Biogas and its role in the energy transition

This briefing by Zero Carbon Analytics evaluates the role of biogas and biomethane in the energy transition, arguing that their use should be limited to hard-to-abate sectors. The document highlights that biogas only addresses a minority of agricultural emissions, faces significant economic challenges requiring subsidies, and carries risks related to fugitive emissions and safety.

• The use of biogas and biomethane for decarbonisation should be restricted to hard-to-abate sectors, such as industrial heating or petrochemical production, because cost-effective renewable electrification alternatives already exist for transportation, heating, and electricity generation.
• Biogas has a limited capacity to mitigate agricultural emissions, as it only targets manure and crop residuals, which together account for 28.9% of global agricultural emissions. The majority of emissions come from other sources, such as enteric fermentation (44.3%) and feed (13.5%). Furthermore, over 80% of global farms are held by smallholders who lack the financial and technical means to install anaerobic digesters.
• The European Commission's RePower EU plan targets 35 billion cubic metres (bcm) of biomethane production by 2030, a twelvefold increase from the current 3 bcm. However, an assessment by the Institute for Environmental and Resource Management (IFEU) suggests only 17 bcm is sustainable; reaching the 35 bcm target would require using crop-based biomass across five to six million hectares of arable land, potentially undermining food security.
• Biogas deployment faces significant economic and safety risks.S. In Europe and the US, high capital costs for biodigesters (70%-95% of total costs) necessitate subsidies; in Germany, some plants require 50% investment subsidies and feed-in tariffs of EUR 11.50/MWh (USD 11.30/MWh) to be viable. Additionally, fugitive emissions can undermine climate benefits, and safety concerns exist, with a study of 169 accidents between 1994-2015 showing that 53% resulted in fire and 40% in explosions.

APA

Team, Z. (2022). Biogas and its role in the energy transition. Zero Carbon Analytics. https://zerocarbon-analytics.org/nature/biogas-and-its-role-in-the-energy-transition/

Chicago

Team, ZCA. Biogas and its role in the energy transition. Zero Carbon Analytics, 2022. https://zerocarbon-analytics.org/nature/biogas-and-its-role-in-the-energy-transition/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Team |first1=ZCA |title=Biogas and its role in the energy transition |publisher=Zero Carbon Analytics |date=8 November 2022 |url=https://zerocarbon-analytics.org/nature/biogas-and-its-role-in-the-energy-transition/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{team2022biogas, author = {Team, ZCA}, title = {{Biogas and its role in the energy transition}}, institution = {Zero Carbon Analytics}, year = {2022}, month = nov, url = {https://zerocarbon-analytics.org/nature/biogas-and-its-role-in-the-energy-transition/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }