On the Way to Net Zero

The global shift towards renewable energy sources is no longer a trend, but a fundamental transformation. As the world grapples with climate change and sustainability challenges, the demand for clean and sustainable energy solutions has never been higher.

Australia’s potential for bioenergy resources is immense, with an estimated capacity exceeding 2,600 PJ (petajoules) annually. For 2019-20, bioenergy constituted 47 per cent of Australia’s existing renewable energy production, and contributed 3 per cent of the country’s overall energy consumption.^[1].

Among these resources, primary agricultural materials have the most substantial theoretical potential, exceeding 1,000 PJ annually, which constitutes 41% of the total resource potential. Organic wastes and residues follow closely behind, boasting an impressive potential of over 900 PJ each year, which accounts for 37% of the total. Lastly, forestry resources contribute over 500 PJ per year, making up 22% of the overall resource potential.

Queensland and New South Wales claim the most substantial share of resource potential, with Queensland contributing 30% and New South Wales contributing 21%..

Queensland’s resource potential is further boosted by its thriving agricultural sector, with sugarcane playing a significant role.

In New South Wales and South Australia, organic wastes and residues dominate the theoretical resource potential.

Tasmania and Victoria boast extensive forestry industries, which are reflected in the composition of their theoretical resource potential, withWestern Australia offering the most potential in agriculture, due to its substantial production of starch and oil crops.

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Potential vs. Utilisation

Australia’s current utilisation of organic wastes and residues for bioenergy mainly revolves around bagasse, which serves as the primary biomass resource for energy production. Bagasse contributes to 26% of Australia’s renewable energy supply, while municipal and industrial waste collectively only make up 1% of the nation’s renewable energy output.

, the energy derived from solid biomass amounted to 189 PJ, with 89 PJ originating from wood and wood waste, and 100 PJ from bagasse. This solid biomass energy production accounts for nearly 50% of Australia’s renewable energy generation. Additionally, biogas, primarily extracted from landfills, contributed 16 PJ to the energy generation landscape.

Despite the substantial theoretical potential, only a fraction of these resources is presently harnessed for bioenergy production.

Australia’s bioenergy supply amounted to 216 PJ, comprising contributions from various sources: wood and wood waste (89 PJ), bagasse (100 PJ), municipal and industrial waste (5 PJ), biogas (16 PJ), and bioethanol (6 PJ). The utilisation of organic wastes and residues for energy recovery currently remains minimal when compared to the overall production capacity.

Rather than bioenergy, the bulk of Australia’s agricultural resources are dedicated to domestic food production or exportation. Log harvests primarily serve the production of paper products, wood chips, and sawn timber for applications in construction, infrastructure, and manufacturing.

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Compete or Complement

Bioelectricity generation serves as a valuable complement and reinforcement for the expanding utilisation of variable renewable energy sources. It plays a pivotal role in meeting Australia’s requirement for reliable and synchronised electricity generation, applicable in grid-connected as well as off-grid regions reliant on renewable sources. ^[2]

The distinct merits of bioelectricity generation, which include the enhancement of system strength and inertia, can facilitate its seamless integration into a lower-emission electricity system, ensuring its efficient and effective role in the overall energy landscape.

Bioelectricity generation has reached a mature stage and boasts competitive costs comparable to other low-emission dispatchable options, such as wind and solar power coupled with battery storage. It’s worth noting that while such storage solutions offer dispatchable capacity, their effectiveness is limited to shorter durations, often spanning just a few hours.

Moreover, bioenergy can find application in co-firing within existing power facilities, or these power stations can undergo upgrades to exclusively operate using bioenergy resources.

Despite the available potential, the adoption of bioelectricity generation remains relatively limited, currently representing a mere 1.3% of Australia’s total electricity generation.

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Commercially Implementing Sustainability

Organic wastes and residues for energy present a compelling opportunity, particularly regarding sustainability within the broader framework of the circular economy.

Harnessing energy from waste materials serves as a method to curtail the volume of organic waste destined for landfills, aligning with Australia’s waste management objectives. This practice exemplifies the principles of the circular economy, emphasising the local treatment and processing of input materials to create new products within a closed-loop system.

The initial resource assessment conducted as part of this Roadmap underscores the substantial potential inherent in organic wastes and residues.

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Biohubs

Biohubs are a collaborative facility where organic waste industries and bioenergy producers are able to work in tandem. The establishment of bioenergy hubs (biohubs), guided by an analysis of resource catchment areas, ensures that projects are strategically located to maximize the utilisation of available resources.

By situating bioenergy projects in proximity to resources and transportation infrastructure, it becomes possible to achieve economies of scale andmitigate supply chain limitations.

In certain instances, the establishment of a bio-hub may necessitate critical infrastructure, encompassing aspects like supply chain logistics, electrical connectivity capabilities, and gas pipeline systemsContributions to biohubs can originate from a spectrum of sources, including wastewater treatment facilities, agribusinesses, and organic and municipal waste. Biohubs play a pivotal role in the transformation of waste into higher-value applications and offer the following benefits:

Diversion of waste from landfills
Generation of dependable and dispatchable renewable energy
Production of non-fossil-based fuels, such as biomethane, alongside bio-based products like chemicals, plastics, and fertilizers
Stimulation of regional economic development and job opportunities.

Bio-hubs offer a structured approach to evaluate the potential role of bioenergy in the country’s future energy landscape. It identifies bioenergy subsectors with a distinct advantage, particularly in challenging-to-decarbonise sectors, and presents prospective strategies to surmount the prevailing obstacles. Consequently, this approach illustrates how bioenergy can contribute to emissions reduction across various sectors, a perspective to be considered by the government within the context of the ongoing Low Emissions Technology Statement process.

In addition to addressing low emissions energy technologies, this underscores the advantages of fostering a robust bioenergy industry in Australia. With the potential to generate approximately $10 billion in additional GDP and 26,200 new job opportunities by the 2030s, as well as diverting an extra 6% of waste away from landfills and enhancing fuel security, the economic benefits of nurturing key segments of the bioenergy industry are evident. ^]3]Biogas is an economically competitive energy source that can help Australia achieve our substantial emissions reductions targets. Like many emerging low-carbon technologies, a combination of technological innovations, government and industry support and targeted co-investment from both the private and public sectors is imperative. If actioned, biogas unlocks new prospects across the nation.

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