P1Factor Formations: P1-Factor Resources By Country

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GLOBAL P1-FACTOR RESOURCES BY COUNTRY
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Canada

The total area of peatland, reported by the Canadian WEC Member Committee to be more than 1.1 million km2, is greater than that of any other country. Deposits of peat are widely distributed, with the largest areas in the Northwest Territories (23% of the Canadian total), Ontario (20%) and Manitoba (19%). The reported amounts of peat in place are enormous, with over a billion tonnes classified as proved and an additional 300+ billion tonnes as indicated or inferred.

Latvia

Peatlands cover about 6 400 km2, or almost 10% of Latvia’s territory, with the major deposits being located in the eastern plains and in the vicinity of Riga. "Explored deposits" of peat (reported by the Latvian WEC Member Committee as the proved amount in place) are 473 million tonnes, of which 190 million tonnes are classed as proved recoverable reserves. "Evaluated deposits" provide an additional amount in place of 324 million tonnes, of which 194 million tonnes is regarded as recoverable.

Peat has been used in agriculture and as a fuel for several hundred years: output peaked in 1973, when fuel use amounted to 2 million tonnes. By 1990, the tonnage of peat extracted had fallen by 45% and fuel use was down to only about 300 000 tonnes. Consumption has tended to decline in recent years, with deliveries to CHP plants accounting for about two-thirds of the total. Relatively small tonnages of peat are consumed by heat plants and in the production of peat briquettes (mostly for household use).

Lithuania

Peatlands are widespread, with the larger accumulations tending to be in the west and south-east of the country. Fuel use of peat fell from 1.5 million tonnes in 1960 to 1 million tonnes in 1975 and to only about 0.1 million tonnes in 1985, since when consumption has remained at approximately the same level. The principal peat consumers are heat plants, briquetting plants and households; the last-named also account for virtually all Lithuania’s consumption of peat briquettes.

Poland

The area of peatland is some 12 000 km2, with most deposits in the northern and eastern parts of the country. For the present Survey, the Polish WEC Member Committee has reported the proved amount of peat in place as 40 million tonnes, with 17 billion m3 (approximately 5.4 billion tonnes) as the estimated additional amount in place. No recoverable tonnages are given.

Much use was made of peat as a fuel in the years immediately after World War II, with some production of peat briquettes and peat coke; by the mid-1960’s fuel use had, however, considerably diminished. Current consumption of peat is virtually all for agricultural or horticultural purposes.

Romania

There are just over 70 km2 of peatlands: the proved amount of peat in place is reported by the Romanian WEC Member Committee to be 25 million tonnes, of which just over half is deemed to be economically recoverable. An additional 10 million tonnes of recoverable peat is estimated to be in place. Peat production for energy purposes has been only a few thousand tonnes per annum in recent years, with consumption confined to the residential and agricultural sectors.

Russian Federation

According to Global Peat Resources, the total area of peatlands is some 568 000 km2: the deposits are widely but unevenly distributed throughout the Federation. The principal peat areas are located in the north-western parts of European Russian, in West Siberia, near the western coast of Kamchatka and in several other far-eastern regions. The Siberian peatlands account for nearly 75% of the Federation total.

Total peat resources are quoted in Global Peat Resources as 186 billion tonnes, second only to Canada’s in world terms. Of the total, 11.5 billion tonnes have been the subject of detailed surveys and a further 6.1 billion tonnes have been preliminarily surveyed.

The bulk of current peat production is used for agricultural/horticultural purposes. Peat deposits have been exploited in Russia as a source of industrial fuel for well over a hundred years. During the 1920’s the use of peat for power generation expanded rapidly, such that by 1928 over 40% of Soviet electric power was derived from peat. Peat’s share of power generation has been in long-term decline, and since 1980 has amounted to less than 1%.

Approximately 5% of the exploitable peat deposits are used for fuel production, which currently amounts to around 3 million tonnes per annum.

Brazil

The area of peatland has not been precisely established but it is believed to be at least 15 000 km2, which makes it the largest in any South American country. There are extensive deposits in the Middle Amazon and in a large marshy plain (Pantanal) near the Bolivian border. Smaller areas of peatland exist in some coastal locations; those in the industrialised south-east of Brazil (in the states of Espírito Santo, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo), and further north in Bahia state, have attracted interest as potential sites for the production of peat for energy purposes. The Irish peat authority Bord na Móna carried out preliminary surveys in Brazil in the early 1980’s but no production of peat for fuel has yet been developed.

The total amount of peat in situ has been estimated as 25 billion tonnes. According to the Ministry of Mines and Energy, measured/indicated/inventoried resources of peat amounted to just over 129 million tonnes at end-1999, with an inferred/estimated additional amount of almost 358 million tonnes.