September/October 2013
Issue 5 • Volume 4
Breaking the mould
Is now the time for Canada to finally kick its fossil fuel addiction?
New markets for biogas The US biogas market remains relatively untouched despite its great potential
Regional focus: Canada
Port of partnerships
Bioenergy xxxx
biomass meets
market
xx • December 2011
Welcome to the port of Amsterdam. Where biomass meets market. The port of Amsterdam has the ambition to grow in a sustainable way. As second-largest coal port of Europe we have all the facilities and experience to storage, tranship and process biomass. Amsterdam has a unique, logistical location within the world largest international, energy hub ARA (Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Antwerp). Amsterdam has also excellent connections for transit to the hinterland.
The port of Amsterdam offers a dynamic international hub and achieves this by closely cooperating with partners in the business, city and region. Want to know more about the port of Amsterdam where all kinds of biomass meets the market? Go to www.portofamsterdam.nl or contact Port of Amsterdam Commercial Division, Cluster Energy directly via lex.de.ridder@portofamsterdam.nl
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contents Bioenergy
Contents Issue 5 • Volume 4 September/October 2013 Horseshoe Media Limited Marshall House 124 Middleton Road, Morden, Surrey SM4 6RW, UK www.bioenergy-news.com publisher Margaret Dunn Tel: +44 (0)20 8687 4126 margaret@bioenergy-news.com EDITOR Keeley Downey Tel: +44 (0)20 8687 4183 keeley@bioenergy-news.com Deputy EDITOR James Barrett Tel: +44 (0)20 8687 4146 james@bioenergy-news.com INTERNATIONAL Sales MANAGER Anisha Patel Tel: +44 (0) 203 551 5752 anisha@bioenergy-news.com North America sales representative Matt Weidner +1 610 486 6525 mtw@weidcom.com PRODUCTION Alison Balmer Tel: +44 (0)1673 876143 alisonbalmer@btconnect.com SUBSCRIPTION RATES £130/€160/$210 for 6 issues per year. Contact: Lisa Lee Tel: +44 (0)20 8687 4160 Fax: +44 (0)20 8687 4130 marketing@horseshoemedia.com
Follow us on Twitter: @BioenergyInfo
No part of this publication may be reproduced or stored in any form by any mechanical, electronic, photocopying, recording or other means without the prior written consent of the publisher. Whilst the information and articles in Bioenergy Insight are published in good faith and every effort is made to check accuracy, readers should verify facts and statements direct with official sources before acting on them as the publisher can accept no responsibility in this respect. Any opinions expressed in this magazine should not be construed as those of the publisher. ISSN 2046-2476
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3 Comment 4
Biomass news
8
Biogas news
12 Biopellet news 14 Biopower news 18 Technology news 25 Incident update 26 Green page 27 Another blow for UK biomass sector 28 Legislation ‘levels playing field’ for biochemical sector 29 DECC: dedicated to sustainability 30 New emissions criteria for non-domestic RHI 31 Cheers to that! 32 From coast to coast
Viridis Energy brought its latest wood pellet plant online at the end of August, but producing pellets in just one side of the business
34 Canada’s gardens of opportunity
Harvest Power, taking inspiration from Germany, now has three biogas plants under its belt
36 Breaking the mould
Is now the time for Canada to finally kick its fossil fuel addiction?
40 Plant update 42 The FSC certification revealed
What is the FSC certification and what are the benefits?
43 Developing biomass power sustainability compliance criteria
With the UK expected to be at the forefront of European wood pellet imports, where does the government stand on sustainable biomass?
45 Biofuels and forests: revisiting the debate
Biomass used to produce bioliquids has the potential to eliminate the hotly-debated risks associated with first generation biofuels
47 New markets for biogas 49 Managing the feedstock supply chain
De-risking the supply chain will help unlock the investment potential of new and existing biomass projects
51 Ready for round two
It once operated the world’s largest pellet production plant and now Green Circle Bio Energy is building a second facility
53 Controlling biomass moisture 55 Landfill gas generation explained
A Japanese automaker and a UK cleantech business are helping Mexico deliver on its new Climate Change Act
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2013 Issue 5 • Volume 4
Breaking the mould
Is now the time for Canada to finally kick its fossil fuel addition?
57 Siloxanes and biogas
New markets for biogas
An overview of siloxanes and the importance of preventative actions in dealing with this trace compound
The US biogas market remains relatively untouched despite its great potential
59 Process control for biogas production 61 Improving biomass boiler performance and emissions 65 Event listing Ad index
Regional focus: Canada
Front cover image: ©duallogic. Image from bigstockphoto.com FC_Bioenergy_Sep-Oct_2013.indd 1
23/09/2013 10:40
September/October 2013 • 1
Bioenergy comment
Managing mixed messages
W
Keeley Downey Editor
elcome to the October edition of Bioenergy Insight — my first issue as editor of the magazine. The summer holidays are now over for most of us and are starting to feel like a distant memory, but with our 2014 media kit now complete there’s still a lot to look forward to. Some of you will have already received your copy, but if you haven’t and would like to see our forward features list for next year then please don’t hesitate to get in touch. Autumn has descended over much of Europe, but that’s not the only reason for this month’s rather striking front cover; Canada has been hitting the headlines a lot of late. One of the biggest announcements came at the end of August when Viridis Energy finally resurrected the former Enligna Canada pellet plant in Nova Scotia which it acquired back in February last year. Inside this issue we speak to Viridis about the project as it prepares to make its first delivery of pellets in December. With a production
plant on the east and west coast of Canada, the company is certainly in a strategic position to quench both Asia and Europe’s thirst for biomass fuel. But regulatory uncertainty, particularly 3,500 miles away in the UK, is causing some hindrance as caution from utilities is being felt along the supply chain by North American pellet suppliers. And it looks like this hesitancy is here to stay, at least for the time being. August saw the announcement of the UK government’s muchanticipated sustainability criteria when the industry learned that, starting in April 2015, power plants generating 1MW and above of biomass- or biogas-derived energy must be able to prove their feedstock meets strict new standards. If not, they risk losing financial support under the Renewables Obligation (RO). This good news has been tainted, however, by the implementation of other, less positive policies. The news that dedicated power-only biomass and co-firing plants are going to lose subsidies under the contracts for difference (CfD) scheme,
due to take over from the RO starting in 2017, means the UK biomass industry has been subjected to much confusion over the last few months. This, coupled with the recent 400MW capacity cap, has caused dismay for many. Across the waters in the US, the biomass-based chemical sector has more to celebrate. On 12 September the Qualifying Renewable Chemical Production Tax Credit Act of 2013 was introduced, which will benefit the nation’s biochemical producers by providing them with tax credits. A number of renewable chemical companies have already thanked congressman Bill Pascrell Jr. for introducing the act and, with our December issue due to focus on the bio-based chemical and biorefining market, watch this space to find out more about how the new legislation will impact them. We hope you enjoy reading this issue as much as we did writing it, and we welcome your comments.
Best wishes, Keeley
Follow us on Twitter: @BioenergyInfo
2 • September/October 2013
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biomass news
Cool Planet progresses with biomass-to-biofuel plant Cool Planet Energy Systems, a developer of smallscale biorefineries for the conversion of non-food biomass into biofuels, is to build its first commercial facility in Louisiana, US. The $168 million (€125.9 million) plant will produce 10 million gallons a year of cellulosic fuel and biochar, which is a by-product of the refining process
used as an agricultural supplement. In a statement Cool Planet said the development of this first biorefinery will ‘lead the way for hundreds of additional small-scale biorefineries that it plans to build across the US’. The chosen location provides access to a number of biomass feedstocks and will allow Cool Planet to transport its fuel via barge, rail and truck. Cool Planet CEO Howard Janzen says: ‘Louisiana is known for its substantial oil interests, but now will
also be home to the first production facility for Cool Planet’s renewable petrol and biochar. Our goal for the facility is to be economically competitive with conventional fuels made from non-renewable crude oil.’ Construction on the new biorefinery will begin at the beginning of 2014, with completion expected before the end of the year. In September the company announced that URS would carry out the front-end engineering. l
Unilever turns to biomass in hope of sustainable future Unilever, together with the University of Liverpool, UK, has established a project to develop biomassbased chemicals that can be used in the manufacture of its home and personal care products. The three-year project will see the development of renewable chemicals from surplus sugars, fats, oils and carbohydrates produced via commodity by-products and forestry wastes. The aim is to identify sustainable
Unilever hopes to be using biochemicals in its products in the future
ingredients that can be used to produce some of the company’s product ranges.
The work will be carried out at the university and the new unit will be jointly
operated by the two parties. The partnership agreement is part-funded by the UK Department for Business Innovation and Skills. The research will incorporate non-food grade feedstocks including materials such as sugar beet residue. Sugar business and product partner AB Sugar will supply beet residue from its refining process. Unilever research director Paul Jenkins says of the project: ‘This research could eventually result in a range of new alternatives for core ingredients like surfactants and polymers which go into many of our home and personal care products.’ l
GranBio and Rhodia JV to make chemicals from biomass Brazil-based biotechnology company GranBio and Rhodia, a Solvay Group company, are to produce bio n-butanol after signing a joint venture agreement. The bio n-butanol chemical will be made from biomass which is readily available in Brazil, such as sugarcane straw and bagasse.
4 • September/October 2013
The partnership will see the two companies build a biomass-based n-butanol plant in Brazil, scheduled to enter operation 2015. Both companies will benefit from agreements that each of them has already entered into with companies that own the technology. ‘This project reflects our focus on technologies based on renewable resources, and the partnership with Brazil’s GranBio demonstrates our confidence in the country’s great
potential in this field,’ says Vincent Kamel, CEO of Coatis, a Solvay Group business unit based in Brazil. n-butanol is widely used in the paint and solvent industry and produces acrylates and methacrylates. The investment in the biomassbased n-butanol plant requires the approval of the companies’ boards. The structure of the agreement is to be submitted for clearance by Brazil’s antitrust body CADE. l
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biomass news
Stobart wins new biomass contract Sustainable energy investment firm Greensphere Capital and Stobart Biomass Products have entered into an agreement that will see Stobart’s biomass division supply up to 1 million tonnes of biomass to existing and future power plants. Greensphere will be investing in a national platform of waste biomass power plants, which will be supplied by the framework agreement with Stobart’s biomass division. The two companies’ partnership spans 18 months and during this time has identified a number of projects suitable for investment. As well as generating
Stobart will supply 1 million tonnes of biomass under a new contract
income from the supply of woody biomass, Stobart will also generate income from transporting the biomass and from supporting
each new project through to commissioning. ‘While we continue to work with a number of other plant developers, this agreement
promises to underpin a sizeable element for our business supply strategy,’ Stobart CEO Andrew Tinkler was quoted as saying. l
Frederikshavn port to produce sulphur-free marine fuel Denmark’s Port of Frederikshavn has entered into a partnership with technology company Steeper Energy and Aalborg University in Denmark to develop a biomassbased plant to produce sustainable marine fuel. The new plant will initially produce between 50 and 100,000 tonnes of sulphurfree renewable fuel a year for the several thousand vessels passing through the port annually. It will use wood sourced from locations such as
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Russia, the Baltic countries, Sweden, Finland and Canada and brought to the port by ship, making use of the existing biomass handling infrastructure at the site. From 1 January 2015 new regulations will require the permissible sulphur content in marine fuel to be zero in the SOx Emission Control Areas (SECA). This will see regions such as the North and Baltic Seas either install flue gas cleaning equipment on board or switch to sulphur-free fuel. ‘Based on our research plant at Aalborg University on on-going project activities of Steeper Energy to establish a pilot-scale plant in Alberta, Canada, the technical challenges and risk involved in a plant in Frederikshavn will be reduced, pacing the way
for a full-scale commercial plant in Denmark,’ says Lasse Rosendahl, professor at Aalborg University, department of energy technology. According to the port’s CEO Mikkel Seedorf Sørensen, the port could potentially serve a marine fuel market of at least 900,000 tonnes a year. He says that approximately 90 million barrels of fuel are used daily, 11 million barrels of which are for marine and aerial transport. The new drop-in fuel will serve some of the 100,000 vessels that travel through the strait around Skagen each year, keen to acquire sulphur-free fuel. The facility will first be able to handle wood but a research effort will be
dedicated to finding more local feedstocks such as short rotation coppice, manure and straw. This research will take place in the research plant at Aalborg University. As Steeper Energy’s CTO Steen Iversen explains: ‘Although the project will be established on a single feedstock, the plant design will accommodate the results of the research at Aalborg University. However, by building a solid business case on wood, we can focus on establishing a wellfunctioning plant delivering a sustainable marine biofuel. Once this has been achieved, we can start thinking about extending the input range as well as considering a wider product portfolio, if this seems opportune.’ l
September/October 2013 • 5
biomass news
Bank puts biomass Biomasse Italia awards plant up for sale supply contract A biomass heating plant owned by energy company BulEco Energy is to be sold.
