There is no biomethane in Poland yet…
– Biomethane mainly needs legal regulations that will enable the functioning of this industry on a large scale. In Poland, biomethane does not exist at the moment, but comparing the potential and possibilities of investors with the infrastructure possibilities that exist, the development is currently blocked only by legal regulations. Integration with the gas network, rules regarding the preparation of investments, lack of a support system, as in other renewable energy industries – this is still missing in biomethane – emphasizes Michał Tarka, general director of the Polish Biomethane Organization, in an interview with the Newseria Biznes agency.
Biomethane has similar chemical and energy properties to natural gas, but is completely ecological and zero-emission. It is produced, among others, from waste from the agri-food sector or sewage treatment plants. This raw material can be used to produce electricity and be of significant importance in decarbonizing transport, industry and heating.
Poland has huge amounts of biomass, but…
Poland has huge amounts of biomass, thanks to which we could become one of the leaders in terms of biomethane production. The potential for biomethane production is estimated by POB based on the assumption that methane constitutes an average of 60% of the total amount of biogas produced. At the end of 2023, according to data from URE and KOWR, there were 388 biogas plants operating in Poland (346 in 2022), including 146 agricultural biogas plants, and we did not have any biomethane plants. The report "Biogas and biomethane in Poland" prepared by the Teraz Środowisko editorial team indicates that in Europe at the end of 2022 there were almost 19.5 thousand biogas installations and 1.32 thousand biomethane plants. It shows the level of immaturity of the Polish market. The development of the market is largely blocked by the lack of transparent regulations and support for investors.
– We need a biomethane strategy, both in the National Energy and Climate Plan, following the hydrogen strategy model, and we also need biomethane in the national energy plan for 2040, i.e. in the Polish Energy Policy. Here, biomethane has not yet appeared, but it is more readily and quickly available than hydrogen – indicates the general director of POB.
In March 2024, the Polish Biomethane Organization appealed to the Ministry of Climate and Environment to update the National Energy and Climate Plan (KPEiK) regarding the implementation of facilities for the development of biomethane production in Poland. The industry postulates, among others, taking into account the biomethane production target for 2030 at the level of 2 billion3, covering larger RES installations (over 1 MW) with a support instrument based on a fixed purchase price of biomethane, covering biomethane transported also in compressed or liquefied form by means of transport other than gas networks with a support instrument based on a fixed purchase price, and introducing solutions enabling better integration of RES installations producing biomethane with gas networks.
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Biomethane is not noticed
The report “Biogas and biomethane in Poland” shows that in the initial version of the NECP submitted to the European Commission, biomethane is not very prominently displayed. It appears only a few times, without specifying a specific goal in individual areas of the economy. It only indicates the possibility of using this gas as a supplementary method of generating electricity or heat. There is no specific goal, and therefore no clear regulations or support system.
– What needs to be changed in the legal regulations for the biomethane industry to start operating in Poland is, first and foremost, a safe support system that reflects the needs of investors, which would give the chance to launch this industry in the shortest possible time. Consequently, changes are needed in the regulations regarding permitting, permits that enable the implementation of these investments, their shortening, as well as liberalization of the rules for obtaining environmental decisions. These are the main reasons for the slowdown that we are currently observing in this industry in Poland – explains Michał Tarka.
Including the sector in national energy strategies and building a support system for installations are to enable investors to create long-term development plans. Members of the Polish Biomethane Organization, in an official position sent to the Ministry of Culture and Environment, declare investments in biomethane projects at the level of at least PLN 17.5 billion by 2030. Their effect is to be the launch of production of 2 billion m3 of biomethane per year in Poland.
According to the POB position, in terms of planned biomethane investments, developers expect simplifications in the procedures for obtaining environmental decisions for larger projects and clarification of doubts regarding smaller projects. According to the organization, there is a lack of regulatory incentives for gas distribution network operators to connect biomethane installations. Currently, up to 70 percent of applications for connecting biogas plants to power grids are rejected.
– If nothing changes and biomethane continues to be undeveloped in Poland, in the short term we will not have a green fuel, which is so important for the decarbonisation of industry, and the competitiveness of the Polish economy will be undermined. Other countries in the European Union, especially the largest ones, i.e. France, Germany, Italy, Denmark, are developing the production of renewable gases, including biomethane in particular, very dynamically – assesses the general director of POB.
The publication Teraz Środowisko, citing the International Energy Agency (IEA), reports that Denmark, which has had a strategy in this area for years, has achieved 38% of biomethane consumption in 2023. The Italian gas distributor declares a fourfold increase in biomethane production to 2 billion m3 in 2026. Overall global biomethane production increased by 12% y/y – to 8 billion m3.
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Will biomethane replace natural gas?
According to the analysis of the European Climate Neutrality Observatory, the bar for biogas production for 2030 has been set by, among others, Spain (76 TWh), Italy (55 TWh) and Sweden (9 TWh). Poland could have equally ambitious goals, especially taking into account access to investment financing.
– Both the National Reconstruction Plan and the subsidy programs that appear in the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management allocate large amounts for biomethane investments, in particular the latest subsidy program for biomethane amounts to PLN 4 billion. These investments have a chance to be supported from this program, provided that the program itself is constructed in a way that is friendly to recipients and finds interest among investors – says Michał Tarka.
In July, the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management conducted consultations on the draft priority program "Improving energy security through the use of biomethane". Its aim is to promote the production and use of biomethane in the fermentation process of selectively collected bio-waste. The program, which is to be implemented over the next six years, will provide up to PLN 2 billion of non-refundable and up to PLN 2 billion for refundable forms of subsidies. They will be available to entrepreneurs who invest in fermentation installations for selectively collected bio-waste (including bio-waste from the fruit and vegetable industry, kitchen waste from catering), unfit for consumption food, and sewage sludge. As the fund informs, the subsidy will cover biomethane production installations with connection to the gas network and biogas production with a module for its purification into biomethane or further processing into liquefied form (bioLNG) or highly compressed (bioCNG) for use in transport.
