Avebiom celebrates the increase in operating hours of biomass facilities approved in the Parameters Order

Last Friday, February 28, the BOE published Order TED/171/2020, of February 24, which updates the remuneration parameters for renewable energy, cogeneration and waste facilities for application during the remuneration period that began on February 1. January 2020. From now on, the limit of production hours with the right to remuneration for the operation is extended to 7,500 hours per year, favoring reasonable profitability in the longer term.

This Order rectifies an error of concept contained in Law 24/2013 that limited, without a substantiated basis, the maximum operating time with the right to remuneration of electric energy generation plants from biomass to 6,500 hours per year.

Biomass electricity generation facilities are generally capable of reaching annual availability close to 8,000 hours, so the limitation that is now being corrected represented a clear inefficiency in the use of existing infrastructure.

On the other hand, the increase in availability will also drive the necessary valorization of agricultural and forestry by-products, which we estimate will lead to an annual increase in agricultural income of more than 50 million euros over the next 20 years.

For the calculation we have assumed that the increase in biomass consumption is covered with 60% of primary biomass (b6) and 40% of secondary biomass (b8) and we apply the average yields and costs published by the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge.

In addition to the biomass electric power generators, the forestry sector is also in luck, which will benefit from an increase in sustainable forestry exploitation, and society as a whole, since less biomass in the mountains means fewer and less virulent forest fires. if it occurs.

The increase in production hours will, on the other hand, contribute to reducing CO2 emissions in the energy sector and improving the manageability of the electrical network in a sustainable way and with the support of renewable energy.