Task 4.6 STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT PLANS. Summary Report

Transcription

1 Task 4.6 STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT PLANS Strategy development at the sub-regional level in the Baltic Sea Region Summary Report 2012 and Partnership Instrument) 1

2 Content Summary... 3 Introduction... 4 Background... 4 General description of the regions... 6 The strategic work in each (sub)region including background, results, future actions Belarus Grodno Region (Partner 26/27) Denmark- Region Zealand (Partner 09/35/36) Finland North Karelia (Partner 11) Germany Nordwestmecklenburg (Partner 06) Germany Rotenburg County (Partner 04) Germany West Brandenburg (Partner 07) Latvia - Tukums and Jelgava municipalities (Partner 16/18) Lithuania- Kaunas region (Partner 20) Norway Inland region (Partner 28/30) Sweden Västra Götaland (Partner 32) Summary of results Main conclusions Appendix 1 30 Appendix 2 31 Appendix 3 32 and Partnership Instrument) 2

3 Summary The Bioenergy Promotion task 4.6 Strategic Management Plans was carried out in the second half of the project period and is the last one to be reported in this project as a result that it is a summary of the whole project. The task was performed in ten different regions and involving 15 project partners. The work was focused on how to implement strategic management plans considering bioenergy in the different regions on local and/or regional level. In order to perform this task the previous tasks in work package 4: Sub regions were used as information in how to proceed with the strategic management plans in the different regions. Valuable input was also achieved from task 3.4. Sub-regional policy showcases. The project partnersin North Karelia, Finland and Västra Götaland, Sweden, focused on implementing bioenergy thinking in education of students and young people. In the region Innland, Norway, the project partners focused on renewal of old management plans on local level i.e. in municipalities. Other areas which were considered were the creation of bioenergy villages or at least increase of use of renewable energy sources RES on local and regional level,(the partner in Nordwestmecklenburg). In Kaunas, Lithuania, strategic management plans was a totally new experience and required by new laws in these countries which are highly dependent on fossil fuel. In both Lithuania and Belarus the strategic management plans was produced on governmental level with input and proceeding work performed on regional level. In these countries input from other countries experiences was important. One of the main conclusions is the importance with networking and cluster building between regions and countries as well as between bioenergy areas. All this important work and results are possible and the outcome of the Bioenergy Promotion project and the results of this task will to a great extent proceed in the different regions by implementing the use of bioenergy in accordance with the created strategic management plans. and Partnership Instrument) 3

4 Introduction Renewable energy sources (RES) have become more and more important in the world during the last few decades and according to data of International Energy Agency RES made up 12,7% (or 1528 Mtoe) of total primary energy supply in the world in The use of biomass is more than 70% of these figures. This covers almost 1/3 of all energy consumption in less-developed countries. Internationally it is promoted to increase use of biomass for energy production, particularly in industrialized countries. In both the local and global environment it is an important development and an advantage for bioenergy as applied to the issue of global warming. A significant positive impact on the demand for biomass energy is energy production towards cleaner, greener, smaller and by using more decentralized facilities. In order to promote the development of sustainable production and commercialization in the Baltic Sea Region the Bioenergy Promotion project was started in January The project ends in January The project will promote the development of a sustainable production of and commercialization of biomass in the Baltic Sea Region. The project aims to strengthen the development towards a sustainable, competitive and territorially integrated Baltic Sea Region in the field of sustainable use of bioenergy. The project is intended to serve as a major Baltic Sea Region-wide platform for: Cross-sectoral and transnational networking to facilitate information and knowledge exchange Coordinating policy development Designing the application instruments to promote bioenergy Creating a platform for regional development Background In the Bioenergy Promotion project there are five work packages which describes the areas that has been regarded most important to succeed to promote the use of biomass for bioenergy. These work packages concerns the areas: information, policy, sub regions and business. Work package 4, Sub regions, is dealing with the development of biomass and bioenergy in different regions around the Baltic Sea including Norway and Belarus. To serve as testing grounds for bioenergy promotion one or more regions was developed in each country. In each region the biomass potential has been assessed, business and industry has been analysed, pilot projects identified, regional network points established and in the end strategic management plans has been developed i.e. task 4.6. This means that during the last year of the project the work and effort has been concentrated to develop and implement strategic management plans for an integrated and optimized use of biomass and bioenergy by some selected project partners and regions. One of the main goals of the Bioenergy Promotion project is the overview of regional strategic planning in promotion of the production and use of biomass for bioenergy. and Partnership Instrument) 4

