Denmark

General energy system and GHG emissions

The Second National Communication provides a report on Denmark's progress towards meeting all its commitments under the UNFCC.

The Danish Energy Agency provides information about energy production.

A general overview of the energy system between 1995 and 2000 is provided at the Danish Energy Agency's database with updated information about energy supply, transformation and final consumption is also available each year on the internet.

The National Danish Energy Information Centre is a service to people who have questions about energy. The Information Centre has experts and associates in the fields of energy savings, renewable energy, subsidy schemes and energy statistics. In 1997, Danish oil and gas production came from twelve fields: nine oil fields and three gas fields. Two fields are situated in the northern part of the Central Graben, while all the other fields are situated in the southern region of the central Graben. After the UK and Norway, Denmark is the biggest oil producer in Western Europe.

The NEI (Nordic Energy Index) contains descriptions of ongoing and completed energy research, development and demonstration projects in Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden.

The Ministry of Environment and Energy was created in autumn 1994 when two ministries were merged. The Ministry employs more than 3000 people. The Ministry has three agencies and three independent research institutes. It provides a homepage with links to several national energy agencies and institutes.

The Ministry of Environment and Energy provides the report "Energy in Denmark - Development, Policies and Results"

Energy flows in Denmark for the year 1998

In 2004 DG Tren of CEC assessed the state of development of renewable energy in the Member States of the European Union, and documented country profiles for all 25 MS {COM(2004)366 final}. In the Danish country profile you find information on the current status and potentials of all Renewable Energy Sources and on the main supporting policies on national level.

Currently more than 10% of Denmark is covered by forests and the intention is a doubling of the area within the next century. The forest trees are used for timber and for manufacturing in the wood industry. The forests also provide thinning wood and wood residues that can all be used for energy production. "Wood for energy production. Technology - environment - economy"

General description of bioenergy systems

Biomass is the designation for such different resources as straw, manure, wood chip, combustible and organic waste from households and industry. Energy from biomass is exploited either by burning or degassing the biomass. Biomass is the largest contributor to the Danish renewable energy production as it makes out nearly 80% of the total renewable energy production.

Biomass has good prospects of local and regional utilisation in Denmark. The amount of available biomass will decrease though concurrently with re-laying into organic farming. In 1993 the Government entered into a so-called 'biomass agreement' with the majority of parties represented in parliament. The agreement obligates the central cogeneration plants to use more straw and wood. The Plan was revised in 1997 and prescribes the cogeneration plants to use a minimum of 1 mill. tons of straw, minimum 200,000 tons of wood chip and in addition to this 200,000 tons of either straw or wood chip. This quota must be fulfilled before the year 2000, but in practise it will be impossible for the power plants to meet the requirements for some time one of the reasons being that some of the suggested plants have not been approved by the Danish Energy Agency. The main part of the present biomass utilisation takes place at plants which only produce heat. The ambition for the extension is to exploit the biomass for combined heat and power production to a larger extent.

The Danish biomass potential apart from straw, manure and wood chip consists of biogas, landfill gas and waste. Plans to establish a greater production of bio-energy including so-called energy crops exist in order to meet the demands for biomass after the year 2005. The Governments initiatives on the biomass area are first and foremost directed towards converting pure heat producing plants to cogeneration plus an increased utilisation of straw, biogas and landfill gas.

The paper
"Renewable Energy – The Danish case pictured by policy, biomass and wind" (N. Heding, 2000, in: Bioenergy from Sustainable Forestry: Principles and Practices
IEA Bioenergy Task 18: Conventional Forestry Systems for Bioenergy, Proceedings of the Workshop 16-20 October, 2000 Coffs Harbour, New South Wales, Australia, ISSN 1174-5096)
provides information about the Danish Bioenergy sector pictures by policy, biomass and wind.

Land use change and forestry

With Climate 2012 - Status and perspectives for Denmarks climate policy, the Government wishes to provide an overall view of Danish climate change policy. Climate 2012 is the beginning of a process that is to lead to the Folketing (Danish Parliament) reaching a decision on Denmark's ratification of the Kyoto Protocol. Chapter 8 (pages 77 to 92) deals with agriculture and forestry.

National policies and measures

The long-term perspective of the Government´s plan for a sustainable energy development in Denmark, Energy 21 (Energi 21), is to develop an energy system where the proportion of renewable energy continuously increases. This preconditions a continuous and gradual fitting in of renewable energy concurrent with the technological and financial possibilities. The plan is the fourth in a series of plans that all have or have had as their aim to optimise the Danish energy sector to the present national and international conditions in the field of energy.

Energy Policies of IEA Countries -- Denmark Over the past four years, Danish energy policy has made good progress towards meeting its high standards of environmental protection while opening its gas and power industries to competition. The country has adopted both international and national greenhouse-gas emissions targets.
Further information is available at IEA Publications Bookshop

Regional and local policies and measures

Implementation projects

The Danish Energy Research Programme 99
Since 1976 the Energy Research Programme has provided financial support for research and develop-ment projects in Denmark's energy sector. The Annual Report presents the results of selected research and development projects which have been carried out with financial support from the Energy Research Programme. The Annual Report also assesses the significance of energy research in 1999 and describes international tendencies in energy research, as well as a number of future technological challenges. Finally, the Annual Report contains a list of research projects which began in 1999, as well as projects which were completed.