More bioenergy than oil in Sweden

May 11, 2010, Sweden – In 2009, bioenergy passed oil as the biggest energy source
in Sweden when measuring final energy use. Bioenergy stood for 31.7% of final
energy use, compared to 30.8% for oil. The numbers are based on preliminary
statistics from the Swedish Energy Agency and were presented by Svebio, the
Swedish Bioenergy Association. The final energy use includes all sectors of
Swedish society: industry, transport, residential, services, etc.

Svebio’s
analysis also shows that the total share of renewable energy, using the
definition in the European Union’s renewable energy directive, was 46.3% in
2009. This is well ahead of the EU target trajectory and only 3.7% short of the
EU target for Sweden of 49% in 2020. The major renewable energy source besides
bioenergy is hydropower. Wind power is still a relatively small contributor to
the energy supply.

The
main reason for the quick increase in renewable energy in recent years is the
steady growth of bioenergy use. Biomass is the primary energy source in the
district heating sector, which supplies more than half of the total heat demand
in the residential sector. The use of byproducts and residues in the forest
industry is another major component. Bioelectricity has expanded with combined
heat and power plants in both district heating and the forest industry. Pellets
and fuel wood play a major role in heating single homes. Finally, more than 5%
of transportation fuels are biofuels such as ethanol, biodiesel, and biogas. In
all, the Swedish bioenergy business sector is in a phase of strong expansion,
which is confirmed by the statistics.