The Slovenian forestry institute is a leading national public research institution, competent for research in the fields of forest, forest technique and economics, wildlife, game management and use of wood biomass for energy. It was founded by the Government of the Republic of Slovenia and operates - in accordance with modern environmental thought - under the auspices of the Ministry of Science and Technology, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food, and the Ministry of the Environment and Physical Planning.
Department of Forest Techniques and Economics follows the development of modern forest techniques and efficient technologies appropriate for our geographical and socio-economical conditions. Important activities are: creation of modern technological maps, evaluation and standards setting for particular phases of technological processes, economical evaluation of forest functions, effective use of wood biomass for energy, monitoring of tree, soil damages caused by felling and skidding, wood flow analysis, roundwood balances and calculation of CO2 sink form forests and harvested wood products.
Slovenian forestry institute / Department of Forest Techniques and Economics has been involved in R&D projects, dealing with the evaluation of the biomass and energy potential of Slovenian forests and with other wood biomass potentials for more than 15 years. We are dealing mostly with wood biomass because more than 60% of land is covered with forests. We were working on a different project of national importance: and we were also co-operating in different international projects like:
- GEF Project - Removing barriers to District Heating Projects in Slovenia (SVN/97/G41)
- BIOCOGEN – Biomass cogeneration network (ENK5-CT-2001-80525)
- ALPENENERYWOOD - together promoting Wood-Energy in the Alpine Space 2003-2006 (INTERREG IIIB Project)
- AGRIFORENERGY (Altener project: EIE/05/073/SI2.420201)
- Supply and Utilization of Bioenergy to Promote Sustainable Forest Management-annex 9 (UN/FAO, TCP/SVN/2901)
- Supporting the organization of spot markets supply for wood chips and firewood - BIOMASSTRADECENTERS - EIE/07/054/SI2.466833 (2007-2010)
- Woodheat Solutions - WhS, EIE-07-726/S12.499568 – WhS (2008-2011)
Woodheat Solutions project in Slovenia
The aim of the project:
To encourage investment in heating with wood, and to show in practice a different ways of reducing production costs while ensuring high quality standards of heating with wood at the same time!
With the project we want to help:
Forest owners, producers of wood biomass
- assist in discovering the opportunities on the biomass market
- advice on networking and building supply clusters
- advise in the provision of adequate quality wood biomass
- present the possibility of selling the heat from wood biomass as a new source of income
Public Sector officials
- To present the biomass as a trusted source of heat
- Present systems for heating with biomass, and their positive environment effects
- Establish impartial advice on the investment in biomass heating
- Assist in establishing links with potential local suppliers
End-users in the private sector
- Present a link with the existing supply chains
- To familiarize the wood heating systems, and to present their positive environmental effects
- Increase confidence in the local quality wood fuels availability, and to encourage investment in wood fuels heating systems
To achieve the objectives we will
- Organize a series of educational and promotional activities, with aim to raise the level of knowledge and understanding of modern technologies in production and use of wood biomass
- Actively involve all stakeholders to contribute to the balanced development of supply and demand for wood biomass
- Prepare the visibility study for wood heath systems
- Represent good practice examples of wood biomass from wood biomass use developed countries
- Support to build confidence in the supply of biomass between the consumption of heat at the local level
- Spatially locate major producers and users of wood biomass
- Promote the introduction of quality standards for wood fuels
- Organize training for the energy, forestry and agricultural advisers to deal with quality standards for wood fuels
For more information contact:
Nike Krajnc
Slovenian Forestry Institute
Večna pot 2, 1000 Ljubljana,
Tel: +386 1 200 78 17
Email: nike.krajnc@gozdis.si