Bioenergy From Wood Capable of Substituting for a Fifth of German Oil Use

Energy from wood, corn and plants has the potential to replace as much as a fifth of Germany’s oil consumption within a decade, according to a study by a renewable energy lobby group.

Plants grown domestically and used for the production of biofuel, biodiesel and electricity generation could replace 22 million tons of oil, Germany’s Agency for Renewable Energy said. Germany consumes about 100 million metric tons, or 730 million barrels of oil, a year.

Biofuel and other plant-based sources already account for three-quarters of Germany’s renewable energy output, more than the energy produced by wind turbines and solar panels. Wood, rapeseed and other plants are the only form of low-carbon energy that can be easily stored and used for transportation as well as power generation.

“Bioenergy already is competitive with many conventional energy sources,” Andreas Schuette, who heads an agriculture ministry-sponsored agency that coordinates research into crops used for bioenergy, said in an interview. “More development will make bioenergy even more attractive.”

Almost 4 million hectares will be needed for growing biofuel crops and operating windmills and solar parks within 10 years, according to the renewable energy agency. That compares with 1.77 million hectares used for renewable energy now in a country of 35.7 million hectares.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jeremy van Loon in Berlin at jvanloon@bloomberg.net.

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