July 15, 2024. Europe has reached an installed capacity of 6.4 billion cubic meters (bcm) of biomethane per year, according to the European Biomethane Map. 81% of the capacity corresponds to plants located in the European Union (5.2 bcm). The EU-27 countries’ growth has reached 37%, while the capacity of the non-EU countries analyzed grew by 20% compared to the 2022-2023 dataset.
The total installed capacity of European biomethane can contribute to avoid nearly 29 million tons of CO2 emissions annually and produce 830,000 tons of organic fertilizer per year. These plants can also provide renewable energy to 5 million European households throughout the year, or fuel 145,000 Bio-LNG year-round, delivering Europe’s long-term energy security and climate mitigation objectives.
The map features 1,548 biomethane plants. This represents a 32% growth in the number of plants in Europe compared to the previous edition, which featured 1,174 units. Over 80% of the reported biomethane plants are now connected to the gas grid, with nearly half of them (49%) connected to the distribution grid and 14% to the transportation grid.
France is one of the countries leading the biomethane scaleup pathway and has nearly doubled its capacity compared to the previous edition of this map. Italy has also shown significant growth, increasing its number of plants four-fold and its total plant capacity more than threefold, while the United Kingdom and Denmark maintain their positions among the top five biomethane producers in Europe. Germany remains the biggest biomethane producer, but has paused the construction of new plants.
The momentum in the biomethane sector aligns closely with the 2030 objectives set forth in the REPowerEU plan. €25 billion in private investments have been so far secured by 2030 and this will result in the installation of 950 new biomethane plants, as reported in recent analysis by the European Biogas Association.
