Europe has a biomass potential that is 50 per cent higher than is currently being exploited, it has been claimed.
According to study by Finnish researchers, there is enough wood available from forests, agriculture and industry equivalent to using 157 million tonnes of oil every year, the Timber Trades Journal reports.
Conducted by the VTT Technical Research Institute in Finland, the research centres on the best prospects for energy production increase on the continent.
The institute's senior research scientist Eija Alakangas told the publication: "The greatest potential for increase is in wood chips and agrobiomass.
"Finland alone aims to use forest chips to produce energy equivalent to the yield of 13.5 million cubic metres of solid fuel."
It was announced earlier this week that finance has been secured for a biomass plant in Scotland.
Helius Energy managed to get £60.5 million to fund the construction of the facility, which it hopes will open by the third quarter of 2012.
Typical Guttridge equipment used in the biomass industry includes:
Conveyors – screw conveyors – chain conveyors – belt conveyors
