An apparatus for the continuous production of biochar by pyrolysis of biomass under exclusion of oxygen, the apparatus comprising: a vertically mounted reactor having a reactor interior which is defined by a reactor shell and which has an upper feed region, a lower removal region and a process space located therebetween; a feed device for feeding biomass to the reactor interior into the upper feed region; a removal device for removing biochar from the reactor interior from the lower removal region; a heating device positioned in the reactor interior, the heating device comprising an array of heating rods including: a plurality of outer heating rods vertically arranged in the vicinity of the reactor shell and distributed around the circumference of the reactor, and at least one inner heating rod vertically arranged closer to the center of the reactor interior with respect to the reactor shell; wherein each heating rod (24, 24a, 24b) of the plurality of outer heating rods and the at least one inner heating rod comprises two or more elongated heating rod elements (31, 32, 33) which are arranged one behind the other in the longitudinal direction of the reactor and are individually controllable in their heating power; and a control device for controlling operation of the apparatus, including actuation of the feed device and the removal device, and for controlling the temperature of the individual heating rod elements (31, 32, 33) of the heating rods (24, 24a, 24b). a vertically mounted reactor having a reactor interior which is defined by a reactor shell and which has an upper feed region, a lower removal region and a process space located therebetween; a feed device for feeding biomass to the reactor interior into the upper feed region; a removal device for removing biochar from the reactor interior from the lower removal region; a heating device positioned in the reactor interior, the heating device comprising an array of heating rods including: a plurality of outer heating rods vertically arranged in the vicinity of the reactor shell and distributed around the circumference of the reactor, and at least one inner heating rod vertically arranged closer to the center of the reactor interior with respect to the reactor shell; wherein each heating rod (24, 24a, 24b) of the plurality of outer heating rods and the at least one inner heating rod comprises two or more elongated heating rod elements (31, 32, 33) which are arranged one behind the other in the longitudinal direction of the reactor and are individually controllable in their heating power; and a plurality of outer heating rods vertically arranged in the vicinity of the reactor shell and distributed around the circumference of the reactor, and at least one inner heating rod vertically arranged closer to the center of the reactor interior with respect to the reactor shell; wherein each heating rod (24, 24a, 24b) of the plurality of outer heating rods and the at least one inner heating rod comprises two or more elongated heating rod elements (31, 32, 33) which are arranged one behind the other in the longitudinal direction of the reactor and are individually controllable in their heating power; and a control device for controlling operation of the apparatus, including actuation of the feed device and the removal device, and for controlling the temperature of the individual heating rod elements (31, 32, 33) of the heating rods (24, 24a, 24b).