Time for Europe to embrace ‘affordable, sustainable’ energy solutions
The European Union should embrace new renewable solutions such as gas fermentation technologies to advance towards a low-carbon economy, argues Jennifer Holmgren.
View ArticleAmid growing demand, German organic farming suffers first decline
The organic foods sector is booming, but in Germany, farming is decreasing, with the number of acres devoted to cultivation shrinking for the first time. EurActiv Germany reports.
View ArticleDirect subsidies can spur green transport innovation, regions told
Handing subsidies, including EU funding, directly to local governments - rather than to industry - can spur green innovation in public transport, regional leaders were told today (13 October).
View ArticleCzech farmers take the slow lane to renewable energies
Turning to eco-friendly farming practices under the EU’s new Rural Development Programme may be challenging for the Czech Republic, where renewable energies have a bad reputation. EurActiv.cz reports.
View ArticleBritain’s gas: Let’s focus on efficiency, not fracking
The closure of the UK’s largest gas storage facility along with disruption to Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) supplies this month puts UK energy at a crossroads, writes Joseph Dutton. Rather than focus on...
View ArticleGas lobby chief: ‘In 2050, 76% of gas could be renewable’
The excess wind and solar electricity generated at times of oversupply could be used more systematically to produce synthetic gas, providing a convenient way of storing renewable energy that would...
View ArticleEurope’s love of roses sends ripples through Kenyan lake
Kenya is one of the biggest exporters of cut flowers in the world but the booming industry has created a raft of environmental problems. Local producers are now coming up with new ideas to cut...
View ArticleBuilding energy infrastructure is not a zero-sum game
Full electrification does not mean decarbonisation, writes Marco Alverà. Infrastructure which carries natural gas today will be needed in future to carry increasing amounts of biomethane, green...
View ArticleShowdown over biogas on margins of car CO2 vote
Europe's gas industry wants renewable fuels completely accounted for in updated car CO2 rules. But the MEP charged with helming the legislation's revision hopes to shield her report from industry...
View ArticleStudy dampens industry projections for ‘renewable gas’ in 2050
Renewable methane – whether produced from waste, manure or synthetic sources – could displace at most 7% of natural gas in Europe at the current demand rate, according to a new study by the...
View ArticleBiogas in Germany: Maintaining momentum
With the European Parliament backing a net zero emissions target for 2050, EU member states will need to further develop their biogas markets to continue to reduce emissions from waste, energy, and...
View ArticleGas must be ‘completely’ decarbonised by 2050, says UK think-tank
Britain must entirely get rid of fossil-based natural gas in the coming three decades if the country is to meet its long-term decarbonisation objectives, according to a think-tank close to the ruling...
View ArticleGas industry boss: ‘We have to make gas greener’
The European gas industry is on the cusp of a green revolution similar to the one that took place in the electricity sector, with a greater variety of low-carbon gases feeding into the grid at the...
View ArticleGas network chief: ‘By 2050, we assume CO2 emissions from energy will be zero’
Europe’s electricity and gas operators are currently working on a joint network plan based on a carbon budget which includes zero-emission scenarios for 2050. “And that automatically means there will...
View Article‘No future’ for fossil gas in Europe, Greens insist
Natural gas of fossil origin has “no future” in Europe, Greens have warned as EU energy ministers prepared to sign a declaration on Tuesday (2 April) promoting “smart gas infrastructure” as part of a...
View Article11 EU countries snub Romanian Presidency’s gas declaration
The European Commission, backed by 11 EU member states, refused to sign a declaration on “sustainable and smart gas infrastructure” tabled by the Romanian Presidency earlier this week because the text...
View ArticleFour energy storage projects that could transform Europe
A demonstration plant in Germany that converts wind electricity into hydrogen is probably the most emblematic of a series of pilot projects that could radically transform Europe’s energy landscape in...
View Article‘We need this dinosaur’: EU lifts veil on gas decarbonisation strategy
As the new European Commission of Ursula von der Leyen prepares to take office, one of its key priorities will be to deliver on a new market design for gas that will have EU decarbonisation objectives...
View ArticleBiogas in the EU
Biogas production remains tiny at the moment in Europe, but the industry has big plans for the future, provided costs can be lowered and environmental issues addressed. In this special report, EURACTIV...
View ArticleThe future of biogas in Europe: it’s a local affair
The prospects for biogas in Europe look bright, with conservative estimates pointing to a tenfold increase in production by 2030. However, the industry will need to stay rooted in the local economy and...
View ArticleAcademic: Higher carbon price needed to ramp up EU biomethane production
The price of CO2 credits on Europe’s emissions trading scheme needs to rise to around €50 per tonne in order to drive the long-term development of Europe’s biomethane industry, says Marc-Antoine...
View ArticleEuropeans confront biomethane cost reduction challenge
Biomethane production costs are expected to fall in the coming decade as more biogas plants come on stream. But analysts warn that massive cost reductions like in the solar and wind power sector are...
View ArticleCalls grow for EU-wide certificates to boost market for ‘green gas’
The market for Guarantees of Origin (GOs) linked to renewable gas is currently in its infancy. But with demand building up, industry figures – and environmentalists – are now calling for existing...
View ArticleGas industry storms into EU green finance taxonomy debate
Industry executives argue fossil gas should be considered green when it displaces coal in power generation, sparking fresh controversy around an upcoming EU sustainable finance taxonomy aimed at...
View ArticleBioenergy, forestry sectors jump on EU’s green finance bandwagon
Bioenergies, including wood, biofuels and forest-based industries, should be recognised under the EU’s draft sustainable finance taxonomy, in line with the recently-updated renewable energy directive,...
View ArticleRenewable gases: Where do they stand in the EU’s 2050 energy roadmap?