Bulgarian bank UniCredit Bulbank repossessed the Bulgaria-based biomass plant after BulEco Energy failed to repay its loan for the past 24 months. This has been attributed to a drop in sales due to the economic crisis. The facility is still operational but UniCredit started accepting offers from potential buyers from 21 August. It is estimated the plant will sell for around €2.4 million ($3.2 million), all of which is due to the bank. In 2012 BulEco Energy registered losses of BGN1.240 million (€630,000) with its volume increasing by 6.2% year-over-year. l
Biomasse Italia, one of Europe’s largest virgin biomass energy producers, has awarded a new supply contract with Active Energy Group (AEG), the pan-European supplier of woodchips for biomass power generation.
Biomasse Italia generates a total 500GWh of renewable energy through its two power stations in Crotone and Strongoli, which use approximately 700,000 tonnes of biomass a year. The company has invested heavily in upgrading its power plants and
infrastructure in recent years. AEG was awarded the contract following these improvements and is now one of Biomasse Italia’s primary suppliers of biomass feedstock. Under the contract, AEG will ship a minimum of 240,000 tonnes of biomass from its Black Sea deepwater port operations over a two year period, commencing at the beginning of 2014. ‘The energy industry across Europe is experiencing great pressure with tightening supply of woodchip and forestry products in general, particularly within the EU,’ says Richard Spinks, CEO of AEG. ‘We are ideally positioned to exploit this opportunity.’ l
NextFuels finds new use for palm plantation residue Wet, untreated biomass has the potential to yield commercial volumes of biofuels in Asia says NextFuels, a company dedicated to transforming agricultural residue into renewable fuel.
The underlying technology will allow NextFuels and its partners to produce bio-based petroleum at commercial scale for $75-85 (€56-64) a barrel using wet biomass that has not been mechanically or thermally dried. The strategy will also provide palm plantation owners and others a way to transform the tonnes of residual plant matter generated by agricultural operations into a new, profitable second crop. NextFuels said in a statement it is initially focusing on Southeast Asia as biomass fires have become a major source of air pollution in the region.
NextFuels is focusing on palm plantations in Asia
NextFuels has partnered with biofuel trading company Enagra in order to develop the technology. The two companies are owned by the same investors. The market for edible palm oil has grown exponentially over the years and today is the largest source of cooking oil in the world with over 50 million tonnes produced annually. This growth has created an excess of residue with 4.4 to 6 tonnes of agricultural waste generated for each tonne of oil. Southeast Asia is home
6 • September/October 2013
to over 1,000 crude palm oil mills and one of these can create 135,000 tonnes of agricultural residue a year. The technology uses a bio-liquefaction system to produce GreenCrude. Around 25% of this can be burned as a solid fuel with the remaining 75% converted to a liquid fuel equivalent to petroleum that is compatible with existing pipelines and vehicles. A positive feature associated with this process is the biomass does not need to be processed beforehand, resulting in
higher energy balances. NextFuels says it is currently raising funds to rebuild a bio-liquefaction demo plant originally constructed by Shell in 2005 — Shell Oil originally developed the technology for this process several years ago. The plant has the capacity to produce between 5 and 8 barrels of oil per day. NextFuels says it plans to break ground on its first commercial-scale modules, costing $20 million and able to produce 250 barrels of oil equivalent a day, within the next two to three years. l
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September/October 2013 • 7
biogas news EDF acquires Heartland biogas project EDF Renewable Energy has closed a Membership Interest Purchase Agreement for the acquisition of Heartland Renewable Energy’s biogas plant. The project, which features a 20MW anaerobic digester and renewable natural gas (RNG) facility, is already under construction with biogas deliveries to begin by the second quarter of next year. The plant, located in Colorado, will handle organic
feedstock and cow manure, converting it into raw biogas. It will be one of the largest AD facilities in the US, producing up to 4,700 MMBtu of biogas per day. The raw biogas is then processed into pipeline quality RNG. After being conditioned to pipeline grade, the RNG will be supplied to Sacramento Municipal Utility District through a 20-year gas purchase agreement. Ralph Daley, VP of landfill gas holding for EDF Renewable Energy, says this project is the company’s ‘first in the anaerobic digestion segment’. l
Aemetis facility approved NPG Energy to operate for advanced biofuel biogas plant in Belgium RIN contribution In Limburg, Belgium Aemetis, an advanced fuels and renewable chemicals company, has been granted US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approval to produce ethanol using grain sorghum and biogas. The move means the plant’s existing combined heat and power system can generate higher-value D5 advanced biofuels renewable identification numbers (RINs). The EPA approval also includes D5 RIN generation for separated food waste feedstock used at the California-based facility, allowing Aemetis to qualify its ethanol as advanced biofuels through the processing of certain food/beverage waste streams into ethanol. ‘With $190 million (€144.7 million) of revenues in 2012 from our plants in the US and India, we are already at commercial-scale for the production of non-food
8 • September/October 2013
advanced biofuels and renewable chemicals,’ says Eric McAfee, Aemetis CEO. ‘Our 50 million gallon a year renewable fuels plant in India was constructed to use the stearine waste product from the edible oils industry to produce non-food biodiesel and refined glycerin.’ The design of its California plant allows Aemetis to use both traditional and advanced feedstocks and energy sources to produce renewable fuels to help meet requirements of the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS). Until now, the D5 advanced biofuels RIN portion of the RFS has been mostly met by imported Brazilian sugarcane ethanol or by substituting D4 biodiesel RINs due to a lack of advanced ethanol production. RINs are numerical codes created with every gallon of biofuel domestically produced or imported into the US, playing a dual role as a renewable fuel credit to incentivise use and as a tracking mechanism to monitor the production, movement and blending of biofuels. l
NPG Energy, an investor and project development company, is developing a 2.4MW biogas plant expected to be operational by the second quarter of 2014.
