs is also required. Policy developments in the US and Europe will be important to watch, he added.

An extended summary of the report is available for free download from the IEA website and shortly on the GBEP website.

 

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