RES Scenario in the European Union - The Sustainability of Renewable Energy in Europe - page 39

Table 2.3 Hydropower capacity in 2012. (Source: World Energy Council 2013 )
Installed capacity (MW) Actual generation (GWh)

China 231,000.0 714,000.0

Europe 148,500.0

Brazil 82,458.0 428,571.0

USA 77,500.0 268,000.0

Canada 75,104.0 348,110.0

Russian Federation 49,700.0 180,000.0

Rest of the world 325,738.0 828,437.0

Global total 990,000.0 2,767,118.0

• Thermoelectric hybrids, that use both biomass and conventional sources
• Powered by liquid biomass (vegetable oils, biodiesel), consisting of engines
coupled to generators

Biomass is the most sophisticated form of accumulation of solar energy which
through photosynthesis converts light energy into chemical energy stored in organic
molecules. For this reason, it is an RES as the CO 2 produced during combustion is
reabsorbed by plants through photosynthesis.
Currently, biomass meets about 15 % of primary energy use in the world, with
55 million TJ/year (1230 Mtoe/year). The use of this source shows, however, a
high degree of heterogeneity between countries. Developing countries, on the
whole, on average, derive 38 % of its energy from biomass, with 48 million TJ/year
(1074 Mtoe/year), but in many of them the resource meets up to 90 % of energy
needs total, by the combustion of wood, straw and animal waste. In industrialized
countries instead biomass contributes for 3 % of the primary energy use by 7 mil-
lion TJ/yr (156 Mtoe/year).
A widespread use of biomass can result in significant impacts at economic,
environmental, and employment levels, as they can ensure enhancement of agro-
industrial residues, new opportunities for the development of marginal areas and/
or reduction in agricultural surpluses with the replacement of traditional crops with
energy crops, very low contribution to the increase in the rate of CO2 in the at-
mosphere. In order to diversify RES, the use of biomass is an important potential
energy reservoir, which could help to reduce vulnerability in the supply of energy
resources and restrict the import of electricity for many countries. Biofuel produc-
tion that is any fuel derived from biomass is shown in Table 2.4 .
Geothermal energy uses the earth's internal heat generated in part during the
formation of the planet and in part by the decay of radioactive isotopes in the mantle
(volcanoes, hot springs, fumaroles, and geysers are indications of the heat that is
stored in the Earth's crust). A geothermal power plant consists of an area where it
was detected in the presence of hot fluids, with depths ranging from 60 to 3000 m
from where the vapor presents at high temperatures (150 -250 °C) is extracted by
drilling and then piped into insulated carbon steel pipes, which carry the steam to
the central.