This renewable electricity has the potential to benefit around 5,000 homes but instead it will be consumed by the Spin Group in its textile factory. Initially, the plant will use maize silage to generate power but this will later be replaced with other
renewable substrates and agricultural leftovers. NPG has awarded the construction contract to Weltec Biopower, its first order from Belgium. The plant concept is highly efficient: the generated heat will be used directly on-site while the digestate will be extracted directly from the 2,000m3 second stage digester in order to be dried with the entire heat produced by the plant. The dry fertiliser will then be sold to fruit and wine companies across the border. The biogas plant will be equipped with stainlesssteel digester, a second stage digester and two 80m3 dosing feeders. l
NPG’s new biogas plant will enter service next year
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Ground breaks on UK AD plant Building work has started at a site in Suffolk, UK where BioCore Environmental is developing an anaerobic digestion (AD) plant. The plant will use locally produced energy crops to generate around 2,000m3/ hour of raw biogas which, following an upgrading process consisting of CO2 and trace contaminant gases removal, will be converted into 1,100Nm3/ hour of biomethane. This is the equivalent to 12MW per hour of renewable energy and be delivered to the natural gas grid to benefit 7,000 local homes. The AD plant has the potential to save 21,000 tonnes a year of carbon emissions. BioCore, through its partner Eastern Counties Finance, awarded the EPC contract to FLI Energy. Under the
contract FLI is responsible for the design, construction and commissioning of the plant. It also has a five-year maintenance and process analysis support contract. The contract scope includes detailed civil and process design, ground works, site secondary containment bunding, drainage, silage clamp, digestate storage, AD plant technology, 500kWe CHP, biogas upgrading, propane additional and biomethane network entry. ‘Injecting biomethane produced through AD into the gas grid has an array of benefits. It is one of the most efficient uses of biogas and reduces our reliance on imported fossil gas, thus contributing to meeting the UK’s renewable energy and climate change targets while improving our energy security,’ says FLI Energy’s MD Declan McGrath. ‘Biomethane from AD could potentially deliver 10% of the UK’s domestic gas demand.’ l
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FLI is designing and building the plant
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Picture caption to come
September/October 2013 • 9
biogas news
‘Ambitious’ French biogas plan under way A target concerning the addition of biogas plants in the French region of Midi-Pyrenees has been announced. Regional Authority president Martin Malvy revealed 100 biogas plants will be constructed after an agreement signed by the minister of agriculture and the minister of ecology, sustainable development and energy. It is believed, via that agreement, a regional committee will help develop
supply chains and contribute to the overall Energie Methane Autonomie Azote (EMAA) plan announced by the government in March. The EMAA aims to optimise the purchase price of electricity produced via biogas and help simplify the administrative procedures allocated against anaerobic digestion projects. The Midi-Pyrenees regional authority has overseen construction of 17 biogas plants over the past four years, worth a total investment of €30 million ($40.1 million). l
New biogas plant to benefit Indiana residents Waste No Energy, an Indiana, USbased company owned by Rakr Farms, is developing a multi-million dollar anaerobic digestion plant. When it comes online in December 2013, the facility will handle a mixture of manure and food waste to generate 8.2 million kW of renewable power which will be purchased by Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO) and used to power 940 homes. Around 26 tonnes per day of manure and 125 tonnes per day of waste food, including expired grocery and bakery products, restaurant waste, cheese manufacturing waste and animal proteins, will be collected for the new plant The digester will also create organic liquid
fertiliser. It will be the ninth of its kind in the state. CG Schmidt and US Biogas are the respective general contractor and design engineering firms for the project. Waste No Energy’s capital investment is being coupled with construction finding provided by First Financial Bank. ‘This technology has been utilised in Europe for decades and we are proud to bring it to Indiana,’ says Doug Raderstorf, president of Waste No Energy. ‘Having partners like First Financial Bank was key in moving the project forward.’ NIPSCO VP of commercial operations Karl Stanley adds: ‘Renewable energy projects like this play an important role in the overall energy mix and we hope it serves as a model for thee continued development of other sustainable renewable projects in the future.’ l
10 • September/October 2013
News in brief Pakistan looks to India for biogas increase As a way of tackling its energy concerns Pakistan
is to work with Indian boiler manufacturers to increase the amount of biogas used in the country. Representatives of Indian engineering companies have reportedly been over to Pakistan to discuss partnerships with sugar mills and allied industries. One MoU has already been signed by Cheema Boilers and turbine manufacturers Triveni with local Pakistani company Haseeb Waqas Group. It is believed such deals will save local companies around 300 miilion rupees (€3.6 million) on the cost of local boiler costs.
UAC forms biogas JV with Italian firm Universal Adsorbents and Chemicals (UAC)
has formed a joint venture with Italy-based biogas company Sebigas to design and build biogas plants in Thailand and other Southeast Asian countries. The subsidiary company, UAC Energy, will oversee the design and construction of biogas facilities in addition to providing operation and maintenance services. UAC expects the new JV subsidiary to begin generating revenue next year and hopes it will create more than Bt1 billion (€23 million) by 2017. UAC says the JV will aid it in its expansion into renewable energy as the Thai government works to increase its biogas-derived electricity production from 600MW to 3,000MW by 2021.
Zimbabwe turns to biogas to benefit rural communities The Rural Electrification Agency (REA) of Zimbabwe, a subsidiary of utility company Zesa Holdings, is looking to install 64 biogas plants across the nation. The REA, according to reports, has called for bids from companies and agents experienced in the design, sizing, positioning, construction and installation of institutional biogas digester units. The biogas digesters will be installed throughout Zimbabwe’s eight provinces, promoting the development of biogas technology. This rollout of biogas plants also coincides with Zesa’s inability to meet electricity requirements. Zimbabwe generates around 1,500MW a year and imports approximately 150MW. Around 400 biogas plants are built in Zimbabwe’s rural areas to date.
Bioenergy Insight
biogas news
European project produces first algae crops for bioenergy The EU-based All-gas project, the world’s largest project to convert algae into clean energy using wastewater, has successfully grown its first crop of algae biomass at its site in southern Spain. The project, which was launched in May 2011 and due to last five years, aims to obtain low-cost biofuel from algae grown in wastewater. So far, the biomass created shows a high energy potential relative to its digestibility level, with a methane production capacity
of around 200-300 litres of gas/kg of biomass processed by anaerobic digestion. The microalgae also allow the purification of wastewater to a high standard. In addition to wastewater, the project also proposes to use CO2 generated in biomass boilers from residuals such as garden waste or olive pits to feed the algae, which in turn are converted into biogas. A part of the biogas is CO2 which gets separated from the biomethane and recycled. The pilot phase of the project has already been completed and plans for the construction of the biomass plant are on schedule. A one hectare prototype is under construction. It is expected that by
2016 the biofuel produced by the All-gas project will be enough to power 200 vehicles. When the project reaches its demonstration phase, the biogas produced will be used to power public buses and rubbish trucks in the region of Cadiz. The European project is led by FCC Aqualia and comprises five other organisations: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, BDI, Feyecon y Hygear and the University of Southampton. ‘This original new approach to bioenergy means that Spain’s 40 million population could power 200,000 vehicles every year with a single toilet flush,’ says Frank Rogalla, project coordinator and FCC Aqualia’s director of innovation and technology.
