Solid biomass barometer - EurObserv'ER - December 2013

Primary energy production from solid biomass is back on the road to growth, which according to EurObserv'ER stood at about 5.4% between 2011 and 2012. Output rose to 82.3 million tons of oil equivalent, which is a 4.2 Mtoe improvement on 2011, whose exceptionally mild winter put paid to the sector's uninterrupted rise since 1999. This growth was enjoyed by all the solid biomass energy application sectors. Heat sales to heating networks increased 12.9% to 7.9 Mtoe in 2012 while electricity production, boosted by coal-fired power station conversions, gained 7.8% to produce 79.5 TWh