"Green instead of coal": The Polish government increases emphasis on renewable energy. The Polish energy market, traditionally dominated by lignite and coal, is changing. Biogas has an important role to play in this country where agriculture is a major part of the economy - experts predict a boom in the next years.

Against this background, the biogas plant specialist BD AGRO is playing a full role in the energy revolution: towards the end of this year the biogas part of the Big Dutchman Group will complete its first biogas plant in the Zielona Gora region. The 250 kW plant will be attached to an existing pig fattening business. In addition to pig slurry, other substrates will be digested. The largest proportion of the electricity will be used in the farm business itself - surplus will be exported to the electricity network.

Ambitious government plans aim to increase the proportion of renewable energy in Polish energy production from 5% today to 15% by 2020. The vision is for 20 percent by 2030. The government aims in particular to promote investment in biogas plants. "The Polish biogas market is still in its infancy but has great long-term potential" says BD AGRO CEO Uwe Heider, commenting on the situation in eastern neighbours.

"There are a few technical and bureaucratic hurdles to overcome first. The introduction of new technologies in particular requires know-how and experience. Both are currently not yet sufficiently avaible in Poland. But even more is needed in such a young market, namely excellent knowledge of the market enviroment and a reliable local partner", Heider adds as a requirement for a succesful entry into Poland.

The BD AGRO chief speaks from experience. After a sucessful project planning phase, the building of a UniFerm type biogas plant, a BD AGRO solution for the power range from 250 to 780 kW, is progressing at full speed. In addiction to the innovative technology from BD AGRO, the contribution made by the Polish Big Dutchman subsidiary Agricon Spólka z o.o., a leading company the construction of livestock buildings, and Polska BD were important to the debut of BD AGRO in Poland. "In terms of Polish agriculture and the appropriate market environment, our partners are seasoned veterans with a lot of experience on which we can fully rely. So we already have many contacts in Polish agriculture to establish and lead important discussions. Additional projects are being discussed with domestic and foreign energy suppliers, institutional investors and funds.