Up to 10% of domestic gas consumption: Czech Republic eyes massive expansion of biomethane plants

Biomethane production in the Czech Republic is set to start growing rapidly in the coming years. The number of biomethane plants is expected to rise from the current 10 to 100 by 2029. This follows from the Action Plan for the Development of Biomethane in the Czech Republic, presented by the Ministry of the Environment together with the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Agriculture.

Biomethane production began in the Czech Republic in 2019, when the first biomethane plant was commissioned. By 2024, the number of biomethane plants had risen to 10, with their total installed capacity amounting to 17.7 million m3/year. Last year's production, however, reached only 7.5 million m3. By comparison, natural gas consumption in the Czech Republic stood at 6,767 million m3 last year.

"A key constraint on biomethane sales is its production costs, which have so far been significantly higher in the Czech Republic than the price of imported biomethane, and higher than operators would need for their operations. In the Czech transport sector, the use of imported biomethane predominates," the Ministry of the Environment (MŽP) said in the document.