BnM to offer 15-20 year biomass contracts
As part of its long term plan to become the number one renewable energy supplier in Ireland, the company says it will need 15,000 hectares of willows within 100 km of the three power stations it supplies in the midlands.
However, a company spokesman admitted that Ireland’s other main energy crop, miscanthus, has been “a disaster”. And in nearly five years of trying to get their willow programme off the ground, their 650 acres is “very disappointing”.
“While willow needs to be grown on good land, there is a lack of willingness on the part of the farming community to lock up land for 15 to 20 years.” said managing director Mike Quinn.
“We can, however, offer 15 to 20-year contracts for the willow because the power stations will need biomass over that period. I hope that will go some way towards encouraging cultivation.
“We have also been working closely with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine to prepare a grant package.”
“When one plants willow, there is no cash flow for the first three years, but the crop can be harvested every second year after that. We are working to alleviate that cash flow problem up-front, in order that farmers get an annual income from the first year for the crop. That has been a major impediment in our experience.”
Following the partial merger of Bord na Móna (BnM) and Coillte (which own more than 525,00 hectares across Ireland, between them), to include a new company called BioEnergy Ireland, BnM is taking a strong lead in development of the biomass industry in Ireland, said chairman John Horgan.
However, its peat and biomass fuels must become competitive on the open market with commodity fuels such as coal, oil and gas, following the end of 15 years of guaranteed pricing in fuel purchase agreements with EPL at Edenderry in December, and at the two ESB stations at the end of 2019.
BnM projects an Irish market for biomass between 5.6m and 5.8m tonnes by 2025. Ireland currently generates only 990,000 tonnes.
BnM’s own needs will be 2m tonnes by 2020, and Coillte board factories will need 800,000 tonnes.
About three quarters of Bord na Móna’s 80,000 hectares around the country (mainly in the midlands, with some in Mayo, Kerry and Donegal) is in active peat production.
But good quality farmland is needed for growing willows, yields have been unsatisfactory on BnM’s cutaway peat lands