5 The purpose with Work package 4 is the: Development of regional value added chains and process chains in the domain of the biomass production (strategic management plan - biomass production concept) To compare the different developing conditions and experiences between different regions in the BSR area. Exposure of regional trends, tendencies and differences regarding to the main goal of a balanced Europe. The project aims to establish a testing ground for policy as well as technical and market issues on subregional scale. The purpose with task 4.6 Strategic Management Plans was, by using the results and input from the other work packages and tasks, to develop and implement strategic management plans for an integrated and optimized use of biomass / bioenergy. This will be one of the political tools, used for the promotion of the biomass and bioenergy sector. In the Bioenergy Promotion project overview for task 4.6 Strategic Management Plans, the development and implementation of strategic management plans is described schematically as below and should be considered during the work: For an integrated and optimized use of biomass / bioenergy. The main focus on this juncture is the integration of the land surfaces or locations into the regional structure of the rural areas. Specific developing strategies of the region as well as the effects of the European policy are important factors that have to be analyzed. This will pin point development scenarios. Interpretation of the gained information and pinpoint the strong and weak points of the region. During the task period a template was produced and answered (Appendix 1) as well as a schedule including important points to consider and a time plan (Appendix 2). With this in mind the work proceeded in the selected regions as below and the contribution scheme from the project partners is gathered in a delivery table (Appendix 3). Region Grodno, Belarus Region Zealand, Denmark North Karelia, Finland Nordwestmecklenburg, Germany Rotenburg, Germany West Brandenburg, Germany Tukums and Jelgava counties, Latvia Kaunas, Lithuania Region Innland, Norway *Jämtland and Västernorrland, Sweden Västra Götaland, Sweden Partner 26/27, Grodno PLHO 09/35/36, Region Zealand, Research Institute of Food and Resource Economics, University of Roskilde 11, University of Eastern Finland 06, Landkreis Nordwestmecklenburg 04, Chamber of Agriculture Lower Saxony 07, Industrie- und Handelskammer Potsdam 16/18, Latvia University of Agriculture, Vides projekti 20, Lithuanian Energy Institute 28/30, NFLI and the Energy Farm *02, Regional Council of Jämtland County former JiLU 32, Naturbrukskansliet * The Regional Council of Jämtland County participates as task leader and the task is to summarize the task. There is no contribution with a strategic management plan in the region. and Partnership Instrument) 5

6 General description of the regions In this chapter follows a short summary of information gathered from Task 4.1 Identification of regions and Task 4.5 Pilot projects, published in previous project reports (Bjørlien and Søgaard 2009; Bjørlien 2010; Plöchl and Aust 2011) as well as input from a template which was a part of the work in this task. Belarus Grodno Region (Partner 26/27) Area: 25,000 km 2, Inhabitants: 1,123,400, Density: 45/km 2 Forests occupy 38 % of the territory of Grodno oblast and the agricultural sector of the region works in a stable regime. Taking in consideration the production of main types of agricultural products per capita, the region occupies a leading place not only in the republic, but also among neighbouring and distant countries. The annual increase in forest resources is assumed to reach 3.37 M m3, so that an increased thinning could cover the current demand and supply to further purposes, e.g. liquid fuels via Fischer-Tropsch synthesis. Denmark - Zealand (Partner 09/35/36) Area: 7273 km 2, Inhabitants: (2011), Population density: 113 per/km 2 (new information originating from an activity report from the Danish partners (January 2012). The key source of biomass in the Region Zealand is provided by the agriculture. 85% of the farms in the region are engaged in crop production and the rest with cattle or pigs. Agricultural area: almost 70% of the area in the region. Forestry area: 12% of the area in the region. The main bioenergy resources of the region are municipal solid waste, waste and produce from agriculture as liquid manure, straw and grain, wood waste as well as waste from food industry e.g. bagasse from sugar production. Two thirds of the available straw is already used in regional combined heat and power as well as heating systems. RES in the decentral CHP and heating systems in Region Zealand: Fossil fuel 24% Straw 10% Wood 28% Biogas 2% Incineration 34% Other biomass 3% Strong arguments in region Zealand is that the regional policy is to shape a 100% RE region and that there are rather big amounts of biomass resources (agriculture, forestry, industry, waste, marine biomass). Many actors have experience with bioenergy, and the interest among citizens is very high. Weak arguments are lack of sufficiently staffed support structures. and Partnership Instrument) 6

