Scientific report:

Fast growing Energy Forest - the way to energy independence for Europe

By Leonid Melezhyk, Founder "Fast growing Energy Forest" LTD

Portugal, Cascais. November 7, 2022

The main goal of the project is to replace coal and gas with locally produced biomass for use in power and boiler plants

Dynamics of gas price change at the TTF gas hub

There is a steady increase in the cost of gas.

For the first time in many years, the price of gas has not decreased after the heating season.

Our biomass will replace the coal and gas used today in the Power Plant and Boiler Plant. Biomass grown on the country’s own territory is 20% cheaper than

Project goal and Mission

Europe is energetically independent of the fossil fuels of the aggressor country. Regular reduction of CO2 emissions by 2050.

Savings 14.7B euros per year

With the use of marginal lands of European countries (within 2% of the total area) and the creation of Industrial Plantations of Energy Willows (IPEW) for growing forests for biomass, reduces natural gas use by 56.6 billion m3 each year and save 14,7 billion euros per year. Table №1.

Creation of the IPEW

The creation of the IPEW as a forest strip along highways (patent №139085, page #6) will replace another 26 billion m3 of gas and save 7 billion euros each year. Table №3.

Reduction of CO2 emissions by 2.3B tons per year

Reduction of CO2 emissions by 2.3 billion tons, through the creation of industrial plantations of energy willows (IPEW) on the marginal lands of European countries with an annual rainfall of over 600 mm. Table №2.

Reduction of CO2 emissions by another 870M tons per year

Reduction of CO2 emissions by another 870 million tons per year by creating industrial plantations of energy willows (IPEW) on the roads of European countries with an annual rainfall of over 600 mm. Table №4

Potential of Portugal

Savings 223M euros per year

With the use of marginal lands of Portugal to created Fast growing Energy Forest (within 2% of the total area =177,882 ha) and the creation of Industrial Plantations of Energy Willows (IPEW) for growing forests for biomass, reduces natural gas use by 859,859M m3 each year and save 223M euros a year. Table №1.

Creation of the IPEW

The creation of the Fast growing Energy Forest as a forest strip along highways (patent №139085, page #6) will replace another 400 million m3 of gas and save 104 million euros each year. Table №3.

Reduction of CO2 emissions by 35M tons, per year

Reduction of CO2 emissions by 35 million tons, through the creation of industrial plantations of energy willows (FgEF) on the marginal lands of Portugal with an annual rainfall of over 600 mm. Table №2.

Reduction of CO2 emissions by another 16,6M tons per year

Reduction of CO2 emissions by another 16,5 million tons per year by creating industrial plantations of energy willows (FgEF) on the roads of Portugal with an annual rainfall of over 600 mm. Table №4.

Project goal: Europe is energy independent of fossil fuels

Infrastructure

How does a natural bioaccumulator work?

Biomass is a product that allows replacing fossil coal in the ratio of 1 ton of biomass (chips) = 0.8 tons of brown coal, or = 0.46 tons of anthracite, or 510 m3 of natural gas. It is used in Power Plants and Boiler Plants for partial and in the perspective of complete replacement of fossil coal.

Absorption of СО2

Trees + СО2

Energy willow in 3 years = pine forest in 25 years

Absorption of СО2 in trees per year

Benefits of Fast growing Energy Forest

Comparative table of thermal energy production from biomass and gas

More efficient, less money. Stays locally.

Power Plants

We create clusters of lands with a total area of 1 000 ha within a radius of 100 km around Power Plants and Boiler Plants.

Plantation Fast growing Energy Forest (FgEF)

3,35m – growth in one year of unrooted shoots (seedling). Increase of the Industrial Plantation Energy Willow for 3 year 5,5m - 6,5m veters

For 10 years of selection work we have succeeded

Registered 11 Energy Willow varieties, adapted for growing on poor (marginal) lands and included in the international database.

Rotary plantation strips creation of Fast growing Energy Forest (FgEF) from willow and poplar cultivars for the protection of highways and railways

The utility model is registered in the USA and Ukraine

Where to use?
Agriculture, transport industry, energy industry (green energy).

What is it?
Replacement of traditional (subsidized) roadside protection strips with rotary plantation strips of a new type.

What are the advantages of traditional protective strips?
Lower cost of creating rapid growth mechanized care additional income in the form of biomass. 

Table #1. Europe's potential in replace fossil fuels (gas and coal) with in house fuels (carbon-neutral biomass)

Creation of Fast growing Energy Forest (FgEF) in marginal lands.

