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China, the third largest ethanol producer, produced an estimated
2.8 billion litres in 2015, a decline of 14%. China increased ethanol
imports during the year but added no new production capacity,
in part because of a moratorium on maize-based ethanol
production. 54 Asia’s other major producer, Thailand, saw ethanol
production rise by 10%, from 1.1 billion litres in 2014 to 1.2 billion
litres in 2015. 55
In the EU, key producers include France, Germany, Spain, Belgium
and the United Kingdom. 56 EU ethanol production was down by
about 7% in 2015 to some 4.1 billion litres, particularly because of
reduced production in the United Kingdom. 57
Ethanol production in Africa increased substantially, from 0.10
billion litres in 2014 to 0.13 billion litres in 2015, due largely to
increases in production in South Africa. 58
Leading countries in biodiesel production worldwide were
the United States, Brazil, Germany and Argentina. Following a
significant increase in 2014 (up 13% to 30.4 billion litres), global
production of biodiesel fell slightly in 2015 to 30.1 billion litres. 59
The decline was due to constrained production in Argentina and
Indonesia, in particular.
US biodiesel production rose by 2% in 2015, reaching close to
4.8 billion litres. 60 In Brazil, output was up 15% to 3.9 billion litres. 61
Growth in Brazilian demand for biodiesel was stimulated by an
increase in the biodiesel blending mandate to 7%. 62 By contrast,
biodiesel production in Argentina declined by 30% in 2015, to
2.1 billion litres. 63 Output was reduced due to a reduction in
export markets, which resulted from a tax increase by the EU on
Argentinian biodiesel imports. 64
European biodiesel production rose by 5% to 11.5 billion litres. 65
Germany was again the largest European producer (2.8 billion
litres), followed by France (2.4 billion litres). 66
The year 2015 saw significant changes in biodiesel production
patterns in Asia. In Indonesia, the region’s largest producer,
biodiesel production dropped by over 40% – from 2.9 billion litres
in 2014 to 1.7 billion litres – due to delays in fully implementing
the B15 biodiesel programme. 67 In Malaysia, the introduction of
a B7 blend mandate increased demand and resulted in a 40%
jump in production to around 0.7 billion litres. 68 China’s biodiesel
production is estimated to have increased substantially – by an
estimated 24% – to 0.35 billion litres in 2015. 69
Global production of HVO grew by some 20% to 4.9 billion litres,
with the Netherlands, the United States, Singapore and Finland as
major producers. 70
The use of biomethane as a transport fuel also continued to
increase during the year. 71 The largest markets are all in Europe,
where Sweden, Germany and Finland lead, using a combined
119,000 tonnes (4.7 PJ) of biomethane fuel. 72 BIOENERGY INDUSTRY
The bioenergy industry includes feedstock suppliers and processors;
firms that deliver biomass to end-users; manufacturers and
distributors of specialist biomass harvesting, handling and storage
equipment; and manufacturers of appliances and hardware
components designed to convert biomass to useful energy carriers
and energy services. Industry, with support from academia
and governments, also is making progress in bringing a number
of new technologies and fuels to the market.
Solid Biomass Industry
The industries involved in producing solid biomass and
manufacturing-related technologies are very diverse. The
production and supply of traditional biomass is usually informal
and local, although there are signs of increasingly industrial
approaches to the production and marketing of systems such as
biomass-based cook stoves. 73
The industry for manufacturing modern biomass heating
appliances is well-developed in Europe and North America, where
regional players generally focus on local markets and can tailor
their products to specific customer and regulatory requirements.
Large-scale systems used for district heating and industrial
applications typically are provided by global players.
Fuelwood and other biomass feedstock supply for heat or power
production tends to be based locally in order to constrain transport
costs and associated emissions. For example, straw used to fuel
power generation plants usually is collected within a radius of
around 50 kilometres. 74
In contrast, wood pellets (which have a relatively high energy
density) are traded globally. 75 Wood pellets are supplied
primarily from Europe (Germany, Sweden and Latvia), North
America (the United States and Canada) and the Russian
Federation. 76 The pattern of trade varies year to year as the
demand for pellets for power generation is affected by changes
in regulations and levels of financial support. Historically the EU
region has been the major importer, but since 2014, Japan and
the Republic of Korea also have become important markets. 77
The United States exported more than 4.5 million metric
tonnes of wood pellets in 2015, 84% of which went to the
United Kingdom and 14% to Benelux countries. 78 Drax (United
Kingdom) has invested more than USD 350 million in fuel
production plants in the US states of Louisiana and Mississippi,
and in 2015 the company opened biomass pellet storage,
handling and loading facilities at Louisiana’s Port of Greater
Baton Rouge that are capable of handling 3 million tonnes of
pellets a year. 79
In Canada, pellet exports remained close to 2014 levels, at 1.63
million tonnes. Rising sales to the United Kingdom (up 23%) and
Japan (up 30%) were offset by reductions in exports to Italy and
the Republic of Korea. 80 Canadian exports to the Republic of
Korea fell by 68% because of short-term contracting issues and
new regulations that aim to improve sustainability of supply. 81
02
The year 2015 saw growth and developments in industry quality
standards and sustainability certifications. ENplus, an industry
quality standard, covered 7.7 million tonnes of product in 2015,
RENEWABLES 2016 · GLOBAL STATUS REPORT
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