7 Finland North Karelia (Partner 11) Area: 21,585 km 2, inhabitants: ca , density; 9.5 /km 2. An area consisting of 17 % lakes, 4 % are agricultural land and almost 70 % are forests Regional politics and bioenergy development is fostered by the North Karelian Bioenergy Programme 2015, released in 2006/07. The programme aims to decrease total energy consumption and increase energy efficiency, the share bioenergy and other renewable energies shall be increased to 85 % of production, while consumption of oil and other fossils should be reduced by 40 to 50 %. Strong arguments for bioenergy are increase of forest bioenergy from wood chips and forest residues and forest industries by-products. Weak arguments for bioenergy may be that the plan should have taken into account future scenarios like shortage of raw materials for forest industries which will affect bio-energy production, how any economic crisis like the one we recently had could affect the forest bio-energy production Germany Nordwestmecklenburg (Partner 06) Area: 2118 km², Inhabitants: , density 76/km². The sub-region is dominated by agriculture, 61%, 8% grassland and only 13% are forested. Current bioenergy provision concentrates on biogas and vegetable oil from rape seed. Due to German legislation of increased energy taxes on vegetable oil and biodiesel as well as to mandatory blending of mineral diesel the latter has decreased. The potential of liquid and solid manure is approx. 680,700 t per year which could increase the number of biogas plants to 195 with a total power age of 97.5 MWel, but there is not enough economic strength of the enterprises to implement these. Germany Rotenburg County (Partner 04) Area: km², Inhabitants: ; Population density: ca 80/km 2 The region is characterized by agriculture (approx 2/3) and forestry (1/6) with high bioenergy potential Structural changes in agriculture will promote the bioenergy sector Bioenergy is less developed while wind, solar and hydro power are well developed. Further development aims to implement a regional wood energy concept and to increase biogas production from grass from permanent grasslands by implementing co-operative central biogas plants. In addition digestate will be treated to reduce water content and increase transportability. Strong arguments for bioenergy are biogas which is a good option for income for farmers and a well established technology and consumers network and woody biomass which is severely unused resources in both forests and landscape. Furthermore there is a good efficiency of input-output. Weak arguments for the use of biogas are that it is mainly based on maize which means losses in biodiversity and landscape aspects. For woody bioenergy there are dispersed resources and stakeholders, still lack of efficient technology, lack of bigger local consumers and problems of nutrient extraction on poor forest soils may occur. and Partnership Instrument) 7

8 Germany West Brandenburg (Partner 07) Area: 13,226 km², Inhabitants: 1, 12 million; density: 85/ km² The Federal State of Brandenburg is the size of Belgium and has more forests and lakes than any other state in Germany the agricultural area is 50% and the forest area is ca. 30% and in German relations it is a weak populated region. The median size of the farms is several hundred hectares. The largest farms have an area of 3,000 to 4,000 hectares and 2,000 to 3,000 heads of dairy cattle. Further farm produce is rye (22 %), other grains (30 %), oil seed (14 %), and feed crops (22 %). More than 5 % is still set aside land. Strong arguments for bioenergy in this region is of the agricultural land, large reserves (yet unused) of dairy cattle manure, large potentials of grasslands and the possibility of support of bioenergy strategies by the regional farmer associations, cooperation of farmer association and biogas associations. Potsdam region has most scientific and research institutions in Germany and guaranteed feed-in tariffs for electricity from renewables also are important factors. Weak arguments are decreasing reservoirs of wood due to restructuring of regional forests, public scepticism towards agriculture monoculture, low capital resources of agricultural enterprises, little public incentives for investment as well as farms are usually remote and hence far from heat users. Latvia - Tukums and Jelgava municipalities (Partner 16 and 18) Tukums municipality Area: 1198 km², Inhabitants: >19000; Population density: 16/km². The municipality is located in northwestern part of the country and belongs to Riga planning region. It is forest dominated and the most significant resources are wood, grit, sand, peat, clay, therapeutic mud and mineral springs. In the end of 2008 this area had the fourth lowest unemployment rate in the country. Wood is a traditional resource for heating in private homes as well as in district heating. Tukums city is also known for being the largest district heating system in Latvia (about 20 MW) based on woody biomass until the recent years, when the new, bigger biomass plants were built. Because of less agricultural activity large areas of agricultural land, approx ha, have been naturally afforested again. From those naturally afforested farmlands (NAF) approx. 70 GWh of bioenergy could be extracted; specifically, in form of wood chips (17 GWh), firewood (6 GWh), harvesting residues (9 GWh), stumps (15 GWh), and residue from industrial processing (22 GWh). The wood from NAF could replace fossil fuels (58 GWh) currently used in district heating in Tukums area. However, utilization of these resources requires considerable long term investments (about 9 mills. EUR). Energy obtainable from agricultural biomass was 323 GWh, including heat energy from cereals and rape straw (90 GWh), biogas energy from livestock manure (27 GWh), from food wastes (32 GWh) and from unused agricultural areas (173 GWh) in municipality Tukums. Cereals grain resources was 38,450 t and rape seed total yield was 10,800 t, usable for bioethanol and biodiesel production in municipality Tukums in Around 800 t of wheat straw vas utilized for production of straw briquettes in small plant in parish Slampe, municipality Tukums in Strong arguments for bioenergy are that around 50% of county territory covers forests and that there are no fossil alternatives in region. In the county operates company producing heat boilers and the municipality is rather interested to support local entrepreneurs via buying woodchips thus keeping the money in region. and Partnership Instrument) 8

9 Weak arguments are difficulties in some periods to get raw materials (woodchips, straw in suitable quality). There is no use of waste materials or no electricity production from biomass. Furthermore, there are no bioethanol or biodiesel producing companies in sub region and no cooperative undertakings in complex utilisation of different kind of biowastes, e.g. wastewater sludge, household wastes, food industry byproducts. There is a lack of premises for straw bales storage under roof which can lead to lowering briquettes quality under climatic conditions in sub region Jelgava municipality Area: 1,317 km², inhabitants: ; population density: 21 /km² (new information provided from the project partners of Latvia). Municipality Jelgava is located in the central part of Latvia and is one of 109 administrative areas in Latvia. It belongs to the Zemgale planning region, the distance between the capital city and the area centre is 42 km. In contrast to Tukums, Jelgava municipality consists from rural parishes only, and Jelgava city is separated administrative unit, in spite it is located in the middle of Jelgava municipality. Forests grow on 29% of district territory and agricultural land covers 67% and bogs 3%. The most significant resources are wood, peat, sand, grant, dolomite, valuable agricultural soils. The region where the Jelgava area is located has the second highest population density in Latvia. Part of the cereals (wheat, rye and triticale grains) is used for bioethanol production and rapeseed for biodiesel production. Domestic consumption of biodiesel has rapidly increased since October 2009 due to the government regulation on obligatory blending of % of biofuels into fossil diesel. Energy obtainable from agricultural sourced biomass was 427 GWh, that includes energy from cereals and rape straw (346.5 GWh), biogas energy from livestock manure (4.0 GWh), food wastes (0.33 GWh), from energy crops grown on unused agricultural areas (67 GWh), from wastewaters sludge (0.6 GWh) and biogas energy from land filled household wastes (8.4 GWh) in municipality Jelgava. Cereals grain yield was 158,700 t and rape seed yield was 20,400 t, utilizable for bioethanol and biodiesel production in municipality Jelgava in Important resources for bioenergy production are straw ( t/a), usable both for solid briquettes production, for litter manure and/or biogas production. In 2010 approximately 4,200 t of straw was utilized for solid briquettes production in municipality Jelgava. Lithuania- Kaunas region (Partner 20) Area: 8099 km², Inhabitants: ; Population density: 82 / km². In Kaunas region the private land cover 59, 5 % all land. Natural conditions for biomass production in the Region are relatively good, because of the relatively high level of soil fertility and good water supply. However, socio-economic frame still must be optimised. Preliminary biomass potential preliminary evaluation of RES in Kaunas Region shows, that biomass is the main source of renewable energy in the region. Of the total area 56% is agriculture land, 29% is forests, 2% is roads, 4% is urban area, 3% water and 6% is other lands. Strong arguments for bioenergy are the requirements of EU Directive 2009/28/EC, security of energy supply and lower biofuel price comparing to fossil fuel. Weak arguments are sustainability and environmental issues as well as difficulties in assessment of recourses. and Partnership Instrument) 9

10 Norway Inland region (Partner 28/30) Area: km 2, Inhabitants: , Population density: 8/km 2 The counties in the Innland region of Norway (Hedmark and Oppland County) have great access to raw materials, especially from the forest areas. There is an increasing focus on industry initiatives within renewable energy and bioenergy in Norway. Bioenergy use is estimated of total stationary energy consumption. The region is known also as an important source of agricultural produce. The region consists of approx. 2,050 km 2 agricultural lands, which is approx. 20 % of the agricultural land of Norway. Agriculture could provide large potential for biogas from manure and waste of approx. 300 GWh in Hedmark as well as in Oppland. There is currently operating one commercial biogas plant providing 2.5 GWh electricity and heat. Regional biomass action plans aim for doubling bioenergy supply from 2002 to Even if forestry is the main resource, important goals is also regarded the production of biodiesel from straw, slaughterhouse wastes and similar sources via biogas and Fischer-Tropsch synthesis. Strong arguments for bioenergy are very much raw material, high competence by some stakeholders, and lack of energy as well as high level of electricity used for heating. Other general arguments are the climatic changes and positive political signals. Weak arguments in this region are low electricity prices as well as low oil prices. Furthermore there is no tradition for heating network and the political signals are not followed by money. Sweden Västra Götaland (Partner 32) Area: km 2, Inhabitants: 1.5 mills., Population density: 62,5/km 2 Forestry: 51% Agriculture: 23%. The sub-region is quite balanced between forest and agricultural resources. There are 6.0 TWh which could derive from forestry and 3.8 TWh from agriculture, 1.4 TWh from grains currently exported, 1.7 TWh from cultivating set aside land and 0.7 TWh from straw. Weak arguments for bioenergy are the major problems of applying these potentials is the strong competition with world market prices for goods to be exported and second one is the marketing itself. and Partnership Instrument) 10