Countries *Yield,18 ton\ha (humidity 50%), tons, km² **Biofuel drying ratio (15% humidity), tons Volume replace biomass, 1 ton of biomass = 510m³ of gas, m³ ***Cost of replacing foreign gas with own fuel, mill. €
Austria 3019644 1589286 810536021 211
England 8769960 4615768 2354041895 612
Belgium 1104768 581457 296542989 77
Estonia 1632168 859036 438108253 114
Ireland 2529864 1331507 679068758 177
Italy 10848240 5709600 2911896000 757
Latvia 2325204 1223792 624133705 162
Lithuania 2350800 1237263 631004211 164
Netherlands 1495548 787131 401436568 104
Germany 12852792 6764627 3449959958 897
Poland 22512888 11848888 6042933095 1571
Portugal 3201876 1685198 859450926 223
Romania 17164584 9033992 4607335705 1198
Slovakia 3530448 1858131 947646568 246
Hungary 6698160 3525347 1797927158 467
Ukraine 89952793,92 47343576 24145223631 6278
France 19581840 10306232 5256178105 1367
Switzerland 1486260 782242 398943474 104
Total: 211057837,9 111083073 56652367020 14730

* Number of marginal lands, ha х 18 ton/ha (yield IPEW per year) = ton biofuel 5O% humidity

** Biofuel (5O% humidity) / 1, 9 (drying ratio) = biofuel 15% humidity

*** The cost of 1 m3 gas on 23.08.2021 is 0,26 €

Table #2. The potential of reduce СО2 emission through the creation of Fast growing Energy Forest (FgEF) in marginal lands.

Marginal lands of European countries

with annual rainfall of more than 600 mm.

Countries Area, km² Marginal lands, % Marginal lands, km² Marginal lands, ha CO2
Austria 83879 2 1677,58 167758 33551600
England 243610 2 4872,2 487220 97444000
Belgium 30688 2 613,76 61376 12275200
Estonia 45338 2 906,76 90676 18135200
Ireland 70274 2 1405,48 140548 28109600
Italy 301340 2 6026,8 602680 120536000
Latvia 64589 2 1291,78 129178 25835600
Lithuania 65300 2 1306 130600 26120000
Netherlands 41543 2 830,86 83086 16617200
Germany 357022 2 7140,44 714044 142808800
Poland 312679 4 12507,16 1250716 250143200
Portugal 88941 2 1778,82 177882 35576400
Romania 238397 4 9535,88 953588 190717600
Slovakia 49034 4 1961,36 196136 39227200
Hungary 93030 4 3721,2 372120 74424000
Ukraine 603548 8,28 49973,77 4997377 999475488
France 543940 2 10878,8 1087880 217576000
Switzerland 41285 2 825,7 82570 16514000
Total: 3274437 117254,35 11725435 2345087088

* Number of marginal lands, ha х 18 ton/ha (yield IPEW per year) = ton biofuel 5O% humidity

** Biofuel (5O% humidity) / 1, 9 (drying ratio) = biofuel 15% humidity

*** The cost of 1 m3 gas on 23.08.2021 is 0,26 €

1 ha of plantation energy plants absorb 200 tons of СО2 from the air every year , СО2

Table #3. Europe's potential for biomass as a substitute for natural gas in the creation of Fast growing Energy Forest (FgEF) in marginal lands along car roads

Countries Total number of cars roads, km Yield,18 ton\ha (humidity 50%), tons Biofuel drying ratio (15% humidity), tons Volume to replace biomass, 1 ton of biomass = 510m3 gas³, m³ Cost of replacing foreign gas with own fuel, mill. €
Austria 1335978 24047604 12656634 6454883179 1678
England 394428 7099704 3736686 1905710021 495
Belgium 154012 2772216 1459061 744121137 193
Estonia 58412 1051416 553377 282222189 73
Ireland 96036 1728648 909815 464005516 121
Italy 487700 8778600 4620316 2356361053 613
Latvia 72440 1303920 686274 349999579 91
Lithuania 84166 1514988 797362 406654674 106
Netherlands 138641 2495538 1313441 669854937 174
Germany 645000 11610000 6110526 3116368421 810
Poland 412035 7416630 3903489 1990779632 518
Portugal 82900 1492200 785368 400537895 104
Romania 84185 1515330 797542 406746474 106
Slovakia 54869 987642 519812 265103905 69
Hungary 203601 3664818 1928852 983714305 256
Ukraine 169500 3051000 1605789 818952632 213
France 1028446 18512028 9743173 4969018042 1292
Switzerland 71464 1286352 677027 345283958 90
Total: 5573813 100328634 52804544 26930317547 7002