Widely accepted as a “transition fuel” until 2030 to help wean Europe from coal, gas is also positioning itself as a clean fuel beyond that date. But meeting the EU’s 2050 climate goals will require a...
View ArticleEU plans ‘big increase’ in green gas to meet climate goals
Production of biogas, biomethane and “green” hydrogen will have to skyrocket by at least 1,000% over the next three decades in order to reach the EU’s climate neutrality objective for 2050, an EU...
View ArticleRenewable gases bring European jobs that cannot be outsourced
Deployment of renewable gases will bring the local job opportunities the new Commission is striving for in the European Green Deal, write Wouter Terlouw and Thibaud Lemercier.
View ArticleLeave nothing to waste in agriculture: Spain’s race to top circular economy
The agrifood sector has no intention of staying behind in the race for leading the circular economy, in which everything, even the tiniest waste from crops and industries, can have an added value and...
View ArticleGermany should protect moors, consume less meat to reach EU’s new climate...
In Germany, where agriculture is officially responsible for 6.3% of the country's greenhouse gas emissions, around 14 million tonnes of greenhouse gases must be saved in order to reach the Paris...
View ArticleGas wins recognition as ‘transitional technology’ to climate neutrality
The lower carbon intensity of natural gas – which produces half the emissions of coal when burned in power plants – and the emergence of new technologies like hydrogen are setting gas apart from other...
View ArticleLEAK: Commission banks on biogas to protect EU farmers from energy crisis
Biogas production has been earmarked as a key way to help fortify the EU's struggling farm sector against burgeoning energy costs, according to a draft of the European Commission’s communication on...
View ArticleHow Europe can rapidly reduce its gas dependency
The EU currently pays an estimated 360 billion euros a year to import fossil fuels – which in the case of gas ends up heating often inefficient and leaky homes, a sum equal to the need for clean energy...
View Article10 measures the EU should adopt to reduce Russian gas dependency
The International Energy Agency has presented the EU with 10 measures to reduce its dependence on Russian natural gas within a year, without it having to abandon its environmental objectives set out in...
View ArticleCommission mulls new communication on impact of energy crisis on the agri sector
The European Commission is considering a new, separate communication on the impact of the energy crisis focused specifically on the agriculture sector alongside a broader communication on the energy...
View ArticleCommission doubles ambition for EU biomethane production from agricultural waste
The European Commission has doubled its objective for home-grown biomethane production to 35 billion cubic metres per year by 2030 as part of efforts to bolster the bloc against a looming energy...
View ArticleREPowering the EU with biomethane [Promoted content]
The renewable gas sector is ready to deliver, but coordinated efforts and investments will be required to reach those goals. Watch EBA's statement to learn more.
View ArticleGermany to use controversial biomass amid energy crisis
Biomass will be used to meet particularly high energy demands, according to the German government's so-called "Easter Package", which aims to use agricultural raw materials for energy production in...
View ArticleEurope rediscovers biogas in search for energy independence
The war in Ukraine has given renewable gas a new impetus, with the European Commission proposing to ramp up biomethane production to 35 billion cubic metres (bcm) by 2030, up from 3 bcm in 2020. In...
View ArticleGerman farmers, industry decry neglect of biogas amid gas shortages
Bioenergy and German farmers' associations have criticised the country's renewable energy act (EEG) amendment passed in the Bundestag on Thursday (7 July) on the grounds that it does not provide...
View ArticleEU biomethane policy could see history repeat itself
Lawmakers in the European Parliament are considering adding a biomethane mandate to the Renewable Energy Directive, a move aimed at weaning Europe off of imported fossil fuels. But in doing so they...
View ArticleREPowerEU takes shape: Biomethane Industrial Partnership launched [Promoted...
European Commission’s Executive Vice-President and Commissioner for Energy have launched the Biomethane Industrial Partnership (BIP) as part of the REPowerEU package of urgent actions to mitigate the...
View ArticleFrench citizens oppose construction of new mega-biogas producer
A small town near the French city of Nantes could soon welcome a new anaerobic digester benefitting up to 200 farmers, but locals oppose the plan over concerns of environmental harm.
View ArticleGerman laws hinder potential for biogas to replace Russian imports, industry...
Despite high demand for biogas, few new production facilities have been built in Germany, according to the country’s biogas industry which cites legal barriers. Campaigners, however, warn against...
View ArticleGRDF chief: France is on track to exceed its biomethane goals
Renewable gases are gaining ground in Europe, with France on track to exceed its 2023 intermediate objectives for biomethane injection into the grid. To catch up with the industry, EURACTIV France...
View ArticleBeyond energy – monetising biomethane’s whole-system benefits [Promoted content]
A new report from the European Biogas Association shows that, in 2030, the whole system benefits of biomethane production in the EU27 + UK could range from 38-78€ billion per year, rising to 133-283€...
View ArticleDanish biogas plants to be checked for methane leakage
Pipes and pumps at Denmark’s biogas plants will be checked starting this week to reduce the leakage at biogas plants reported to average 2.5% of the methane produced.
View ArticleSpain raises bet on green hydrogen, biogas in draft energy plan
Spain will double its 2030 biogas production target and almost triple its green hydrogen goal as part of a broad upgrade of its energy and climate ambitions, a draft of the government's strategy showed...
View ArticleEU agrees new rules for investments into hydrogen infrastructure
Negotiations on the first part of the EU's new gas and hydrogen market rules have been concluded, paving the way for investments into new infrastructure amid a special carve-out for Germany's municipal...
View ArticleBiomethane production up 20% in 2022 boosting renewable gas ramp-up [Promoted...
Brussels 12/12/23 – Biomethane production in Europe grew by almost 20% in 2022 compared to the previous year, according to data from the new edition of the biogases industry report released last week....
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