Saxony: President of Farmers: Making greater use of the potential of biogas

Rechenberg-Bienenmühle (dpa/sn) - In view of the turbulence on the energy markets, the potential of biogas must be used more, according to Saxony's farmer president Torsten Krawczyk.

Saxony: President of Farmers: Making greater use of the potential of biogas

Rechenberg-Bienenmühle (dpa/sn) - In view of the turbulence on the energy markets, the potential of biogas must be used more, according to Saxony's farmer president Torsten Krawczyk. "We are currently only driving the biogas plants with the handbrake on," he said on Tuesday in Rechenberg-Bienenmühle (district of Central Saxony). The existing systems could deliver a good 15 to 20 percent more output. To do this, the previous throttling would have to be removed. He also sees the danger that many existing plants will go offline in the coming years when the 20-year EEG obligation ends. In order to continue to operate these systems, good framework conditions are needed.

According to the Ministry of Energy, there are 269 agricultural biogas plants in Bavaria with an electrical output of 115 megawatts. The ministry also sees further potential for the use of biogas. Energy and Agriculture Minister Wolfram Günther (Greens) explained that this is not only about power generation but also about heat supply in rural areas.