News

A new anaerobic digestion (AD) research plant has been officially opened at Cranfield University in the UK. The plant, part funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and supported by Shanks Waste Management, will divert up to 10 tonnes a year of food waste from landfill. It will also save up to 5 tonnes of CO2 and produce up to 8 tonnes of biofertiliser. At the opening ceremony,…
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Pinnacle Renewable Energy has announced the first full loading of wood pellets into a Panamax class vessel. This world first took place at the company's Westview Terminal in Prince Rupert, British Columbia, Canada, on 2 June 2015. It will be the largest load of wood pellets ever shipped anywhere in the history of the industry. Panamax vessels are purpose-built to utilise the maximum capacity of…
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Agricultural research institute The Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa) and Evofuel, the wholly owned subsidiary of plant genomics company Evogene, which specialises in enhancing crop productivity for the biofuels industry, have signed a joint research agreement to advance castor cultivation in Brazil. The cooperation will primarily focus on technologies for controlling…
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Wood pellet shipments from the US South to Europe are up 10% from Q4 2013 to Q2 2014, while exports from Canada have declined 25% during the same period. This is according to the latest issue of the North American Wood Fiber Review. During the first half of this year, exports of wood pellets from North America reached just over 2.6 million tonnes (around 1.3 million tonnes in each of the two…
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ZooShare has raised over $1 million (€790,000) for what is soon to be the first zoo-based biogas plant in North America. The plant will have a capacity of 500kW when it comes online in December 2015. ZooShare bonds, which are being used to build the biogas plant, pay a return of 7% each year for seven years. The facility will convert animal manure from the Toronto Zoo and food waste from…
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Great American Pellets, a manufacturer of premium hardwood pellets, is selling its facility, real estate and equipment assets at auction on 11 November. The auction will be conducted in conjunction with Comly Auctioneers and Appraisers of Philadelphia and Maas Companies of Rochester, Minneapolis. The facility and associated assets will be sold during an online, lender-owned auction. The auction…
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Renewable fuels company BlueFire Renewables has received a letter of intent (LOI) from the Export Import Bank of China (China EXIM) to provide up to $270 million (€212.7 million) in debt financing for its bioenergy project in Fulton, Mississippi. 'There are significant opportunities for replicating the BlueFire Fulton size or larger facilities in China and the US to deal with problematic…
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Viridor, a UK-based renewable energy, waste management and recycling company, says it backs a House of Commons select committee calls to alter the UK's waste policy if the nation is to avoid missed recycling targets and the loss of energy resources. The firm is currently investing over £1 billion (€1.25 billion) in 'next generation' recycling and energy recovery infrastructure to help…
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In Scotland, Scot Heat and Power and Cochran have signed a joint agreement for the development of industrial biomass projects. Scot Heat and Power is one of Scotland's largest independent suppliers of biomass fuel stock, including woodchips and pellets, while Cochran is a supplier of industrial steam and hot-water boiler plants. Together the two companies will be able to target a wider market and…
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The wood pellet production facility being built by Rentech in Atikokan in the Canadian province of Ontario has commenced start-up. The company says the plant will undergo safety inspections, equipment testing and final commissioning in the upcoming weeks. 'I'm pleased to reach this important milestone at the Atikokan facility,' comments Sean Ebnet, senior VP of Rentech's wood fibre business. 'Our…
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In Texas, US, Gemma Power Systems, an EPC company and wholly owned subsidiary of Argan, has finished building the East Texas Electric Cooperative (ETEC) Woodville Renewable Power Project, three months ahead of schedule. The 49.9MW biomass in Woodville has now completed testing and been turned over to ETEC for commercial operation. 'The Gemma team worked in close partnership with our customer ETEC…
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Harvest Power, a North American-based company dedicated to converting organic waste into clean energy, has announced a $20 million (€15.8 million) financing round. The lead investors were True North Venture Partners, Industry Ventures, and Generation Investment Management. This financing will allow Harvest to accelerate development of new opportunities in the clean energy space with its…
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Ireland's electricity utility Electricity Supply Board (ESB) and the European Investment Bank (EIB) have signed a loan facility for €100 million. The funds will be used for continued investment in the electricity network in the south west region of Ireland to connect renewable energy to the national transmission network. This is the second part of a total loan facility of €200 million…
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The Gainesville Renewable Energy Center (GREC), a 102.5MW biomass-fired power plant in Florida, US has received Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification. The certification affirms that GREC's purchase procedures for its waste wood fuels conform to the FSC Chain of Custody standard. It is the first power generation facility ever to receive this certification. The certification assessment was…
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