11 The strategic work in each (sub) region including background, results, future actions. The information has been provided by the different project partners in summary reports and adjusted. Belarus Grodno Region (Partner 26/27) Description of the strategic work The main resource for bioenergy production from forests of the Grodno region is biomass. In recent years, the region has seen significant growth in the market of production and consumption of new types of biofuel derived from forest resources, primarily wood chips. Strategic planning in the production and use of bioenergy is carried out at the level of government. Resolution of the Council of Ministers approved the Regulation on the procedure of providing wood for fuel (raw materials) of existing and emerging energy sources, wood-firing, as defined by the Ministry of Forestry responsible for the coordination of works on maintenance of wood fuel energy sources. In accordance with the ruling in the administrative areas each year a balance sheet of production and consumption of wood fuel (feedstock) for the next year, based on which training is conducted on the consolidated balance sheets of the Grodno region and by matching the volume of supply of wood fuel. Ministry of Forestry has developed and approved a program for more efficient use of wood-fuel materials in the woodworking industry (shops) of the Ministry of Forestry of the Republic of Belarus for , which provides activities commissioning systems for the production and delivery of wood fuel for energy sources. Under the supervision of the Grodno PLHO there are implementing activities generated as a result of the strategic planning of public authorities Forestry institutions made possible by the Bioenergy Promotion project. The participation in strategic planning are direct involvement in the preparation of the consolidated balance sheets of production and consumption of fuel wood in the Grodno region, consultations with the management of housing and communal services Grodno regional executive committee to develop and agree to plans for wood fuel boilers owned utilities; The ideas are applied in strategic planning at the choice of production technology and biofuel types of wood, have been confirmed in practice. The result of participation in the project "Promotion of bio-energy" is the ability to most accurately determine the choice of key technologies of biofuels production. Creation of regional sources production of thermal energy in case of the national program for the transition for using local fuels has accelerated the process of formation bio-fuels from forest resources by introduction of new technologies and improving regulations in the field of harvesting. As a result of these factors there is an increase in the production of wood chips only in forests of Grodno GPLHO with 7.3 thousand cubic meters in 2008 to 95.0 thousand cubic meters in 2011, and it is expected to increase to 186 thousand cubic meters in The use of wood chips is provided mainly for the domestic market, but for export also, because the possibility of the production is more than the current capacity of the local market. At present waste wood is recently is used as well for the production of fuel briquettes an implementation which extends the export potential of the region and country. and Partnership Instrument) 11

12 The plan in Grodno region is to use the local fuels for heat production and the volumes of wood chips for Housing and communal services (HCS) increased from 7.2 thousand cubic meters in 2008 to 55.0 thousand cubic meters in The main supplier of wood chips is the forestry enterprises of Grodno region, which are major holders of forest resources. The development of biofuels production (production of briquettes & wood chips) has made it possible to expand export markets for the range of sold products (Poland, Lithuania, and Germany). Results and conclusion; key-findings and lessons learned Forests resources are a critical resource of the region to provide regional consumers renewable fuel source and the production of wood chips from firewood is the most effective technology for the production and consumption of biofuels in industrial scale. Furthermore, the use of forest residues for production of wood chips is a promising technology that needs further investigation for practical implementation. Analysis of raw capacity from forest to produce biofuels in Grodno region, and a classification of forest biomass for biofuels production has been performed. Other analysis and proposals for the optimal production technology and logistics of biofuels in accordance with the requirements of forest management regulations and the sustainable development of forestry has been done as well as analysis of regional and export markets for biofuels from forest resources. The whole production cycle of wood chips (harvesting, transporting, wood chips production, delivery to the consumer) has been implemented and the information about Bioenergy Promotion Project, biofuels, prices and amounts are shown on the sites of Grodno GPLHO and forestry enterprises. (Website Grodno GPLHO - Website Skidel forestry Website Ostrovets forestry Future actions plans For the development the production of wood chips to meet the growing demand for biofuels on local and regional markets there has to be studies of biofuels technology of forest residues performed. Furthermore, development of proposals for the adaptation of national legislation to the production of biofuels from forest residues, attracting investments to develop and implement a pilot project for the production of biofuels from forest residues. Denmark- Region Zealand (Partner 09/35/36) Description of the strategic work In Region Zealand the strategy has been developed by the project partners Roskilde University, Institute of Food and Resource Economics and Region Zealand. The work within the Bioenergy Promotion project was focused on internal workshops, meetings also including research and fact finding activities as well as consultation processes with key bioenergy stakeholders. The regional activities comprised sessions on meetings in the regional climate network including municipality climate coordinators and others and two Bioenergy Promotion seminars in June These activities were important to perform in order to achieve a common understanding of the present challenges and opportunities for the future regional energy system, in which biomass and bioenergy solutions are going to play a pivotal role. and Partnership Instrument) 12