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‘The All-gas project is going to change the face of wastewater treatment by generating a energy resource from what was previously considered undesirable waste.’ Nicolas Aragon, Chiclana’s environmental councillor, adds: ‘This is not only an R&D project, but also a way of reducing costs and investing in the protection of our natural environment. Chiclana is a worldwide tourist destination and, from now on, we will show that along with attracting visitors with our sunshine and beaches we can also grow sustainable biofuel with our natural resources.’ The All-gas project is costing €12 million, €7.1 million of which has come from EU funding. l
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biopellet news First woodchips delivered to Burgess BioPower plant Commissioning has begun at the 75MW Burgess BioPower plant in Berlin, New Hampshire as it received its first delivery of woodchips in August. The power plant cost $273 million (€205 million) to build. It is located on the site of the Burgess Pulp Mill and has been designed to consume 750,000 tonnes of wood biomass annually — around 100 truckloads of woodchips a day. The biomass plant is
The first delivery of woodchips was made in August
equipped with both a biomassfired bubbling fluidised-bed boiler and a new air quality control system. Public Service of New Hampshire
has a 20-year power purchase agreement in place. Babcox and Wilcox Construction was the main contractor for the project
and the milestone meant it was able to test one of the three new truck dumpers at one of the two onsite tipping stations in the fully automated wood yard as part of its commissioning process. The plant is slated to open towards the end of this year when it will be operated under Delta Power Services’ six-year contract. Construction was originally scheduled to last for just over 25 months but this is likely to overrun to 27. The number of workers onsite has dropped from over 500 during the construction phase to under 400 at the end of August. l
European pellet suppliers give views on sustainability With bioenergy expected to play a major role towards 2020 targets and beyond, pellet suppliers will contribute to guaranteeing this increase takes place in a framework respectful of the environment. This is why the European Industrial Pellet Suppliers (EIPS) group is in favour of an EU legislation establishing harmonised sustainability criteria for solid biomass used in the electricity and heating sectors. Pellet sustainability begins with establishing the origin of the raw material used by European pellet mills: sawmill processing residues (sawdust and woodchips), wood harvesting residues
(branches, tops and crowns), and wood from thinnings and other low quality roundwood. The origin of this supply logically sticks to the fact EU forests are managed under a multiproduct approach with wood energy materials being, to a large extent, a secondary product from the wood industry. It is not economically interesting for European forest owners to manage their forests for wood energy purposes only. Additionally, it is not economically feasible for European pellet plants to use quality roundwood. When analysing the criteria needed to guarantee the sustainable origin of wood pellets, it should not be forgotten that European forests are submitted to strict national rules and legislations which ensure they are sustainably managed. Part of this forest area is also following the sustainable forest management principles established by PEFC/FSE
12 • September/October 2013
voluntary certification. Finally, the principle of ‘cascading use’ of the biomass resources has now entered into the bioenergy debate. This principle aims to favour the material use, re-use and recycling of wood fibres prior to being used for energy production. The European Parliament has recently called for a legal instrument to establish this principle that would lead to a hierarchical, smart and efficient use of biomass and to value-adding applications1. At first glance, this principle could look tempting to organise the use of the resource. However, with a closer view, it is obvious it cannot be disconnected from the economic context of the different uses to which the biomass resource may be put. In addition, setting this principle by law would go against the market economy. It would be not appropriate for the EU to proscribe to any
industry sector which raw material it can or cannot use in its process. Overall, making the cascading use principle legally binding would make no sense from a legal, economic and practical point of view. In conclusion, European pellet suppliers are strongly involved in providing a sustainable biomass on the EU market today, and are eager to maintain this commitment in the future to accompany the developments of the bioenergy sector. l
References:
1 European Parliament report on innovating for sustainable growth: A Bioeconomy for Europe, July 2013 EIPS represents the joint forces of the European pellet producers, traders and stakeholders involved in the pellet supply chain.
For more information:
This article was written by Arnold Dale, VP of bioenergy at Ekman Group and chairman of the EIPS group. To find out more about EIPS contact Fanny-Pomme Langue, GM of the group, fanny.langue@aebiom.org
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biopellet news
Curran Renewables receives PFI approval Wood pellet manufacturer Curran Renewable Energy has become the second pellet mill in the US to receive certification from the Pellet Fuels Institute (PFI) for premium grade wood pellets. The PFI sets a standard for wood pellets in the US, certifying premium wood pellets meet a certain quality requirement. The institute carries out rigorous tests to assure all pellets are in compliance. The certification means Curran’s wood pellet bags will soon include the PFI stamp. l
China becomes world’s largest woodchip importer The last five years has seen China’s importation of woodchips soar as the nation’s pulp and paper industry grows. A lack of competitively priced wood fibre in China means the country’s two largest pulp mills — Asia Pacific Resources International and Asia Pulp and Paper — are sourcing much of their wood fibre needs from across the water, resulting in a surge of woodchips being exported to China. Woodchip import value in 2012 reached $1.3 billion (€900,000), up from $180 million 2008. The Wood Resource Quarterly predicts
this figure could reach $1.5 billion this year. China became the world’s largest hardwood chip importer in the second quarter of this year when it overtook Japan with 2.4 million m3 of chips. The majority of these chips come from Australia, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam, with the latter accounting for over half the total import volume. Other countries from Latin America, as well as Malaysia and South Africa, also supplied a small volume of biomass chips to China during 2012 and 2013. Woodchip imports are expected to continue to grow as China plans to further expand its pulp manufacturing sector. l
Your Single-Source System Provider We offer complete systems for grinding and/or drying a wide variety of biomass materials including wood chips, algae, switchgrass, & kenaf. nt Biomass Handling Equipment ms Complete Engineered Systems Primary Hogs Secondary Hammer Mills Apron Pan Feeders Mass Loading Feeders Disc Screens Screw Conveyors Pneumatic Conveying Silos 2701 North Broadway, St. Louis, Missouri 63102 USA Phone: (314) 621-3348 Fax: (314) 436-2639 Email: sales@williamscrusher.com
