Green energy for the Province of Warmia and Mazury from biogas

Currently in Poland the most widely used material for the production of electricity is fossil fuels. However, due to an increase in their prices and the tightening of European Union regulations on emissions of greenhouse gases, there are tendencies to transform the energy sector through the implementation of technologies based on alternative source of energy. The main focus is, therefore, on renewable energy source. In recent years, Poland has increased interest in the investments in renewable energy sources to fulfill the guidelines of the EU energy policy, which obliges Poland to obtain a 15% share of renewable energy sources in final energy consumption by 2020. One of the preferred state policy activities related to the production of energy from renewable sources is biogas production and cogeneration of electricity and heat. The simultaneous production of heat and electric or mechanical energy during the same technological process is called Combined Heat and Power (CHP). The Province of Warmia and Mazury is a ”green region”, which is why biogas is a solution that can ensure future energy security for the whole province. The methodological approach included in the article is to determine the potential energy that can be obtained from biogas cogeneration process. To this end, an analysis of Central Statistical Office data was performed as well as an analysis of available reports and studies for the Province of Warmia and Mazury, in the context of determining the energy potential of biogas cogeneration. As a result, the general method has been developed that allows the determination of the average theoretical potential for energy production from biogas cogeneration process. In addition, the article presents an illustrative diagram of a biogas plant with CHP system.