13 The Bioenergy Strategy in this region is based on two biomass resources, i.e. residues, and energy crops. The strategy focuses on the provision of biomass and utilization of biomass, and in this respect based on the following principles and priorities: Sustainable development Technology and resources, such as biogas, solid fuel for combined heat and power (straw from agricultural production and wood chips and wood pellets from the region's forestry). The focus also includes biofuels though it is of a low national priority. Local economy: The focus should be on cost-effective solutions with the most possible energy-efficient use of the region's biomass. Dynamic prioritization: The focus should be on the biomass and biotechnology that have political priorities and are supported nationally or by the EU to secure the best financing. During the work the Danish project partners have considered and used an innovative strategy development approach and sustainable business models. This has been done by connecting local and regional activities such as agriculture, forestry, industry and households and has been performed with the approach that the use of biomass for energy purposes is not just about producing energy, but also to recover and reuse all the residues from energy production, and to choose the energy technologies, which allow for the most optimal use of residues. Another approach was also to consider the greatest environmental benefit through the use of biomass for energy purposes. In order to achieve this, the principles of industrial ecology or industrial symbiosis were applied according to one of the following energy-and-business models: Flow model: An energy and business model interconnecting different material flows related to a given product delivery. The value chain is seen along the production chain or lifecycle. Typically: One company connected to the chain. MatriX model: A business model that follows both the production chain and cut across it. Typically: A number of companies interconnected. X-Change model: A business model which is functioning as a strategic umbrella for setting up new or existing symbiosis. Typically: The more requiring and classic symbiosis or industrial ecology model. Frame X model: An open business model where the focus is on exploring the potentials of existing production and delivery systems for the establishment of a sustainable business model, using the above models or other models. Most experiences show that the broadest possible involvement of the local and regional community actors makes it easier to develop and establish new renewable energy plants with fewer conflicts. Experience also shows that you get better solutions, when different interests and actors are involved in the process, and during this process the strategy must continuously be maintained and developed. This means that the general regional and local strategies are maintained and developed, including the Regional Climate Strategy and the regional and municipal Local Agenda 21 Strategies and Action Plans. Similarly the specific Regional Bioenergy Strategy demonstrates an ongoing assessment of the bioenergy strategy as a and Partnership Instrument) 13

14 strategic programme, which includes whether the strategy has initiated private or public /private investments in biomass field. The different approaches mentioned above, must be continuously evaluated to assess the need for further action and the opportunity to create and integrate new opportunities in the utilization of biomass for energy purposes until Results and conclusion; key-findings and lessons learned The most important key-findings and lessons learned from the work within WP4 sub-regions during the Bioenergy Promotion project in Region Zealand is that bioenergy is playing a pivotal role in the creation of the new energy supply structure. Bioenergy systems will be in the unique position to balance the fluctuating wind-based electricity production. Furthermore a sustainable energy system must be based on a common strategic approach shared by all key actors in the region, and developed through participatory processes. In order to ensure successful implementing the regional strategy must be based on a system approach i.e. to consider all three subsystems of the energy system: energy sources, conversion and distribution, end-use. Thus integration of bioenergy and other renewable energy sources is also a question of balanced investment in the conversion and distribution technologies as well as technological and behavioural changes in the end-use system. It is also of importance to develop the strategy with a triple-function, namely as a product, as a process and as a culture and use a participatory approach, i.e. involvement of key actors Furthermore it is recommended to prepare the implementation as an integral part of the planning process, comprising activities such as to build capacity for energy planning, to raise awareness rising on sustainable development and the future bioenergy solutions, and to ensure democratic change processes. Future actions The developed Regional Bioenergy Strategy will be used as a policy framework and a practical development and implementation guideline. Concrete development, demonstration and dissemination projects will emerge, a.o. inspired by the bioenergy strategy. Region Zealand will support relevant bioenergy projects, especially through the regional business development funding scheme, and by serving as a support structure for sustainable energy planning and implementation processes in the municipalities in Region Zealand. Finland North Karelia (Partner 11) Description of the strategic work To develop the bioenergy sector in North Karelia and in eastern Finland to the next level in order to reduce consumption of fossil fuels, improve energy security, and create jobs there has been a great deal of policies and programmes started. In the Bioenergy Promotion project, the focus has been to provide recommendations to be implemented in the future regional bioenergy programmes in North Karelia. From previous experiences it has been shown that it becomes imperative to raise the awareness of bioenergy among public and young students and to introduce bioenergy related topics and discussions in schools and Partnership Instrument) 14

15 In forest science and bioenergy, North Karelia has strong competencies in providing specialized education, conducting research and training activities, and there is a specific need to look into the secondary level to create awareness and knowledge of bioenergy among young students. The students show interest to learn bioenergy in the schools, by visiting bioenergy plants in the region, and by interacting with their relatives and friends on this topic. Thus, the focus in this task and for future strategy is to implement bioenergy thinking during education in North Karelia considering that the young people such as the school students are the future decisions makers and they will form an important workforce who will implement the future bioenergy policies and programmes in North Karelia and other regions of eastern Finland. In North Karelia for the near future wood energy is going to be the greatest resource to the regional renewable energy systems. In order to achieve experience and knowledge in the bioenergy area the following actions are part of the general recommendations for the existing and future bioenergy programmes in North Karelia and eastern Finland: Creation of a general framework for collaboration between bioenergy policies and bioenergy education for younger citizens. Introduction of a sustainable energy related module in schools. Perform visits to the bioenergy plants in the region and show students the way bioenergy production takes place at the industrial level. Education of the whole value chain of forest bioenergy production to achieve awareness of the benefits of energy production system. Making students more aware of the forestry activities and bioenergy production. Organize seminars involving teachers, students, parents, and experts about bioenergy and other environmental related topics. Results and conclusion; key-findings and lessons learned The future development of the bioenergy programmes very much depend on the availability of skilled and motivated workforce in this sector. In North Karelia, there is a lot of information about bioenergy collected but so far those results are not well disseminated among public and young students. The University of Eastern Finland prepared a work plan Creating future workforce in bioenergy in North Karelia and presented to the Regional Council of North Karelia in the spring of The purpose with this was to implement that the future bioenergy projects in the region should include activities such as dissemination, raising awareness, and providing education to public and young students about bioenergy. These recommendations was accepted by The Regional Council of North Karelia as a contribution from the Bioenergy Promotion project and have been included for implementations in the two strategic projects in North Karelia Climate and Energy Programme 2020 of North Karelia and Eastern Finland Bioenergy Programme and Partnership Instrument) 15