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www.williamscrusher.com September/October 2013 • 13
biopower news Fortum inaugurates CHP plant in Latvia Latvia’s largest combined heat and power (CHP) biomass plant has come online. Energy company Fortum developed the Jelgava-based plant, which uses woodchips to generate 45MW of power and 23MW of electricity — enough to benefit 85% of the city’s heating capacity. It reduces the region’s CO2 emissions by around 44,000 tonnes compared to 2010. Construction of the plant started in August 2011 and took around 570,000 working hours to complete. Fortum’s investment in the new power plant and related infrastructure totalled around €70 million. ‘Combined heat and power is energy- and costefficient,’ says Fortum’s CFO Markus Rauramo. ‘The simultaneous construction of an identical CHP plant in Järvenpää, Finland has enabled efficient use of resources and knowledge and ensured the availability of the most modern energy technology in Jelgava,’ l
Fortum’s ‘identical’ CHP plant in Finland
Biomass plant generates electricity in test A $170 million (€128 million) 49.9MW biomass-fired power plant, developed by Northern Virginia Electric Cooperative (NOVEC) and its partner Novi Energy, has commenced its trial run. On 11 September the first flow of renewable electricity was connected to the PJM regional electric transmission grid during testing. The companies anticipate pre-commercial operation testing and inspection of plant systems will continue for several more weeks. Construction work on the Halifax County, Virginia-based plant is being carried out by Fagen. Novi developed and is overseeing construction of the plant for owner NOVEC. The new facility will burn woodchips made primarily from waste materials leftover from logging operations within a 75-mile radius of the plant. This wood will burn inside the boiler to create steam that will turn turbines and generate electricity. According to Anand Gangadharan, president of Novi Energy, the plant will use ‘reclaimed water’ from the local water authority for plant cooling water. As a result, it will not discharge
14 • September/October 2013
NOVEC’s new plant in Halifax County
any water into the Dan River during normal operation. The plant will also recycle leftover wood ash. The trial run we see the facility synchronised to the grid and begin producing power. Once it starts full operations, the plant will operate 24 hours a day. Funding for the project is a combination of a $90 million loan from the US Department of Agriculture, equity
funds and state and federal grants. The plant’s opening ceremony is expected to take place in November and it will serve Novec’s customer-owners. ‘We’ve been working on this project for three years,’ explains Mike Dailey, NOVEC VP of energy and business development. ‘This successful synchronisation with the power grid marks a major milestone in the development of the station and now sets the stage for commercial operation.’ l
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biopower news
China Chant breaks ground on biomass plant China Chant Group is developing a new biomass-fired power plant in China’s Shandong province. The new plant will generate more than 200MWh of renewable electricity using cotton straw, bark and rice husk when it comes online. DP CleanTech, a manufacturer of biomass-to-energy power plants, is building the facility
and broke ground in August. This is the fourth biomass power plant to be delivered to Chant by DP CleanTech. In 2011 and 2012, DP CleanTech designed and installed its boiler technology at two of Chant’s biomass power plants: another in Shandong province and a CHP plant in Heilongjiant province. A third plant in Ning’an is still under construction and is expected to be completed before the end of this year. l
Oil firm subsidiary turns to biomass Caraga Renewable Power, a subsidiary of Eastern Petroleum, is investing $70 million (€52.5 million) to build a new biomass power plant in Butuan city, the Philippines. According to reports, the new plant will use woodchips to generate 20MW of renewable energy. The feedstock will come from industrial tree plantations in Agusan del Norte and Agusan del Sur, in addition to others. Work on the project is due to get underway next month, with Eastern Petroleum’s chairman and CEO quoted as saying: ‘The plant site in Butuan City is on final validation which will be decided this autumn to pave the way for necessary permitting.’ l
‘Technological breakthroughs’ could see biopower sector reach $11.5b The biomass-to-power sector is expected to grow substantially in the future and worldwide revenue from biomass power generation could reach $11.5 billion (€8.7 million) a year by 2020, according to a recent report from Navigant Research. This growth is being attributed to ‘technological breakthroughs and the expansion of international trade in
biomass pellets’, which are expected to create sustained growth in the sector. ‘Offering dispatchable, baseload support to the grid with high load reliability, biopower will continue to play a cornerstone role in meeting renewable energy targets,’ says Mackinnon Lawrence, principle research analyst with Navigant Research. Lawrence adds, however, that logistical hurdles do, and will continue to, hinder its real potential: ‘Logistics challenges associated with the collection, aggregation, transportation and handling of biomass will continue
to limit the commercial potential of biomass power generation.’ With this, the report — Market Data: Biomass Power Generation — states the growth of the renewable power industry will rely largely on government mandates. ‘These policies can be either aspirational or mandated, but if they remain in place through 2020, they could help the biomass market expand. If incentives and subsidies continue to be implemented on an ad hoc basis, growth in this sector is likely to remain constrained,’ according to the report.l
Detroit Renewable Energy completes major financing Detroit Renewable Energy (DRE) has completed $55 million (€41 million) in longterm financing to support the company’s expanding investment in the environmental, renewable energy and economic development infrastructure of Greater Detroit. The financing consists of tax-exempt Limited Obligation Revenue Bonds with maturities extending to 2030. The bonds were issued by the Michigan Strategic Fund and are guaranteed by DRE assets and future revenues. DRE owns four businesses — Detroit Thermal, Detroit
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Renewable Power, Detroit Renewable Cooling and Hamtramck Energy Services. DRE has invested over $60 million since 2010 to acquire these businesses and for capital improvements to its network of facilities, expand services to new businesses and industries, and find ongoing operations. Describing this financing as a ‘milestone’ Steven White, DRE chairman, says: ‘This brings substantial new resources to the long-term energy security, environmental health and economic sustainability of Greater Detroit. With the ongoing commitment of local industry, this is the type of effort that will help accelerate the resurgence of this city.’ DRE is part of Atlas Holdings, an industrial holding company with operations worldwide. l
September/October 2013 • 15
biopower news
