Pellet consumption in Spain increased in 2021

The Spanish Biomass Association, AVEBIOM , has just published the new statistical report on the wood pellet market . In this report you can find production and consumption data for wood pellets both nationally and by autonomous community. It also includes statistics on the evolution of the ENplus® certification system in Spain.

In 2021 there has been an increase in factory productivity that coincides with a decrease in the number of plants registered compared to the previous year, which went from 85 to 75 operational facilities, and to 76 this year . In general, the plants that disappear are very small or have already been inactive for some time, so these closures have barely affected production figures. On the other hand, several companies have made improvements in recent months to increase capacity, hence the overall increase.

The energy crisis that began in 2020 seems to be entrenched and many citizens and companies across the EU have made the option of changing technology a reality in recent months. Thus, in parallel with the record increase of 40% in the installation of stoves and boilers that occurred in our country during 2021, pellet consumption has also increased by 13.5% . In the EU during 2021, according to calculations by Bioenergy Europe, it increased by 18%.

In 2022, consumption is expected to grow again and be around 865,000 tons . National manufacturers have made a great effort in this complex year, increasing production and prioritizing their service to Spanish customers; Thus, we see that the production curve is once again approaching the quantities needed by users of pellet equipment in the country.

Most of the national production is already ENplus certified, taking up 87% of the market; Virtually all major plants produce under the quality scheme, but every year new distributors join, which improves the consistency of a quality offer to the consumer. Between 2020 and December 2022, 2 new plants and 9 suppliers have been certified, reaching 100 certificates issued in Spain.

Although the statistical report does not analyze prices, Pablo Rodero, responsible for certification at AVEBIOM and current president of the European Pellet Council (EPC) , highlights that "despite the notable increase in the price of pellets this year, its cost energy (€/kWh) has always remained lower than that of any fossil fuel or electricity. In Europe, a downward trend in pellet and chip prices is already evident, which should soon begin to be noticed in Spain as well."

In fact, since October the price curve for pellets for domestic use has begun to smooth out and the average price of a 15 kg bag at the end of November stood at €7.79 , making it possible to find it at lower prices.

The statistics in this report have been compiled thanks to the data specifically collected by AVEBIOM during the months of June to August 2022 to prepare the report itself and the biofuels map that we publish in our magazine Biomasa News. In addition, these data are part of the statistical report developed annually by Bioenergy Europe, the European bioenergy association, and which was published in November 2022.