CO2-storage in agriculture using biochar

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Projektbeskrivelse

The purpose of the project is to contribute solution proposals that will support agriculture in the extensive and investment-heavy green transition that the sector is facing. Agriculture and food production account for a large share of Denmark’s greenhouse gas emissions. Unlike other sectors, a significant part of agriculture’s climate emissions is based on natural processes, which require new solutions.

The project will uncover the potential for commercialising the production of biochar based on agricultural residues, which can store large amounts of CO₂ in the biomass in a long-lasting and stable way. Biochar can, for example, be made from straw, livestock manure, and residues from biogas plants, but it can also be produced from wastewater sludge, with the process contributing to energy production and the use of surplus heat. Using otherwise low-value residual products can create new income streams and provide compensation for CO₂ capture. In addition, there are side benefits such as improved soil quality and the removal of environmentally harmful substances that occur as part of the production and use of biochar on agricultural land.

The process requires cooperation between agriculture, industry, and the energy sector and opens up new value chains. But there are also challenges and continued knowledge gaps in many areas, which must be addressed before potential investors and market actors can adopt the technology to a level where it becomes a significant part of the climate solution.

Unsure what biochar is? Then read our Q&A here.

Download analyser

How to establish a market for CCS with biochar in Denmark
How to establish a market for CCS with biochar in Denmark, Summary
Introduction to Production and Use of Biochar 2022: - working towards a more circular and bio-based Danish economy (ruc.dk)
Read supporting analyses in Danish here

Advisory board

Vice Chair
Tobias Pape Thomsen
Associate Professor, RUC

Anne Arhnung
Board Member of the CIP Foundation

Peder Nickelsen
COO, Stiesdal

Jens Elbæk
Head of Department, SEGES

Lene Gade Hovmøller
Head of Agriculture, Nykredit

Stig P. Christensen
Chair of the Board, Klimafonden Skive

Troels Ranis
Industry Director, DI Energy

Thomas Dalsgaard
Partner, CIP

Tavs Nyord
Senior Consultant, CONCITO

Jens Lundsgaard
Deputy Director, Science and Innovation, OECD and Senior Fellow at the CIP Foundation

Observer
Henrik Kjærgaard
Head of Department at the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Utilities

Observer
Anders Christiansen
Head of Office at the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries

Løsning

The project will address a range of elements and provide guidance on how the foundation for market-driven negative emissions from agriculture can be advanced overall. This is done by focusing on the potential benefits, including co-benefits, as well as on what is required for the technology to be applied profitably, to have export potential, and for the process to be relevant to participate in and invest in for different market actors.

  • Relevant biomass for the production of biochar and possible co-benefits
  • Profitability in the production of biochar
  • Opportunities for valuing CO2 storage
  • Regulatory challenges
  • Relevant value chains and financing opportunities
  • Export opportunities

The project is carried out with contributions from external analyses and with input from both the Advisory Board and various events, for example on relevant ownership structures and financing models. Reporting will take place throughout the process with proposals for, respectively, a model in a Danish context and for export opportunities during 2023.

Outcome

The project will contribute to building knowledge and developing a market for the use of residual streams from agriculture and other sources of biomass for the production of energy, fertiliser products and biochar that can store CO<sub>2</sub>e.

The pyrolysis technology for the production of biochar has, all else being equal, the potential to support agriculture in becoming a net remover of CO<sub>2</sub>e, and thereby shift its status from being one of the largest emitters of CO<sub>2</sub>e to helping address climate challenges not only within its own sector, but also at a societal level. The project sets out pathways to reach this point, as well as the advantages and disadvantages in the process and thereby the potential of the technology.