Ameresco completes Neoen awards construction contract new landfill gas-tofor CHP plant in France energy project Neoen, a producer of electricity from renewable sources, is developing a 65MW combined heat and power plant in Commentry, France. Following a call for tender, Areva has announced that it, in consortium with French boiler supplier Leroux and Lotz Technologies, has been awarded the €55 million contract to build the plant. It will use woodchips to generate 15MW of electrical power and 50MW of heat, and slash CO2 emissions by 40,000 tonnes a year, when it comes online in the first quarter of 2015. Areva and Leroux will supply all the equipment and services required for the construction and commissioning of the plant. l
Ameresco, a provider of solutions for the renewable energy industry, has completed the construction of its 1.4MW landfill gas-to-energy project at Johnson Canyon Landfill in California. The company designed, built and now operates the renewable energy facility and SVSWA owns the landfill site. Under a 20 year power purchase agreement, the city of Palo Alto will buy the renewable energy. The plant diverts landfill gas through extraction wells and pipes to a landfill gas-to-energy plant, where it is cleaned before converted into electricity. The mayor of Palo Alto Gregory Scharff says: ‘This landfill gasto-energy project will not only help our city become more energy efficient, but will also provide a more sustainable future for Palo Alto and its residents. It generates enough clean energy to power nearly 1,000 homes and will reduce our community’s carbon footprint.’ The ribbon cutting ceremony was held on 12 September 2013. l
New biomass power plant to be built in UK PensionDanmark is to build, own and operate a new biomass-fired power plant in Lincolnshire, UK and has formed a joint venture with Burmeister and Wain Scandinavian Contractor (BWSC). The £160 million (€187.5 million) Brigg Renewable Energy plant will use mostly locally sourced straw to generate 40MW of renewable electricity — enough for 70,000 homes. This will also result in an annual CO2 reduction of approximately 300,000 tonnes. BWSC invested £32 million into the new project and is responsible for the construction, operation and maintenance of the plant, which is expected to come online in 2016. ‘The financial crisis has challenged the success
The £160m Brigg Renewable Energy plant
of Danish businesses exporting sustainable energy plants. Now, BWSC and PensionDanmark are forming a joint venture with the aim of building, owning and operating select biomass power plants internationally,’ says Anders Heine Jensen, BWSC CEO. PensionDanmark’s CEO Torben Moeger Pedersen
16 • September/October 2013
adds: ‘We have found a model that provides us with an attractive return with limited risk. The risk is limited by the fact that the majority of PensionDanmark’s investment is in the form of loans and the bulk of earnings are regulated, with the costs fixed via long-term contracts.’ The company’s share of the investment in the new plant
in £128 million and will be funded via the Copenhagen Infrastructure I Fund, which was established in 2012 and is administered by Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners. The investment commitment was agreed in August following the UK government’s announcement regarding the UK Biomass Cap. l
Bioenergy Insight
biopower news
Former refinery plot to house 49MW biomass plant in Japan
The 49MW renewable power station will be built on the site of Showa’s former Ohgimachi plant at the Keihin refinery
complex. The project will fall under the Japanese government’s renewable energy feed-in tariff scheme. The new plant’s coastal location means it will be strategically placed for ships to conveniently deliver the biomass, which will be made up of wood and palm kernel shells. In addition to this plant, Showa recently received approval to expand its LNGfired Ohgishima power plant and solar power plants. The company says it ‘will continue
The 49MW biomass plant will enter service in Q4 2014
to maximise the potential of oil — its core energy source — while developing new energy sources that answer the demands of society like solar power and ever-more
Australian egg company to run on renewable power
The Pittsworth, Queenslandbased company is to install a $2.86 million (€2.15 million) biogas digester which will generate renewable power, slashing its consumption of fossil-based electricity by 60% in the first year. According to Darling Downs Fresh Eggs’ CEO Geoff Sondergeld, this is the first digester within the Australian egg production sector and the business is expecting cost savings of more than $250,000 from year one. The project will be cofinanced by the Clean Energy Finance (CEF) and National Australia Bank (NAB). Quantum Power
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and RCM International will work together to design and deliver the facility. CEF CEO Oliver Yates says the plant would demonstrate the potential for the industry to convert its waste products into a valuable renewable energy source, and is replicable and scalable. ‘There are more than 400 egg farms in Australia producing 2.34 billion eggs in a year. Installing biogas digesters at these sites would yield enough power to support the energy needs of more than 8,500 average family homes,’ he adds. Quantum Power’s CEO Richard Brimblecombe adds: ‘We’re expecting a reduction in carbon emissions of up to 1,000 tonnes per annum, through the reduced electricity and LPG usage. The plant will also reduce the site’s methane emissions by over 6,000 tonnes CO2e per annum.’ l
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Darling Downs Fresh Eggs is to become the first Australian egg producer to power its poultry business on renewable energy.
efficient, clean electricity to deliver stable energy supply’. Ground is set to break on the plant in May 2014, with operations expected to begin at the end of 2015. l
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September/October 2013 • 17
technology news Real time measurement of moisture in woodchips and pellets When it comes to using woodchips and wood pellets as a fuel on a commercial basis, the moisture content must be taken into consideration. In some cases woodchips, dependant on their source and time of production, can have a moisture content of up to 60% by weight. This moisture content of the woodchips needs to be verified by both customer and supplier alike to ensure that the required specifications of the woodchips are met. Woodchips with high moisture content effectively means the buyer is unnecessarily purchasing large quantities of water. In many instances the woodchips need to be dried to increase calorific value, but this process can be costly. Additionally, overly moist material can start to degrade. This degrading process can result in the formation of combustible gasses with associated fire risks. Therefore an early
identification of wet product is important for site safety. The reliable online moisture measurement of woodchips provides significant economic and safety benefits to the user. The real-time information on the moisture can be used to monitor the woodchips supply and lays the foundation for improved boiler efficiency. The drying process can be adjusted to the actual need, saving time as well as fuel costs. Online measurement of the woodchips allows identifying overly wet batches of product before the material enters the storage bunker. Moisture gauge types Various types of moisture gauges are available to today’s woodchip user. From simple hand held probe type units to more sophisticated permanently mounted online systems giving real time measurements. However if you are looking at gauges that provide an online and non-contacting measurement then the choices tend to be limited to NIR (Near Infrared) or Microwave Transmission systems.
