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Bioenergy involves efficiently extracting considerable quantities of clean, low-emission electricity from waste. Bioenergy fuel sources are often derived from agricultural, forestry and municipal wastes. Sugar cane waste – known as bagasse – remains the most common form of bioenergy generation, closely followed by landfill gas.

Other common sources include the black liquor derived from paper making, as well as sewage gas and food waste. Bioenergy generators tend to be smaller than hydro plants and wind and solar farms.

Bioenergy generation

Bioenergy generated approximately 3164 GWh of electricity in Australia in 2020. This equated to 1.4 per cent of total electricity generation, and 5.0 per cent of total clean energy generation.

5%

of total clean energy generated in 2020

1.4%

of total electricity generated in 2020

Recent projects

Several notable bioenergy projects were announced in 2020, including:

  • The Malabar Biomethane Injection Project, a first of its kind project in Australia that involves installing gas cleaning and upgrading equipment at Sydney Water's Malabar wastewater treatment plant to upgrade biogas to biomethane. The biomethane will then be injected into the gas network, with an initial capacity of 95 terajoules to help meet the gas demand of approximately 6300 homes.
  • A collaboration between the Queensland University of Technology and Griffith University to develop and demonstrate the production of compressed biomethane and biocrude oil from sugarcane trash and bagasse at pilot scale.
  • The Hazer commercial demonstration plant in WA, which will use biomethane produced at a wastewater treatment site as a feedstock to be converted into 100 tonnes of hydrogen per annum.
  • Two 850 kW bioenergy facilities being developed by LMS Energy at Reedy Creek and Caloundra in Queensland that will utilise landfill biogas to produce electricity.
  • The installation of a biomass boiler in Victoria that will use 2500 tonnes per annum of wood waste to generate renewable thermal energy to heat treat wooden pallets.
  • A project in NSW to optimise a yeast biocatalyst for the efficient production of biofuels from non-food biomass.
Bioenergy projects completed in 2020
ProjectStateInstalled capacity (MW)Fuel source

Mugga Lane

ACT

4.2

Landfill gas
Seaford HeightsSA

3.2

Landfill gas

Bioenergy production by state in 2019 (GWh)

Hint Hover over the map to see state data

QLD
1113
NSW
1059
VIC
712
WA
151
SA
99
TAS
29
Total production
3164
No results for this state.

Related Content

Resources

Clean Energy Australia Report

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