UK engineering firm Spencer Group has announced it has erected three major silos as the centrepiece of a major bioenergy project in the Port of Tyne, in the north of England. They are located at the heart of large-scale wood pellet facilities at the Port of Tyne. The structures, each 36m (118ft) tall and 45m (147ft) in diameter, have been built by Spencer as part of a... [Read More]

Northern Ireland's biggest wood pellets manufacturer, Balcas, has confirmed it shared information about proposed tariff changes in the renewable heat incentive (RHI) scheme months before they were officially announced, according to a BBC report. Balcas, based in Ballinamallard, County Fermanagh, said there was "nothing sinister" in the move. It was not aware the information... [Read More]

Canada-headquartered Biomass Secure Power has advised its shareholders that the Louisiana State Bond Commission approved the sale of $60 million (€56m) tax exempt bonds by the company’s wholly- owned subsidiary, Biomass Power Louisiana (BPL). The company has engaged the Bank of America Merrill Lynch to sell the bonds on behalf of the company. The proceeds of... [Read More]

Louisa Blair, research manager, Hawkins Wright The global wood pellet market has endured a challenging 2016. Acute oversupply in both industrial and heating sectors, combined with relatively warm temperatures and overrunning maintenance issues at Drax have pressured operating rates and led to a record drop in prices. While certain players have taken steps to rebalance... [Read More]

UK wood fuel supplier Forest Fuels has opened a new wood pellet depot at Garston, Liverpool, in a bid to increase its financial investment in the region. The ready availability of wood pellets for biomass boilers in the North West of England has been boosted with the arrival of Forest Fuels to its new facility in Liverpool, according to the company. The... [Read More]

The US Energy Information Administration has published the results of a new survey collecting data from manufacturers of densified biomass fuels, primarily wood pellets. The survey began collection in January 2016 with data from about 120 planned and operational densified biomass manufacturing facilities in the US. These facilities have the capacity to produce a total... [Read More]

Growing demand for bioenergy, driven by renewable energy targets and policies in Europe, is driving an explosion in wood pellet production. According to new data published by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), global production of pellets soared to 28 million tonne in 2015. This represents an 8% increase from the previous year's... [Read More]

Brazilian firm Butia Industria e Comercio de Pellets will invest BRL 5.16 million (€1.45m) in the construction of a pellet factory in Brazil's Rio Grande do Sul state. The plant in the city of Butia will produce pellets both for the domestic market and for exports mainly to the European market, which is currently looking for biomass to help reduce its coal dependency,... [Read More]

Denmark-headquarted Dong Energy has announced that it has converted one unit of its Studstrup power plant in Aarhus to run on wood pellets instead of coal, while the second unit will be mothballed, helping to reduce carbon emissions. The conversion would allow Denmark's second-largest city to reduce emissions by 310,000 tonnes annually as it seek to become carbon-neutral... [Read More]

UK wood fuel supplier Forest Fuels has acquired the customer contracts of Cornwall-based wood pellet business Mi Generation. This is the second acquisition the firm has made in the second half of the year. In early July, Forest Fuels acquired Midlands Wood Fuel. Under its new acquisition, Forest Fuels will take over all of Mi Generation’s customers and all Mi Generation... [Read More]

Logistec Corp., a marine and environmental services provider, has opened its newly built bulk biomass pellet warehouses in Brunswick, Georgia. The modern buildings are a part of Logistec’s commitment to upgrade and expand its dry bulk facilities at Marine Port Terminals. “With the addition of these warehouses, we have substantially increased our throughput... [Read More]

World’s largest torrefied biomass producer New Biomass Energy has acquired the majority interest in a Mississippi, US, torrefaction plant and plans to continue the production of torrefied biomass. Initial production at the Quitman plant will supply 2,000 to 3,000 tonnes of torrefied wood for a test burn at Portland General Electric's plant in Boardman,... [Read More]

British Member of Parliament Andrew Percy visited a Canadian biomass plant recently to speak to the staff and witness the operation of the plant providing wood pellets for Drax, UK’s largest energy producer. Percy’s visit in the role of Minister for the Northern Powerhouse was to the Lavington Wood Pellet plant in British Columbia as part of a programme to... [Read More]

Scotland-based wood pellet producer Land Energy Girvan is to invest £6.4 million (€7.6m) in expanding its site in South Ayrshire. According to media reports in the BBC, the move by the company includes increasing the capacity of its combined heat and power plant and upgrading its pellet line in Girvan. The company said at least 10 new full-time jobs would... [Read More]

The global biomass pellets market was valued at $4.52 billion (€4.05bn) in 2014 and is forecast to reach $8.34 billion in 2020, a new market study says. According to research carried out by Zion Research, the biomass pellet market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.9% between 2015 and 2020. Biomass pellets are mainly used as a heating... [Read More]

Drax Biomass’ pellet mills in Louisiana and Mississippi, US, have achieved certification under the Sustainable Biomass Partnership (SBP).  The new certificate comes as an addition to the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), and Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) acknowledgment... [Read More]