Woodfuel opportunities in

Oxfordshire

5 August 2012

Matthew Woodcock

Forestry Commission – South East England

2 Woodfuel opportunities in Oxfordshire

South east England Woodland - Background

Undermanaged mixed (conifer/broadleaf)

woodland planted in the 1950’s

Typical broadleaved woodland of south east England – overstood coppice last cut > 40 years agoAlso ancient woodland with high ecological value – declining through under-management

3 Woodfuel opportunities in Oxfordshire

Our energy culture

Didcot Power Station

• We’re used to the convenience of energy from large scale power stations• Yet the overall efficiency in converting solid fuels into usable power is low (around 30-35%) – all the steam going up the cooling towers is wasted energy!• On the continent powerstations are often smaller and the heat is circulated around the community via district heating mains (just as we have gas mains)

4 Woodfuel opportunities in Oxfordshire

Pearl-bordered fritillaryrecords 1970-82

The case for woodland management

Pearl-bordered fritillaryrecords 1995-99

Pearl–bordered fritillary populations 1970-1982

Population 1992-1995Decline due to lack of active

management maintaining the diversity of woodland habitat

this, and many other native woodland species, require

5 Woodfuel opportunities in Oxfordshire

Woodland cover

6 Woodfuel opportunities in Oxfordshire

A vision for Oxfordshire’s woods?

Active management of coppice with standards woodland

Impacts of management

7 Woodfuel opportunities in Oxfordshire

Maintaining our history

8 Woodfuel opportunities in Oxfordshire

Potential for sustainable production?

Traditional broadleaved trees like beech and oak

can grow at 4m3 per ha per year

Conifers like Scots pine can grow at > 8m3 per ha per year

Traditional coppice species like sweet

chestnut and ash can grow at > 6m3 per ha

per year

9 Woodfuel opportunities in Oxfordshire

Potential production from Oxfordshire

  Non FC Woods ha

Est YCm3/ha/

yr

 m3 per yr From 75% of

woodsProportion of sawlogs

Proportion of woodfuel

 Prop. Of Slabwood

 Energy of Wf MWh/yr

Conifer 899 8 7,200 5,400 3,200 2,200 1,600 3,900

Broadleaved 10,643 4 42,600 31,900 3,200 28,700 1,600 71,800

Mixed (*3) 2,683 6 16,200 12,100 7,200 4,900 3,600 10,600

Coppice (*8) 0 6 0 0 0 0 0 0

Coppice with standards (*8) 0 6 0 0 0 0 0 0

Windblow (*4) 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 0

Felled (*4) 85 4 300 200 0 200 0 400

Open space 3,286   0 0 0 0 0 0

TOTAL 17,606   66,300 49,500 13,600 35,900 6,800 86,700

 FC Woods ha Est YC   m3 per yr  Assume all is managed  Sawlogs  Woodfuel  Slabwood  MWh/yr

Conifer 262 10 2,600 1,500 1,100 700 1,800

Broadleaved 124 4 500 50 450 20 1,100

Mixed 243 6 1,500 900 600 400 1,300

Coppice 0 6 0 0 0 0 0

Coppice with standards 0 6 0 0 0 0 0

Windblow 0 4 0 0 0 0

Felled 0 4 0 0 0 0 0

Open space 0   0 0 0 0 0

TOTAL (*2) 629   4,600 2,450 2,150 1,120 4,200

11 Woodfuel opportunities in Oxfordshire

• Heating oil at 60 pence per litre• Provides 10kWhrs per litre • Cost = 6 pence per kWhr• Seasoned beech (30% MC)• Provides 2,800 kWhrs per m3

• Matched against oil = > £160 per m3

• OR the cost of heating oil to deliver the same heat as the 35,900m3 of wood which could be sustainably produced from 75% of Oxfordshire’s existing woods is about £5million per year!

• OR enough to heat about 6,000 homes

Potential opportunity?

12 Woodfuel opportunities in Oxfordshire

Existing markets: timber and wood

Verdo

Slough

Bedmax

13 Woodfuel opportunities in Oxfordshire

Medium scale CHP

BAA – Heathrow T2

14 Woodfuel opportunities in Oxfordshire

Small scale CCHP

Waitrose