Developing a bioenergy project is no easy task. Similar planning issues exist whether the bioenergy plant is a small, on-farm heat plant, a district combined heat and power plant, a utility-owned electricity generating plant, or a large scale commercial biofuels plant.

• The biomass feedstock needs to be available over the life of the plant and produced in a manner that is deemed to be sustainable as well as renewable. It can be in solid or liquid form.
• This feedstock has to be delivered to the conversion plant by road, rail or waterways as cheaply as possible in a form that is easy to store, handle and utilise. The low-bulk density and energy density of many forms of biomass make this a particular challenge.
• The quality and moisture content of the feedstock need to be assessed on delivery to ensure efÞ cient conversion and fair means of payment.
• Where the biomass is to be imported, certiÞ cation of its source and the identiÞ cation of low-cost transport methods, in both Þ nancial and energy terms, need consideration.
• Selection of the energy conversion technology and size of plant should be based on the nature of the biomass, the volume available, the reliability and the risk of failure from immature technologies.
• Markets for the bioenergy carriers produced (as heat, electricity, gaseous fuels, liquid biofuels, or solid fuels such as pellets) need to be assessed and purchase agreements sought where feasible.
• Design and construction of the bioenergy conversion plant, choosing its location, the proximity to power, gas and water supplies, and obtaining the necessary resource and planning consents, can be major barriers requiring solution by the project developer.

These Good Practice Guidelines do not analyse the technologies or costs of a bioenergy plant but endeavour to identify the potential issues for bioenergy project developers that will need to be overcome during the complex planning and consultation process. For example a cogeneration plant at a sugar mill in Australia took two years to develop and required 17 separate legal contracts to be negotiated.

It is hoped that a greater awareness of the potential barriers by fuel suppliers, developers, planners, consenting authorities, policy makers and other stakeholders from the outset will aid the consultation process. This in turn will help to enable a more rapid deployment of bioenergy projects worldwide.

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Introduction
Rationale and objectives

Modern biomass, and the resulting useful forms of bioenergy produced from it, are anticipated by many advocates to provide a signiÞ cant contribution to the global primary energy supply of many IEA member countries during the coming decades. For non-member countries, particularly those wishing to achieve economic growth as well as meet the goals for sustainable development, the deployment of modern bioenergy projects and the growing international trade in biomass-based energy carriers offer potential opportunities.

However developing a bioenergy plant can be a challenging process. Securing reliable and cost effective supplies of biomass feedstocks, produced in a sustainable manner over the operating life of the plant, can prove to be difficult. ...

Visit The International Energy Agency (IEA) Website

The International Energy Agency (IEA) is an autonomous body which was established in November 1974 within the framework of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) to implement an inter national energy programme.

It carries out a comprehensive programme of energy co-operation among twenty-seven of the OECD thirty member countries. The basic aims of the IEA are:

• To maintain and improve systems for coping with oil supply disruptions.
• To promote rational energy policies in a global context through co-operative relations with non-member countries, industry and inter national organisations.
• To operate a permanent information system on the international oil market.
• To improve the world’s energy supply and demand structure by developing alternative energy sources and increasing the effi ciency of energy use.
• To promote international collaboration on energy technology.
• To assist in the integration of environmental and energy policies.

The IEA member countries are: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Slovak Republic, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom and United States. Poland is expected to become a member in 2008. The European Commission also participates in the work of the IEA.

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