01. 06.10:
Project: Bio-energy in the West
A recently approved EUR3 million Interreg Northern Periphery Programme initiative led by the Western Development Commission (WDC) along with partners from Northern Ireland (Action Renewables), Scotland and Sweden, is examining how local energy needs can be supplied from local sources in order to deliver much needed sustainable employment to rural economies.
The pilot phase of the RASLRES project focuses on wood biomass and was launched on 29 April by which point 125 enquiries had been received from businesses and organisations in the West Region alone. WDC research shows that by 2020, if forestry is properly managed with a long-term vision, the West could annually develop an indigenous, renewable wood energy resource supplying over 470,000 tonnes of fuel. This replenishable output would deliver 11% of the region's heat needs as well as enormous CO2 emissions savings and would create up to 900 additional jobs across the entire supply chain - in turn generating an additional EUR15 million for the regional economy and providing EUR1.7 million directly to the farming sector.
During 2010 and 2011 RASLRES will assess the heat market and fuel resources in each participating region to identify 'hot spots' of potential wood energy activity. This will lead to the roll-out of a range of free and expertly tailored technical and business advisory services to the wood energy sector via pilot projects to:
* Establish sustainable local supply and demand loops;
* Develop local wood fuel supply from forestry;
* Offer best practice approaches to support industry development;
* Help build critical mass and scale; and
* Support investment plans and help secure project finance.
The selected pilots are intended to be developed into commercially operational investments in terms of renewable heating schemes and/or fuel supply chains.
Aside from wood, RASLRES also encompasses the analysis and development of reed canary grass and marine biomass alternatives in order to stimulate the market and sustainably grow local bio-energy businesses in peripheral regions.
Further details www.raslres.eu or contact ianbrannigan@wdc.ie