* Number of marginal lands, ha х 18 ton/ha (yield IPEW per year) = ton biofuel 5O% humidity

** Biofuel (5O% humidity) / 1, 9 (drying ratio) = biofuel 15% humidity

*** The cost of 1 m3 gas on 23.08.2021 is 0,26 €

Table #4. European potential of reduce СО2 emission through the creation of Fast growing Energy Forest (FgEF) on the cars roads

Countries with annual rainfall of more than 600 mm

 
CountriesTotal number of cars roads, kmCO2 
Austria13359726719400 
England39442878885600 
Belgium15401230802400 
Estonia5841211682400 
Ireland9603619207200 
Italy48770097540000 
Latvia7244014488000 
Lithuania8416616833200 
Netherlands13864127728200 
Germany645000129000000 
Poland41203582407000 
Portugal8290016580000 
Romania8418516837000 
Slovakia5486910973800 
Hungary20360140720200 
Ukraine16950033900000 
France1028446205689200 
Switzerland7146414292800 
Total:4371432874286400 

SWOT analysis

Strengths

  • Domestic energy willow varieties.
  • Possibility to regulate the costs of planting stock.
  • Possibility to plant energy willow fast throughout large areas.
  • Blue Ocean Strategy W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne
  • Free market. The project is at the initial stage. We can offer unique services and products. Similar projects are active and operate successfully in other countries. The USA, Denmark, Finland…

Weaknesses

  • Lack of governmental support.
  • Lack of funding.
  • Lack of professional staff.
  • Experience in biomaterials (energy willow) is merely 10 years.
  • 1th season experimental fields in Portugal

Opportunities

  • Investment opportunities:

1) energy willow cultivation – $1,9B;
2) building of biomass-based boiler houses – $1.5B;
3) 177882 hectares of lands for energy willow cultivation in Portugal.

  • Potential to switch gas boilers to biomass (energy willow).
  • Organization of our own national park of special equipment for the transfer of equipment for rent to partners:

1) energy willow planting operations;
2) harvesting and harvest transportation operations.

Threats

  • Dramatic climate changes affect root development of planting stock during first 2-3 years.
  • Draught in the 1st year of planting.
  • No plant care.
  • Legal barriers in transition of boiler houses to biomass. 

Profile of the Project Owner

Melezhyk Leonid

Founder and General Director (owner)
————
I believe that Humanity will take the side of nature.

I am sure that if we will “understand the nature” of our Planet more, we will find harmonious solutions in inexhaustible sources of clean energy not only for the needs of Humanity on the planet Earth, but also for the yet unknown engines for traveling in the Universe. We will also find answers to many questions about inexhaustible sources of clean Energy, inspiration, long life without diseases and harmonious relations between people and states.

Education Speciality

  • 1993

    Power Engineer Ukrainian National Agrarian University.
  • 2000

    Speciality: Lawyer (diploma with honors), Kyiv Institute of Tourism, Economy and Law. 
  • 2008

    MBA in Business Administration The Open University UK.
  • 2016-2021

    Completing a PhD, Forest Restoration and Melioration Department, National University of Life and Environmental Sciences of Ukraine.

    Subject of thesis: “Agrobiological and technological foundations for the creation and operation of energy willow plantations in the Right-Bank Forest-Steppe of Ukraine”.

Practical skills

Business

Business Administration

Law

Landscape design

Planting and growing of crops

Green energy

Investment

Management

Engineering

Irrigation systems

Heat engineering

Energy willow cultivation

Fast growing Energy Forest - new technology smart use of land along highways

We offer the latest technology for fast and intensive and inexpensive restorations of felled old trees along highways and railways, by creating forest protection strips from Energy Willow plantations.

A double benefit from the new type of rotation-plantation forest strips:

Ecological – emissions of cars are quickly by young willow trees.

Financially – the land along the roads will be used for growing energy willow for biomass (wood chips).

The process of creating rotation-planted protective strips

Economy – roads will earn money

The schedule of annual collection of wood chips from rotation-planted strips

Economy – roads will earn money

OUR SYNERGY IS IN COOPERATION!

Phone: +35 191 777 00 67