The Promobiomasse project partners – the Centre de Ciència i Tecnologia Forestal de Catalunya (CTFC), the public entity of the Navarra Government – Navarra de Suelo y Vivienda, SA (NASUVINSA), the Agencia Extremeña de la Energía (AGENEX), the Agência Regional de Energia e Ambiente do Interior (ENERAREA) of Región Norte Portugal, the Communauté de Communes du Plateau de Lannemezan (CCPL), of the French department Hautes-Pyrénées, and the Association des Communes Forestières des Pyrénées Atlantiques (COFOR64) of the Pyrénées Atlantiques – held a meeting on 21st January at the head office of the Tourism Board of Oloron-Sainte-Marie. The aim was to assess the first two years of the project execution and to schedule the implementation of the pilot actions to put into effect, in each territory, the Integrated Model for the Sustainable Management of the Biomass Market in a Short Circuit in the SUDOE Area, a model developed during the project.
Promobiomasse is a transnational cooperation project that aims to promote the forest biomass energy market in the SUDOE territory (southwestern Europe), with the resulting advantages: reduced fire risk, creation of employment in rural areas, progress in the energy transition and sustainable development opportunities. As well as the above-mentioned project partners, 19 associated enterprises are also involved. The total budget for the project amounts to EUR 1.4 million, of which the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) is providing 1 million.
Project analysis and pilot actions
During the meeting held at Oloron-Sainte-Marie, the results of the interim assessment report were presented to the partners by the GAP consultancy, the external project evaluator. This report was based on surveys to partners and experts involved in the project’s Transnational Technical Committee. The report positively values the inventory of Good Practices in the sector and the biomass market management model developed in the project, which it describes as “comprehensive, relevant and applicable to all the territories”. The report also underscores the need to get the sector actors more involved and to promote the dissemination of the project, given the significant examples collected as Good Practices and Successful Case Studies throughout the SUDOE area. These are available on the website, translated into the 4 languages of the project: https://promobiomasse.eu/.
During the committee meeting, the partners also presented the pilot projects to test the model, to be implemented in each territory in 2020. ThePyrénéesAtlantiques territory has already started up a biomass boiler “Users club” that gathers together the agents of the local authorities and companies responsible for the management of the biomass boilers in the Pyrénées Atlantiques zone in order to promote the exchange of experiences and increase the expertise of the agents responsible for the management of the equipment, thereby improving its operation. The department of the Hautes Pyrenées is to develop a digital tool for the characterisation of forest masses to facilitate the mobilisation of privately owned forest resources, ensure the traceability of forest products and to help to coordinate and to achieve joint action with regard to forest management. Nasuvinsa is planning the construction and commissioning of a forest biomass collection centre in Aoiz (Navarra) to supply the biomass boilers of the social housing buildings of Nasuvinsa and those of any future installations that may be promoted from the public sector, in order to meet the demands of the low-carbon economy and to reduce fossil fuel consumption in Navarra. Agenex, in Extremadura, will take action in the districts of La Siberia, Hurdes and Sierra de Gata in order to eliminate the administrative, legal and structural barriers of forest ownership and courses will be organised for technical training in the holistic management of the biomass value chain, directed at local actors (municipal officers, biomass companies, boiler operators and forest owners). For its part, in Cataluña, the Centre de Ciència i Tecnologia Forestal de Catalunya will promote sustainable extraction techniques and models for the high-lying mountain areas, through innovative machinery and training in order to improve working conditions.
The next meeting will be held in Segubal (Central Portugal) in October, coinciding with the EnerTech Fair on renewables, where the Portuguese partner, Enerarea, will present its biomass collection and distribution plan for small forest owners.
At the midway point, both the partners and the external experts consulted give the project an extremely high rating, considering that it is achieving its goals, namely to transform the energy model in the SUDOE area.
