Accelerating the rollout of renewables is one of the 3 objectives of the European Commission’s REPower EU Plan released last May by the European Commission. The Commission indeed is proposing to increase the 2030 headline target for renewable energy from 40% to 45% in the framework of the "Target 55" package.
Several initiatives are proposed to reach this target, and among them aBiomethane Action Plan which aims to stimulate the renewable gas value chain and reach a production of 35 million cubic metres of biomethane by 2030 by establishing tools such as a new Biomethane Industry Alliance and financial incentives.
Boosting sustainable biomethane production to 35 bcm by 2030 is a cost-effective way forward, but itwill require an estimated investment of ¤37 billion to increase biogas production capacity in the EU and promote its conversion into biomethane.
Increasing production and sustainable use of biomethane, as well as facilitating market integration, are obstacles to be addressed by the Commission's Action Plan, which proposes:
- An industrial partnership for biogas and biomethane to stimulate the value chain of renewable gases.
- Adopting additional measures to encourage biogas producers to create energy communities.
- Incentives to transform biogas into biomethane.
- Promoting the adaptation and upgrading of existing infrastructure and the deployment of new infrastructure to transport more biomethane through the EU gas grid.
- Filling research, development and innovation gaps.
- Facilitating access to finance and mobilising EU funding under the CEF, cohesion policy, the RRM and the Common Agricultural Policy.
All these actions should ensure that biomethane is produced from organic, forestry and agricultural waste, i.e. sustainable energy production is the main focus to contribute to the objectives of the REPower EU plan.
In Spain, increasing the part of renewables is also a strong objective, as shown by the Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge Royal Decree 376/2022, of 17 May, establishing a
System of Guarantees of Origin that accredits the use of renewable sources in the production thereof, creating a system of guarantees of origin applicable to renewable gases, establishing the definition of these guarantees, their content, the conditions of issue, as well as the authorisation for the designation of an entity responsible for their management and the operating procedure of the aforementioned system. This will enable the development of the biogas and green hydrogen industry.