Scenarios and effects of the substitution of fossil fuels with wood pellets in Serbia to mitigate climate change effects

Abstract

High degree of energy dependence of certain European countries on the import of fossil fuels, the large consumption of these fuels globally, high CO2 emissions which occur during their combustion and increasingly expressed climate changes are some of the main reasons that have initiated more intensive use of renewable sources of energy in recent years. For this reason wood fuels, as a renewable energy source, have gained a special significance for substituting fossil fuels and providing the needed amount of energy to meet the needs of the global population. Global tendencies in this area did not bypass Serbia, thus certain scenarios of fossil fuels substitution are analyzed in this paper. Wood pellets are selected as a substitution fuel, the production and consumption of which have been increasing in Serbia in recent years. In addition to determining the market potential for this type of wood fuel and actual amounts of fossil fuels for the substitution, economic and environmental effects of the proposed substitution scenarios are analyzed in the paper.