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I saw the article on peat in the last edition.
I am a Swede that has been active in the Latvian Forestry sector since the early days back in 1992. All the time actively taking part in different debates and questions within the Latvian development, sometimes as boardmember of the Swedish Chamber of Commerse and sometime in the FICIL. Always a reader of TBT and Dienas Bizness and Diena and Latvijas Avize as well.
Now I have to admit I don't understand why nobody seriously considers building two biomass and in worst case combined with peat and coal power plants. As this is what Finland and Sweden does, Lithuania also by the way.
Latvia exports wood fuel , mainly to Sweden at a value of 110 million lats a year. This helps to heat and generate electricity for Stockholm and many other Swedish cities. In fact basically all Swedish cities have biofuel solutions for central heating and electricity production. Right now 3 big plants will be built in Stockholm and Gothenburg.
Why doesn't Latvia use their existing natural resurces in a clever way? Why do 1 million hectares (almost 20 percent of the country's total area) of abounded agriculture land lay for 17 years producing 0? Is it not time for biofuel production??
If there is a market all this will come into use, but it has to start with the market, the EU has already decided that 20 percent of energy consumption shall be renewable by 2020.
By the way, where are the windmills, is it not blowing on the Baltic seashore?? Gotland Island is crowded with windmills 120 km west of Ventspils.
Below there are links to Sweden's new powerplants.
Regards Lar-George Hedlund,
Riga
[email protected]www.skogssallskapet.lv
