Exposé des motifs contre la conversion des centrales à la Réunion du charbon à la biomasse

The document opposes converting coal power plants in Réunion to biomass, citing higher direct CO2 emissions, carbon debt from forest harvesting, and risks to biodiversity and food security. It argues that importing massive quantities of biomass pellets—estimated at 900,000 tonnes per year for the Bois-Rouge and Le Gol plants—contradicts France's 2015 energy transition law regarding overseas energy autonomy and suggests prioritizing solar and wind energy instead.

• Producing electricity from solid biomass can result in direct CO2 emissions that are 3% to 50% higher than those from coal, primarily due to higher moisture content.
• The use of solid biomass creates a 'carbon debt' because harvesting wood releases carbon that would otherwise remain in forests; replacing fossil fuels with wood could lead to 2 to 3 times more carbon in the atmosphere by 2050 per gigajoule of final energy.
• Large-scale biomass deployment poses risks to food security, soil degradation, and desertification, while specific sources like the US East Coast involve clear-cutting natural forests and Southern African sources risk eucalyptus monocultures that impact water resources and cause land grabbing.
• The conversion of the Bois-Rouge (108 MW) and Le Gol (122 MW) plants would require importing nearly 900,000 tonnes of pellets annually, which contradicts the 2015 energy transition law's goal of energy autonomy for overseas territories by 2030.
• An ADEME study indicates that 100% renewable energy scenarios for Réunion are viable without the need for imported solid biomass, suggesting that investment should prioritize solar and wind power.

APA

Reclaim Finance (2020). Exposé des motifs contre la conversion des centrales à la Réunion du charbon à la biomasse. https://reclaimfinance.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/ExposeMotifs_ContreConversionCentralesCharbonReunionBiomasse.pdf

Chicago

Reclaim Finance. Exposé des motifs contre la conversion des centrales à la Réunion du charbon à la biomasse. 2020. https://reclaimfinance.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/ExposeMotifs_ContreConversionCentralesCharbonReunionBiomasse.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Reclaim Finance |title=Exposé des motifs contre la conversion des centrales à la Réunion du charbon à la biomasse |date=March 2020 |url=https://reclaimfinance.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/ExposeMotifs_ContreConversionCentralesCharbonReunionBiomasse.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{reclaimfinance2020expos, author = {{Reclaim Finance}}, title = {{Exposé des motifs contre la conversion des centrales à la Réunion du charbon à la biomasse}}, publisher = {Reclaim Finance}, year = {2020}, month = mar, url = {https://reclaimfinance.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/ExposeMotifs_ContreConversionCentralesCharbonReunionBiomasse.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }