News

Researchers from the Agro-Energy Group at Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM) have used geographic information systems to assess the potential use of the residual biomass of bananas produced in the province of El Oro, based in the south east of Ecuador, for bioenergy applications. According to the academics, results show that the use of this waste could satisfy the…
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Over the past few months, tense debates on the sustainability of biomass used for energy production have arisen. Most stakeholders seem to agree on one point: an EU policy to ensure the sustainability of biomass is required. It is needed to secure investments, to set a level playing field among Member States and to provide answers to questions and concerns from society on future bioenergy…
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Sustainable Biomass Partnership (SBP) has announced that PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC), Canada has become the third ‘SBP-approved’ certification body. The SBP is a certification scheme designed for woody biomass, mostly in the form of wood pellets and wood chips, used in industrial, large-scale energy production. PwC has provided evidence that it meets the SBP requirements…
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The University of Montana received $1.4 million (€1.24m) from the US Department of Agriculture and US Department of Energy’s Biomass Research and Development Initiative. Researchers will use the grant to identify and overcome the barriers to using biomass from fuels-reduction and forest-restoration treatments. University of Montana forestry Professor Beth Dodson and her team will…
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Florida-based technology company MagneGas has narrowed its first quarter loss for the period ended 31 March, 2016, to $1.6 million (€1.4 million), compared to a net loss of $2.1 million a year earlier.     The firm’s quarterly revenue for the period was $665,663, compared to $545,648 for the same period last year.  Revenue from the industrial gas segment…
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Mahachai Green Power Co., a Thai-German joint venture, and DPCleanTech Group, a biomass energy provider, have announced the completion of the first high temperature high-pressure biomass power plant, which converts coconut waste into energy. The plant is specifically designed for the simultaneous combustion of all forms of coconut waste (husk, shell, bunch, fronds, leaves, trunk) as…
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Michele Rebiere, the president of the Wood Pellet Association of Canada (WPAC), is stepping down after just over a year in the position. In a press statement, the organisation said that Rebiere expressed the need to focus on her role as chief financial officer of Viridis Energy as the company pursues the sale of its business.   In a statement, WPAC said: “WPAC’s Board is…
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The UK's Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) is seeking partners for a new biomass pre-treatment project, which intends to improve the feedstock process. The organisation has called for expressions of interest from organisations that could develop and demonstrate a pre-treatment system incorporating biomass chipping, screening, washing and drying. After finding a suitable partner, the ETI plans…
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Savvas Seimanidis has been unanimously re-elected as EREF President for the next two years by members of the European Renewable Energies Federation (EREF). Upon his renewed appointment, Seimanidis said: “We agree with EU Vice-President Maroš Šefcovic that 2016 will be the year of delivery for the Energy Union. This means setting the proper foundation for a stable, secure,…
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Biobean, a UK-based company that turns was coffee grounds into advanced biofuels, has announced that it is turning to crowdfunding to help develop its new product – Coffee Logs. Coffee Logs are biomass briquettes derived from waste coffee grounds and according to the company offer a clean, cheap, local and sustainable alternative to dirty, imported fuels, often burning hotter…
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Waste management firms Covanta and Veolia are joining forces, under a project development agreement, to develop the energy recovery plant at Rookery South Pit near Stewartby, Bedfordshire, which will create sufficient low-carbon energy to power up to 65,000 homes. When completed, the facility is expected to generate more than 50MWe of electricity and will create around three hundred jobs during…
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Fortum Värme, jointly owned by the energy company Fortum and the City of Stockholm, has inaugurated its new biomass-fired combined heat and power plant (CHP). When the plant, located in Värtan, Stockholm, starts commercial production in the autumn, it will use forest residues and wood waste to produce district heat for nearly 200,000 households. Daily consumption of wood chips will be…
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Bellona Europe, a non-profit green organisation, has called on the European Commission to promote marine bioenergy for heat and power and biofuels. The group made the call in its response to the EC’s consultation on a sustainable bioenergy policy after 2020. In a statement, Bellona Europe said: “While micro algae have benefited from more attention and research, the biofuel potential…
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Airbus Defence and Space, the world’s second largest space company, is to build a satellite that that will measure forest biomass to assess terrestrial carbon stocks and fluxes. The Biomass satellite is the European Space Agency’s (ESA) next Earth Explorer mission, with a launch scheduled for 2021. According to Airbus Defence and Space, the spacecraft will carry the first space-borne…
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