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US House farm bill removes funding certainty

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A small round-up as the US moves towards sealing its farm bills which will affect energy sectors In the US, the House Agriculture Committee passed a new fiveyear HR 1947 farm bill, which eliminates or reforms more than 100 programmes, by a vote margin of 36 to 10 in May. The agricultural industry generates almost $300 billion (€232 billion) a year throughout the country but it is... [read more]

IBTC: Setting the standards for torrefied biomass

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Torrefied biomass has some recognised advantages over traditional biomass including increased calorific value, increased energy density and improvements in a range of physical properties such as durability, homogeneity and hydrophobic behaviour. This leads to overall reduced costs of production and transportation, plus reduced storage area among other benefits. Therefore this fuel type is... [read more]

being a 'provider' of renewable energy Powering to neutrality

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The CEO of Ena Energi explains to James Barrett why he is not satisfied with simply being a ‘provider’ of renewable energy Ena Energi (EE), a Swedish municipally owned company, celebrated its 40th year of existence in 2012 but it has only been involved in the production of renewable energy for roughly half of that time. Sweden is consistently near the top of global renewable... [read more]

Looking long-term

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James Barrett finds life at Norwegian pellet company Pemco Trepellets ticking along nicely, but could diversification could be on the cards? Pemco Trepellets (PT) is a pellet provider based in Norway, with a presence in Sweden to boot, but despite recording healthy market share at home, the company has its sights on another goal moving forward. ‘Our market share in Norway is 50% and... [read more]

Compare and contrast

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In a region dense with forestry it’s surprising to learn that raw material scarcity is still one factor impacting the pellet market in certain parts of Scandinavia Think Scandinavia and you might think bracing climate, brooding television detectives, extensive welfare provision or expensive beer. And to that list you might also want to add bioenergy, because this is a part of the... [read more]

Danish power in the Far East

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An abundance of potential feedstock and change of attitude toward renewable energy has made China the destination of choice for PlanEnergi The objective of a joint venture biogas project between Danish energy advisory firm PlanEnergi and Chinese environmental protection and new energy company Shandong Shifang is to eventually establish a common technical platform in the Far East.... [read more]

Denmark's hot topic

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In April Bioenergy Insight took the opportunity to visit Danish biogas plant specialist ComBigaS’ thermophillic biogas facility. The demonstration plant runs at 52°C as opposed to the usual 37°C. This kills the bacteria in the slurry, making the process safer for the surrounding environment. The fully automated plant uses 27,000 tonnes of biomass a year and produces 2.2 million m3... [read more]

This degression will not stand

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A small but important change to the Renewable Heat Incentive is needed to avoid unnecessary tariff degression Tragedy and comedy are often close relations, and while war is certainly an example of the former, it is perhaps no surprise therefore that George Bush Sr’s most memorable quote ‘This will not stand, this aggression against Kuwait’ was immortalised by the cult... [read more]

Hammering coal

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Biomass is finding a niche as more and more power plants look for alternatives to coal A $170 million (€132 million) retrofit at the Atikokan Generating Station in Ontario is transforming a 28-year old coal plant to burn 100% biomass, and this project represents a major trend in North American power engineering and construction efforts. ‘The Ontario Power Authority mandated that... [read more]

Retrofitting for the future

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University of Iowa is working hard to obtain renewable energy goals by the end of this decade. Here we see an upgrade to a biomass boiler operation Working through any retrofit project can be more interesting than new construction, but also more challenging, as managers and developers know. When a construction management team is assembled to repurpose an existing site it usually means... [read more]

Hybrid theory

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A Germany-based paper mill needed a biomass system that seemingly did not exist — so how did it get to where it wanted to go? Finland-based paper, packaging and biomaterials brand Stora Enso’s Maxau (SEM) mill, located on the Rhein river in southwest Germany, produces paper mainly from recovered raw material. Its two machines, with a design capacity of 540,000 tonnes per annum... [read more]

Achieving renewable compliance

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Bioenergy Insight delves into a biomass cogeneration facility which is approaching commissioning phase in the US Nippon Paper Industries USA (NPI) is only a few months away from commissioning its new 20MW biomass fuel cogeneration facility. Construction of the new facility began in November 2011 and is located in Port Angeles, Washington, adjacent to an existing paper mill also owned and... [read more]

Shifting focus

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The nation’s largest natural gas fuelling chain is investing heavily in renewables, and wants to provide biogas producers access to an untapped market Clean Energy Fuels (CEF), the US’ largest natural gas vehicle fuelling company, is bullish on biomethane: ‘We believe we can offer the cleanest alternative fuel available today,’ says president of CEF renewable... [read more]

New additives address biomass boiler operational issues

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Fouling, corrosion and agglomeration issues related to biomass combustion can be mitigated using additives While approximately 11% of the world’s total energy is provided by biomass combustion1, operational problems in biomass boilers can arise from ash-forming elements in fuels. These include silicon (Si), calcium (Ca) and alkali metals, of which potassium (K) is the most prevalent... [read more]

The grass can be greener

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How the closure of UK power stations affected one business…for the better By the year 2020 the UK is legally bound to be generating 15% of its total energy from renewables. That means that in less than seven years 30% of all electricity must be derived from renewable sources. In an effort to meet this target, coal-fired power stations are being shut down. Imminent closure is the... [read more]

Success in tough times

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Spain’s renewable energy sector is suffering since the country’s government cancelled all aid in a bid to cut its public deficit Spain has a public deficit of over $37 billion (€28.5 billion). In order to cut this to zero within eight years, the government suspended subsidies for all new power plants using renewable energy at the beginning of 2012. This cancellation of... [read more]

Cleaning up

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A US gasification plant chose to use a wet syngas-cleaning system as opposed to a solely dry technology In Colorado, US a joint venture between Rentech and Clear Fuels opened a 20 tonne per day demonstration plant at the Rentech Energy Technology Center (RETC) earlier this year, fitted with a biomass gasifier able to convert a number of biomass feedstocks into biofuels and other renewable... [read more]

Food waste digestion becomes reality in Somerset

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Food waste is helping to generate renewable energy and save money for taxpayers Viridor Waste Management is a recycling, renewable energy and waste management company responsible for the treatment contract for the sourcesegregated food waste collected for Somerset council. Its latest project — an anaerobic digestion plant — is due to come on line in the next few months,... [read more]

The coal copycat

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While torrefied biomass is not yet being produced at quantities great enough to co-fire Europe’s coal boilers, the start-up of two torrefaction plants could prove industry game-changers The co-firing of traditional wood pellets in coal-fired power plants has been demonstrated and findings show that boiler efficiencies remain practically unaffected. Without major modifications... [read more]

Digesting the possibilities

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Julian Maiklem reveals the two current AD models dominating the UK sector while divulging another way forward As Maiklem sat in a layby on a miserable May morning in the UK, not far from a Hampshire farmhouse whose occupants he was about to attempt to persuade of the advantages of local scale waste-based anaerobic digestion (AD), he could not help but think of the opening of Jane... [read more]

Attention to detail

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The role of anaerobic digestion in sustainable farming is a fascinating topic with many strands and facets to be considered ‘I feel there are four key areas to be explored when it comes to evaluating the role of AD within the context of the “sustainable intensification” of agriculture,’ Jeremy Woods, a lecturer on bioenergy at Imperial College London, explains.... [read more]