The public's not hearing about the bioenergy market, it's rare to see commercialisation thinkingaround it and the sector's more like an enthusiasts club.
In opening a mini conference in Wellington about how to implement the Bioenergy Association'sstrategy (see here ), executiveofficer Brian Cox says thing need to change if New Zealand wants to derive 30% of the country'stransport fuels by 2040.
"People tend to be technology focused rather than commercially focused," he says. "We're tendingto the supply side rather than the demand."
The following points notable points struck sticK at the bioenergy event, which reckons that theuse of wood and its wastes, as well as short rotation crops, for their direct heat, liquid and gascomponents can help make New Zealand much less dependent on imported fossil fuels.
Chris Boalch - NZTE - Strategic Initiatives
•Given that crude oil prices could easily double in the next five years, getting bioenergyright is considered one of NZ's critical areas
•Canada has a very comprehensive bioenergystrategy, and for some declining industries such as its forestry sector, asked itself some hairyquestions and have developed a Canada Inc approach
Stephen Schuck - Bioenergy Australia (via videoconference)
•More than 200 power stations worldwide co-fire wood pellets with coal
•Flagshipbioenergy projects in Australia are few and far between
Kevin Snowden - Vertichem
•Growing short rotation salix willows, extracting valuable products through a patentedprocess. At pilot stage for production of green chemicals
•Parent company about to list onthe Toronto stock exchange
•Have joint venture partnered with the Warner Babcock Institutefor Green Chemistry (Boston)
•Able to extract lignin, and xylose and cellulose (to makeethanol) from willows. Has the potential to extract 80% of the trees total value from lignin (toproduce superior phenols among other things), and xylose (sweetner). Ethanol almost a by-product
•Biotechnology drives its conversion technology and its market ready products. Green chemistryadds value for NZ
Michael Jack - Scion
•From a science symposium held late last year the research community has agreed to worktogether to:
•Need to hear from industry on what research this centre should provide
•Need to adopt and adapt overseas biofuel examples that are the best fit for NZ
•Less than 1% of NZ boilers have been converted to wood chip or pellet use
•Opportunities for the use of wood as a heat source can be very regionally specific
•Ideally, would like a large, non-wood processing industry to use wood for their ownrequirements. This would allow a fuel supplier to have sufficient economies of scale to getestablished and hence, supply smaller customers. In other words, remove some of the supply risk byproviding longer term contracts
Brian Cox - BANZ executive director (& director of East Harbour Energy)
•The bioenergy industry needs to take ownership of its future and show:
•There's adisconnect between global observers who come to New Zealand and recognise the country's bioenergyvalue, and local participants. This country has an excellent bioenergy resource, and an ease ofdoing business
•But, there's little appreciation of investor risk within the wider bioenergycommunity