One of the initiatives Sweden is taking to wean itself off oil is turning into biofuel alcohol that was illegally brought
into the country. Last year, the Swedish government
confiscated almost 200,000 gallons (more than 700,000 liters) of alcohol. Now the confiscated beer, wine, and spirits are not wasted anymore, but converted into biofuel and help power cars, buses, trucks, and even a train. More than one-quarter of all the energy consumed in Sweden in 2004 came from renewable sources (more than four times as much as the European Union average). In 2006, the Swedish government pledged to become the world''s first oil-free country by 2020.
Because of the high prices of alcohol, many Swedes travel to Germany and Denmark to buy cheap beer, wine, and spirits. Traders who exceed the maximum amount allowed when bringing alcohol into Sweden can have their goods confiscated. The amount of alcohol confiscated by Swedish customs officials has increased in recent years, in part because of Internet commerce.
Confiscated beverages are blended with water and taken by tanker to a plant run by the company Swedish Biogas in Linköping, where the seized alcohol—along with other fuel sources, such as animal remains and human waste—is heated and put into anaerobic digesters. The organic materials are broken down, producing the biogas. Almost 250 million cubic feet (7 million cubic meters) of biogas is produced a year. In the process of making biofuels, the company also produces environmentally friendly fertilizers. The company also operates the world''s first biogas train.
For every liter of gasoline that is burned, 2.5 kilograms of carbon dioxide is produced. Biofuel emissions are minimal. In Linköping, a city of 140,000, biogas makes up 5 to 6 percent of transportation fuel use, and all of its public buses run on the alternative fuel. Although biogas is cheaper to produce than gasoline, it is not easy to distribute yet. Sweden has few natural gas pipelines through which biogas can be transported, so the gas must be compressed into bottles and shipped by truck to filling stations, raising costs. However, biofuel is still more affordable than gasoline, because of tax incentives. Drivers save about 40 U.S. cents per mile when using biofuel compared to gasoline, and they don’t have to pay road tolls in Stockholm nor parking in many Sweden''s big cities. About 40,000 of Sweden''s four million cars run on alternative fuels. Last month, Sweden launched a new bonus program, which rewards the owner of a new eco-friendly car with 10,000 Swedish krona (1,400 U.S. dollars) in cash from the government.