[Graeme]

Well then, you can't regard it as "bogus" until the assessment is done! Dah.

[Graeme]

Regardless of what you say, biogas is going to be used as a source of energy in future. There is nothing you can do about it. I endorse the conclusions, and I'm also providing information:

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'T')he World Bioenergy Association from Stockholm, Sweden issued a fact sheet titled Biogas – An Important Energy Source, in which they state that 25% of global natural gas demand or 6% of global primary energy use could be met with biogas.

[Tanada]

Peak Oil, how a village in Austria converted to Biomass and saved themselves.

http://youtu.be/5ltymAhoNsw

[isgota]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('pstarr', 'G')raeme, haven't I already lectured you on the fallacy of "renewable" biogas?

Conversion of landfills, sewage, farm waste and food waste into fuel is at best a waste-mitigation strategy, a way to avoid garbage disposal costs. The energy collection/processing btus are greater than output btus. Zero energy returned.

More carbon is released into the atmosphere than before. And no energy remains to drive Mom, Dad, Biff, and Babs on their shopping trips to the Mall. It is a GREEN LOSER.

[Graeme]

No they don't. Gas is better than oil and coal. Ideally we shouldn't be using any FF at all. But until solar is universally cheaper than gas sometimes in next decade, gas is the lesser "evil".

However, I've just seen this as an application for biogas:

Equipment Profile: Biogas-powered Fuel Cells

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'B')iogas-powered fuel cells hold great promise for their ability to transform waste streams directly into electricity, with zero emissions. Far from new technology, dating back to 1839, fuel cells are becoming one of the popular methods of generating cleaner energy not only for automobiles and space craft, but also for residential, commercial and industrial sites. Today, companies such as AT&T, Coca-Cola Co., Apple and The Kroger Co. are utilizing biogas-powered fuel cells to generate energy for television studios, data hubs, distribution centers and administration offices.

Tony Leo, vice president of application engineering and new technology development of FuelCell Energy, says the top benefit of biogas-powered fuel cells is the ability to transform a waste stream directly into electricity to offset grid purchases. Even for facilities that are flaring biogas for electricity or powering a combustion-engine generator, fuel cells produce more electricity per unit of biogas with zero emissions, he says.

In addition to utilizing waste for energy, Leo says other benefits include heat generation and self-sufficiency. The exhaust of a fuel cell is roughly 750 degrees Fahrenheit, and can be fed back into a digester to maintain heat or support faster material breakdown. Additionally, the heat may be used for hot water systems, absorption chilling systems or sold to neighboring facilities. Fuel cells enable a facility to become energy self-sufficient, Leo says. “We like to describe this as building one’s own micro-grid, where in instances the grid goes down, you can keep your facility operational.”

[Graeme]

What do you think of fuel cells powered by biogas?

[Graeme]

From your link:

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'T')aking the Overijssel province in the Netherlands as a case study, we showed that 66.01 PJ can be contributed from by-products, with an additional 3.34 TJ coming from more conventional pasturelands. The NEG from biogas can potentially take care of Overijssel’s entire renewable energy target for the year 2030. When producing bioenergy from by-products, the EROEI is quite high (7e17), indicating that there is a big potential for by-products to provide energy without compromising the ecological or agricultural functions of the landscapes

[Graeme]

Here are their conclusions:

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'U')sing the EROEI index together with the NEG (a NEG-EROEI approach) further adds scientific rigour to the energy inputeoutput analysis given room for a broader spectrum
of analysis for improvement of the efficiency of energy production chains as done by this study (energy sources on one hand and energy production technologies on the other hand).
This study further underlines the importance of the NEG EROEI approach as a valuable impact assessment indicator and tool, as was discussed in a separate publication [69]. Most
of the coefficients and the methodology in general can be easily adapted beyond the province of Overijssel, for the Netherlands as a whole and the EU as long as the basic agricultural practices and energy conversion technologies are the same.

[Ulenspiegel]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('isgota', '
')Any sources? Because a quick "biogas EROEI" search yields this paper showing exactly the opposite.

[Graeme]

FuelCell Energy Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2014 Results and Business Highlights

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '
')Continued gross margin expansion supported by cost reductions and sales mix

Record 70 megawatts of production sold during the year

Utility sale of 3.4 megawatt high efficiency power plant for gas pipeline application

Six fuel cell modules totaling 8.4 megawatts sold to POSCO Energy to meet Asian demand

Multiple projects selected as Finalists for consideration under utility RFP for Long Island, New York

DANBURY, Conn., Dec. 15, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- FuelCell Energy, Inc. (Nasdaq:FCEL), a global leader in the design, manufacture, operation and service of ultra-clean, efficient and reliable fuel cell power plants, today reported results for its fourth quarter and fiscal year ended October 31, 2014 along with an update on key business highlights.

Financial Results

FuelCell Energy (the Company) reported total revenues for the fourth quarter of 2014 of $54.4 million compared to $55.2 million for the fourth quarter of 2013.

Product sales for the fourth quarter of 2014 totaled $42.4 million, comprising $35.8 million of power plant revenue, fuel cell module and fuel cell kit sales, and $6.6 million of power plant component sales and site engineering and construction services. Product sales for the comparable prior year period totaled $36.2 million.

Service and license revenues for the fourth quarter of 2014 totaled $6.7 million. Service and license revenues totaled $15.4 million for the fourth quarter of 2013 or $5.2 million excluding $10.2 million of revenue recognized in conjunction with the execution of a revised multi-year service agreement with Asian partner POSCO Energy.

Advanced technologies contract revenue was $5.3 million for the fourth quarter of 2014 compared to $3.6 million for the prior year period.

The gross profit generated in the fourth quarter of 2014 totaled $6.0 million compared to $2.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2013. The fourth quarter 2014 gross margin was 10.9 percent compared to 4.7 percent for the prior year period. The current period gross margin of 10.9 percent reflects continued sequential margin expansion, improving from the 9.2 percent gross margin of the third quarter of 2014, and is a record gross margin since the Company began commercializing fuel cells. Margin expansion is reflective of a sales mix transitioning to a larger percentage of revenues from turn-key projects in the United States as well as lower product costs from sustained production at 70 megawatts annually combined with continued manufacturing efficiencies.

[Ulenspiegel]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('pstarr', '
')No one has responded to my though experiment? Okay, it is a bit challenging, intellectually puzzling, so let's add a hint: we collect biomass (actually human crap) at municipal waste-treatment plants. Yet we throw it all away making doody in our streams and beaches, instead of making our prius's be even more green! What's with that?