Austria is often cited as an example to follow in the biomass sector, installing 22,000 biomass boilers in 2009 compared, for example, to Spain which only manages an average of 3,000 per annum. A recently published report on renewable energies prepared by the Austrian Trade Commission corroborates this fact, showing that biomass produces more electricity in Austria than any other renewable source except for hydropower, while generating more heat than any other source. According to the Trade Commission’s findings, bioenergy – including biogas and biofuels – help renewable energy to account for 78.4% of Austria’s energy output and to meet 30.1% of gross final energy consumption.
The data are for 2009, the year in which the market for boilers, stoves and other systems for generating heat from biomass was examined. Despite the fact that a drop in gasoil prices in 2007 and 2009 and an incentive plan for the oil industry led to a decline in sales that year, Austria remained at the forefront of the market to manufacture and install biomass boilers. In 2009, 8,530 new certified wood-burning stoves were installed (7,135 up to 30 kW and 1,395 over 30 kW), 4,328 wood-chip burners, 8,446 pellet-burners, and 704 large industrial or high power rating systems (652 up to 1 MW and 52 over 1 MW). In the same period, Spain, for example, only installed a total of 3,000 systems.
Sales totalling billions of euros and 4,800 new jobs
The Trade Commission’s report also shows that 35,378 individual biomass heaters were installed in 2009, which included 23,129 open fireplaces, 8,118 ovens, and 4,131 pellet-burning stoves. Overall, although the number of biomass boilers sold in the Austrian market between 2008 and 2009 decreased by 5.5%, the number of stove rose by 4.8%. Austrian manufacturers also exported nearly 70% of their production, with two out of three biomass boilers installed in Germany coming from Austria, for example.
Apart from the obvious environmental advantages, the report describes the economic and social benefits of this success. "In 2009, thanks to the economic activity of the biomass boiler and stove market, €1,002 million of sales were made. This resulted in the creation of 4,763 jobs." Looking at who is behind the industry’s success in Austria, the publication also reviews the work of companies like Biokompakt, Fire Fox, Fröling, Herz, Ökofen, KWB, Geoplast, Hargassner, Untha and Helmut Starch, all of which are involved in the manufacture and/or installation of boilers and other systems used to generate bioenergy.
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