Competitive Potential of Plant Biomass in Poland Compared to Other Renewable Energy Sources for Heat and Electricity Production

Plant biomass is playing a key role in the development of renewable energy sources. The share of biomass in renewable energy sources is about 70% in Poland and more than 40% in the European Union (EU). To assess the competitive position of farms selling plant biomass including straw and wood, including both future opportunities and threats, we conducted research on 185 farms in 2022. The aim of the research was to assess the usage of plant biomass, with the aim of increasing its position compared to other renewable energy sources. We used tabular, graph and descriptive methods to present the research results. Moreover, the Dornik–Hansen test (p = 0.003), Shapiro–Wilk test (p = 0.0017), Lilliefors test (p = 0.000) and Jargue–Berra test (p = 0.008) results show the significance of the research. The most important factors shaping the increased prices of biomass were the availability of raw materials on the market, totaling 41.1%, and calorific value, totaling 17.6%. Looking at the data, it can be seen that the most popular renewable energy technologies in which respondents plan to invest is photovoltaics (57.8%) and biomass (17.6%). According to the respondents, the most profitable renewable energy sources are photovoltaics (38.4%), wind energy (23%) and biogas (16.2%). Farmers also pointed out the most ecologically friendly, renewable energy sources. According to the respondents, the most ecologically friendly, renewable energy sources were wind energy (32.2%), photovoltaics (25.3%) and water energy plants (20.7%). The most frequently indicated limitations of biomass production were the long payback period (19.2%) and high investment costs (18.9%). The most important threat to biomass production was the shortage of arable land (32.5%) and poor farmland (23.5%). These results show that policymakers should adjust laws to encourage farmers to invest in biomass as a renewable energy source. Photovoltaics, which is considered a very clean renewable energy source, faces a big task in cleaning rural areas.