16 North Karelia is an advanced region in northern Europe regarding bioenergy development. This means that many of the activities that are in initial stages in other regions already are implemented but there is still a need to improve the investment climate in bioenergy projects in this region. A point which is needed to address is that the regional networking among different regions are not well developed. An example is that the expertise existing in North Karelia has not been transferred to other regions and vice versa North Karelia could have learned from other regions of the developments in the biogas sector. Future actions plans There is need to increase the use of biomass in the regional energy purposes apart from strong networking between the regional bioenergy actors. For example, the Vapo Pellet Factory in the North Karelia will be shut down. The reason is that it is not economically competitive. Further policy interventions are needed to motivate people to use bioenergy. It is of great importance that bioenergy education is performed by skilled people to take the challenges in this field. During this educational and awareness rising issues more specifically, regional bioenergy policies should also be included. Germany Nordwestmecklenburg (Partner 06) Description of the strategic work The focus in this region was set on municipalities and the future of rural living which is more dependent on the prices of energy (for mobility, heating etcetera) Main factors are: demographical development -> elderly people -> mobility costs = energy costs unemployment rate -> low income -> heating costs = energy costs level of reconstructed buildings -> energy efficiency -> saving of energy costs The purpose with the strategic management plan is to use the renewable energies to start processes in rural area of County of North West Mecklenburg. The main goal was the social participation of the citizen on local biogas plants, biomass heating plants, local heating networks. For the energy sector analyses was performed to establish regional value chains. A question that was considered is what general regulations (EU, Germany laws) and regional environment are to be considered in order to create these chains? The experiences will result in a guideline for municipalities, producers and consumers to use bioenergy. A part of SRMP was to spread information about the project, participation and organisation events and provide presentation and information about Bioenergy in municipal councils, events from local/regional partners this is performed with cooperation from (Bio) Energy Villages. As a regional authority it is not possible to set up plans into a municipality, but it is possible to point out the potentials with the guideline by considering regional conditions. A framework (plan) of future task/aims, describing the tasks and aims (strategic) was set up pointing out how to solve the task, reaching the aims (management) in the region.. Results and conclusion; key-findings and lessons learned and Partnership Instrument) 16

17 The outcome of the work is the implementation of the SRMP which is focused on small villages in rural area (bringing on the way to become (Bio)Energy Villages), rural little towns, new housing estates/residential areas, unused industrial estates transform into energy parks and own properties of county (public buildings). The implementation efforts should include workshops with local authorities and mayors, lectures, presentations in municipalities councils and events, road shows to bring information into public meetings with engineers and regional public supplier to force the process for the (Bio) Energy Villages The key-findings and lessons learned are that it is of importance to collect all related projects to a strategic regional management plan (who, what, how) and bring it into public (in this case into county council) and if needed to reorganise the organisations which will be result in increased expenses. Future actions plans The strategic regional management plan is set up and now it has to be synchronized; the activities and planning how to proceed without the project. Probably the conception will become into practice, which would be real output of the project! The reorganisations of the organic waste management including the financing in the counties in the next year(s) and to give input for the revision of relevant laws and regulations on state level (step 4) will be performed. Plans exist for starting a bioenergy village. Furthermore projects should feature links to the remaining operational fields for sustainable business and regional development with regional added value: Landkreis Nordwestmecklenburg County of North West Mecklenburg Germany Rotenburg County (Partner 04) Description of the strategic work Some of the aspects for the Regional Administration (County of Rotenburg (Wümme)) are to bring stakeholders and actors together, such as farmers, agricultural organisations, forest owners, forest owners associations, agricultural/forestry service contractors, agricultural and forestry advisers, environmental groups, potential investors etc. This will be performed using all own responsibilities for promoting bioenergy including economic development, traffic, environmental protection, nature conservation and water protection, forestry supervision, education and health. Also by using own/easy accessible resources for promoting bioenergy such as supply, own forests, hedgerows along county-owned roads and nature protection areas (e.g. moors, heath land). The demand comes from the county s own public buildings as heat/energy consumers. A way to succeed is to create/promote trans-regional networks with neighbour regions. BE-related actors, primary energy sources, energy carriers and end-consumers might be active also beyond the county s boundaries/comprise more than one region and it is of importance to link to lower and higher level of administration and policy; and link to the public through regional media and succeed to get BE to be integrated in the County s PR strategy; and Partnership Instrument) 17

