Economical green energy

In our book, we demonstrate in many ways that the use of green energy, i.e. biomass for energy purposes, is already economically viable. At current market prices, the most economical is straw at only 0.42 Ft/MJ, followed by wood chips at 0.86 Ft, and then lignite at 1.08 Ft. Black coal, in fourth place, is 5.2 times more expensive than straw and 2.5 times more expensive per MJ than wood chips. Natural gas is the most widely used fuel for heating in our country, with a retail price per unit of energy, or 1 MJ, 5.7 times higher than straw and 2.8 times higher than wood chips. Although the price of lignite seems relatively favourable, if the environmental degradation and pollution it causes is taken into account, the picture becomes very unfavourable, since while straw has an ash content of 4-6% and wood 3-6%, lignite has an ash content of 45-55%. While wood has no detectable sulphur content, straw has a barely detectable sulphur content, while lignite has a sulphur content of 2.5-4%. Our research is guided by the conviction that after many unjustified delays, the domestic use of renewable energies, including wood energy, which is a priority, must finally take place.