Compared to the production of electricity from photovoltaic panels or wind turbines, biogas stations have an advantage: they can produce electricity even when the sun is not shining and the wind is not blowing. This provides valuable flexibility services to balance the electricity distribution network. "When we transform them into biomethane stations, we lose this flexibility," said Prof. Jaroslav Knápek, head of the Department of Economics, Management, and Humanities at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering of the Czech Technical University in Prague, in the podcast Pod proudem on the Obnovitelně.cz server.
Together with Adam Moravec, head of the biogas section of CZ Biom – the Czech Biomass Association, they discussed the current state of biogas stations and biomethane production in the Czech Republic in the podcast.
What to do with aging biogas plants?
Most biogas stations in Czechia were built between 2008 and 2012. Their expected technical lifespan is around 20 years, so we are slowly reaching a situation where the vast majority of biogas plants will reach the end of their lifespan and, at the same time, their operating support will end.
"The question is whether investors will continue to operate biogas plants or whether they will transform them into biomethane production facilities. Or there is even a third option, which is widely discussed abroad, namely a combined approach," pointed out Prof. Knápek.
He agrees with Adam Moravec from CZ Biom that the current systemic conditions and state support for biogas plants are inconsistent and do not sufficiently motivate investors. According to Moravec, support for biogas plants should take a similar direction to that in Germany, namely banded support. "Support would only be paid during morning and evening peaks to force sources to be flexible," Moravec explained in the podcast.
Biogas plants, which currently operate on a 24/7 basis (i.e., essentially continuous operation), would, for example, reduce electricity production in two daily blocks and free up the daytime slot for electricity production from photovoltaics and other sources. They would thus focus on production in time slots outside the peak hours of electricity production from photovoltaic power plants. This band operation is possible thanks to the storage capacity of the gas tank, into which the continuously produced biogas from the fermenter is stored. This would effectively increase the space for the production of cheaper electricity from photovoltaic power plants during daytime hours, while electricity production at the biogas station would be concentrated in time slots when photovoltaic power plants are not producing.
