Biogas and biofuels: high growth rates in 2004

Crude biogas production in 2004 shows a growth of 9%. For biofuels a growth of 25.7% is seen in 2004. The biogas production is estimated at 4265 ktoe (thousands of tons oil equivalent) for all of the 25 countries of the European Union. Considering biofuels produced in the EU, biodiesel represents the largest share of the with a 79.5% market share in 2004, leaving 20.5% of the market to bioethanol. The crude biogas production should be around 8.6 million toe in 2010, if the growth rate observed last year is maintained until then. This figure is very much below the ambitions of the European Commission White Paper that set an objective of 15 million toe for this date. The three leading European biogas producers are the United Kingdom with 1473 ktoe, Germany with 1291 ktoe and France with 359 ktoe. The number of industrial participants decreased during the last two years. When the current trend in biofuels is compared with European Commission objectives, it can be seen that the White Paper's 2010 objective (18 Mtoe) will not be reached. Taking current developments into consideration, biofuel production is estimated at 2.8 million toe in 2005 and at 9.4 million toe in 2010. This can, however, change quickly. The implementation of biofuel sectors in European Union countries like the United Kingdom, Portugal, Belgium, Finland, Czech Republic and still others, could allow Europe to reach its goals.