18 Local municipalities Government (in Germany: Federal State as Lower Saxony), responsible for legal framework, incentives, tax issues and as link to the German Government Some aspects for the Chamber of Agriculture as a professional body of forestry in the region is to assist County administration in networking on the forestry sector by for instance creating networks within forestry, linking to specific forestry-related political units, cross-linkage to agricultural units, research bodies of forestry, associations of forestry professionals. The Chamber shall also contribute with professional analysis and integrate bioenergy into forestry extension service strategy. Results and conclusion; key-findings and lessons learned In Rotenburg there are continuous discussions with their model region, County of Rotenburg (W.) and their bioenergy working group and numerous of meetings and excursions during Bioenergy Promotion has been performed. However, neither the project partner nor the county administration can "manage" the bioenergy sector, i.e. decide what has to be done - this is up to the regional actors and stakeholders - primary producers, service providers, investors and consumers. However, there are a lot of options how to promote this process, both from the county administration s point of view and in the Chamber of Agriculture point of view as forestry extension service and Bioenergy Promotion partner. A lot of activities has been performed during and by initiative from the Bioenergy Promotion project, previously other activities has been performed with initiative from a BE working group in Rotenburg. Examples of activities previously performed from county s side are a demonstration of hedgerow maintenance with BE use of the material, press releases, and a database on heat demand of public buildings (county and municipality); from the Chamber of agriculture Lower Saxony side resource analyses, technical trials, woodchip analyses etc. As a result of the Bioenergy Promotion project some of the key-findings of the region are that nutrient sustainability is a key for forest-based bioenergy and that energy wood is an ambitious product, when sustainability principles are taken into account, and it is linked to many issues as biological potential, technology and companies, public administration etc, which results in an interlinkage of all Tasks of WP4. Future actions plans The Chamber of Agriculture will be a partner of the second Bioenergy Promotion project. Today also the CoA is contributing to national and EU-programs, linked to bioenergy, as proposals for integrating bioenergy aspects in forest support schemes, proposals for bioenergy aspects in support schemes, identification of research issues for FP7 (Strategic Research Agenda for the Forest Technology Platform) Furthermore there will be a continuous work on improvement of database on logging residue (tops & branches) volumes and adapted harvesting methods, cooperation with research and companies adapted harvesting technologies as well as work regarding work on sustainability strategies, mainly in terms of nutrient supply. and Partnership Instrument) 18

19 Germany West Brandenburg (Partner 07) Description of the strategic work The structure of bioenergy strategy in West Brandenburg is based on the Energy strategy 2020 for the federal state of Brandenburg, local activities, implementation status and strengths & weaknesses. This includes that Brandenburg will be an international location for research, production, utilization and export of energy technologies. Renewable energies will be of fundamental importance for the energy mix and the base-load of electricity production is provided by brown coal. There are many energy strategies or climate action plans on county and on community level. The plans are focusing mostly on energy saving, insulation and installation of new technologies, especially in municipal buildings. In different areas there are focus on district heating originating from renewables, fuel wood from community forest, agricultural products (e.g. maize), geothermal sources use of waste-water heat, use of potable water heat, wood chips boiler, biogas. An example of ongoing development is the village Feldheim which is focusing on an energy independent region which includes establishment of energy competence centre Feldheim, energy consulting for civilians, regular energy conferences, support of municipalities with activities, scientific technological institutions in the county. Most installed plants are producing electricity or biodiesel and the production of heat is still of minor significance. In order to improve energy efficiency of bioenergy utilization the current bioenergy implementation in West Brandenburg is focused on heat from wood, biogas and biodiesel.this means that the main goal is to increase heat production from cogeneration. Results and conclusion; key-findings and lessons learned West Brandenburg is one the most developed sub regions concerning the use of bioenergy. The region West-Brandenburg (the chamber s district of Potsdam CCI) was not a good example of sub region in this project because there are several activities and planning authorities on federal country level as well as on county level. Among others the regional planning communities (mostly consisting of two to three counties) started developing their own regional energy concepts in the frame of the energy strategy of the country of Brandenburg. The result of Bioenergy Promotion project work is the key-findings and lessons learned in West- Brandenburg, i.e. there are some points to consider; implemented projects are highly developed, the political intention is to increase the use of bioenergy and the regional network point ETI is working successfully since 1998 and is well known by the stakeholders. Future actions plans The use of excess heat in remote places where biogas plants are installed will be the topic of an additional output within bioenergy promotion. In future it will be hinted at this problem when assisting planning activities of new projects in such places and support solutions of local heat grids or alternative heat use (e.g. drying biomass). Another important finding was about the limited (or decreasing) biomass potentials. and Partnership Instrument) 19