Europe faces a major challenge in the energy sector. The dependence on ex-ternal energy supply is growing strongly. Therefore action has to be taken to:

• Ensure that the European Union has a secure and diverse supply of energy

• Fulfil the Kyoto Protocol and reduce the greenhouse emissions

• Improve the competitiveness of European industries.

The search for new energy solutions is a key factor on the agenda of sustainable development. The use of renewable energy sources has three main advantages:

• Diversification and security of energy supply

• Typically decentralised

• Reduction of impact of energy production on environment

In the BioCellus project, a 6 Framework Programme financed by the European Commission, 15 partners are working together to achieve new solutions for the energy production (07/2004–06/2007). The combination of biomass gasification systems with fuel cells promises adequate systems especially for small-scale decentralized systems.