The Microwave Transmission principle ensures a highly representative measurement since the Microwaves penetrate the complete material layer
18 • September/October 2013
MicroPolar moisture analyser from Berthold Technologies installed on a woodchip conveyor (with bulk density compenstation)
Non-contact, online and real time Microwave analysers offer some advantages to the operator over NIR systems. The Microwaves are beamed through the wood chips giving representative information on the whole material layer. As a second point Microwaves, unlike NIR, are not affected by any differences of the colour of the wood chips or light variations in the measuring area. MicroPolar online microwave analysers The MicroPolar Analysers from Berthold Technologies are specifically designed for these measurement tasks. Based on Microwave Transmission technology, the MicroPolar has some technical features that are key when measuring natural products like woodchips or pellets. Due to the multi-frequency technology (measurement at different frequencies), the system ensures a stable and reliable
measurement, unaffected by reflexes or resonances of the measured product. An integrated reference line eliminates any environmental influences, making it suitable for industrial environments. The Berthold system is also able to compensate for varying loading heights or bulk densities. This ensures accurate and representative results. The real-time measurement results provided by an online moisture meter are beneficial in terms of safety and production costs. From the many technologies available on the market, the Microwave Transmission has proven to be one of the most representative and reliable technology. These analysers can be easily installed on existing conveyors and are not subject to frequent re-calibrations or maintenance. l For more information:
This article was written by Graeme Webb, +44 (0) 158 276 1477, graeme.webb@berthold.com, www.berthold.com
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technology news
SEaB Energy wins patents for mobile power plant solution SEaB Energy has secured patents from the US and UK for its portable power plants that use microbial technology to turn food waste into energy. The system features a mobile energy generator that uses AD to eliminate the movement of waste and the associated costs of transport and disposal. The company’s MuckBuster, designed for the farm and equestrian market, and its sister Flexibuster, built for the food and drink sector, are fully automated and self-optimising. The systems are housed in transportable containers to enable low-cost delivery. l
Ener-G launches funded AD solution AD technology that can combat rising water effluent and energy costs is being made available to the processing industry at no capital cost. Ener-G has launched a complete outsourced AD service that includes the design, installation and operation of AD-based renewable energy facilities. Ener-G will finance the project, meaning there is no upfront cost or financial risk to the customer. The company then recovers its investment by sharing savings with the customer over the contract period, with the customer receiving 20-50% of the annual savings. This AD package is suitable for a variety of industrial processors,
such as the brewing, distilling, soft drinks and dairy sectors. The minimum requirement to qualify for funding is a liquid effluent stream of at least 3,000kg of chemical oxygen demand (COD) per day. Ener-G manages all elements of the process, starting with an assessment of the client’s process waste by an independent laboratory to ascertain the type of AD technology best suited to the waste stream. It also involves calculating the potential heat and electricity yield and specifying and supplying an appropriately sized combined heat and power (CHP) systems. After service includes managing the process of connecting to the national network for the export and sale of electricity and managing claims for renewables incentives, such as the Feed-in Tariff. l
Biogas catalyst launched in UK Citadel Environment Solutions is now seeking UK and international partners to expand its business. This announcement comes just four months after it introduced its Biocat+ catalyst to the market. The technology has the ability to boost gas output and quality from AD plants, while stabilising the digester and reducing downtime. Citadel has secured nine international JV partners to date which has seen the installation of 25 catalyst production units (CPUs), feeding BioCat+ into the digesters. The company says it also has negotiations in the pipeline to complete a further 25 installations by the end of 2013. Citadel BioCat+ is produced through the fermentation of natural plant material. During the technology assessment period, it was found the amount of biogas was increased by an average 20% per tonne of feedstock, with a combination of
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A Citadel BioCat+ CPU
extra biogas being produced and the percentage of methane increasing in quality. Odours were also eliminated as the process cuts hydrogen sulphide levels by up to 75%. The micro-organisms in Citadel
BioCat+ include naturally occurring bacteria from both land and marine sources. The cocktail, comprising micro-organisms, micro-nutrients, cofactors and phages, has been developed through years of experimentation. l
September/October 2013 • 19
technology news
Monsal secures major deal with Tamar Energy Monsal, a UK-based digestion company, is to provide Tamar Energy with a complete technology package for its new food waste digestion project. Tamar, a renewable energy company, is building a 2MWe plant in Halstead, UK which will handle 45,000 tonnes of waste food a year. Tamar focuses solely on anaerobic digestion and has longterm goal of establishing 40 AD plants in the UK, with a total output capacity
of 100MW, by 2018. The order for the technology package includes: • Waste reception equipment • Waste de-packaging equipment • Hydrolysis plant • Pasteurisation plant • AD with Monsal SGM mixing technology • Biogas and digestate management systems • Odour extraction and treatment technology Construction of the new plant began in June and is expected to last 12 months. ‘Tamar will take organic waste from the local area,’ explains Thomas Burgess, delivery project manager
An artist’s impression of Tamar’s new AD plant
for the new plant. ‘The new facility will have the capacity to meet the electricity demands of around 5,000
homes each year and offer an environmental improvement to current organic waste management practices.’ l
Biomass order creates growth opportunities
Arbor develops new CHP system
Evermore Renewable Energy is building a 15.8MW biomass combined heat and power (CHP) plant in Derry/ Londonderry, Northern Ireland and has awarded the construction contract to Danish power plant business Burmeister and Wain Scandinavian Contractor (BWSC).
Volter UK (trading as Arbor Heat and Power) will soon launch its new combined heat and power systems.
The £55 million (€65 million) contract includes the construction of the plant, in addition to a 15-year operation and maintenance agreement worth approximately £39 million. The new biomass plant will be fuelled by recycled wood and is expected to be handed over to Evermore for start-up of commercial operation in mid-2015. The project is the third contract awarded to BWSC since January 2013. In total, the three contracts have a contractual value of approximately £315 million. l
BWSC was awarded a £55 million contract to build, operate and maintain the Evermore Renewable Energy Plant
20 • September/October 2013
The new ArborElectroGen units are available in different sizes, ranging from 30 — for large residential properties and small businesses, to 800 — ideal for larger district heating schemes such as hospitals and universities. The company’s CEO Richard Griffin says the new CHP gasification system is able to deliver environmentally friendly, cost-effective heat and power solutions using the latest technology. ‘Using biomass in our new generation systems for heating and power results in low net “lifecycle” carbon emissions in relation to conventional sources of heating, such as gas, oil and even plant oil,’ he adds. ‘Currently, the generation of heat alone accounts for nearly half of the UK’s carbon emissions and there is a legal requirement to reduce carbon emissions by at least 26% by 2020 and by 80% by 2050 under the Climate Change Act. Meeting these targets will require a major shift away from fossil fuel heating systems to lower carbon forms of heating, which our systems are built to deliver, particularly for commercial and industrial applications. ‘In addition to carbon savings, biomass CHP also offers benefits for users, including operational fuel cost savings, reduced fuel price volatility and a solid return on their investment.’ l
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technology news
New biogas plant for Honduras Biodome Asia, part of Kirk Group, has secured its first anaerobic digestion and biogas project in Honduras, Central America. This would be the first project of its kind in the region, as palm oil biogas plants are more commonly built to generate renewable energy.
steel tank with its double membrane roof. It will be an addition to the existing biogas plant located within the Oil Mill Plant of Aceites y Derivados, Aceydesa, made up of 15 cascading fat traps and four opened anaerobic lagoons. Due to the oil extraction process from treating 60 tonnes per hour of fresh
fruit bunches, approximately 272,000m³ of palm oil mill effluent (POME) is generated. By treating the POME in the existing open anaerobic lagoons, a high level of methane is released in the atmosphere. This new anaerobic digester will see the methane produced captured in the digester roof
where it will be treated and used as renewable electricity and exported to the national grid. This new process will eliminate approximately 28,000 tonnes of CO2 being released in the atmosphere per year. The project is set to commence in January 2014 and is expected to take one month to complete. l
Biodome Asia will design, supply and install one 6,000m3 glass-fused-to-
Saxlund wins order for Holcim in Germany
Biodome Asia’s second completed biogas plant in Indonesia
Saxlund International has been awarded a material handling contract for secondary fuel at Holcim AG’s plant in Höver, Germany. Under the SEK5 million (€575,000) contract Saxlund will deliver its floor discharger systems as well as several conveyors and separation systems, all designed to handle up to 12 tonnes/ hour of refuse-derived fuel. Delivery will take place later this year. Swiss group Holcim is a supplier of cement and aggregates. l
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September/October 2013 • 21
technology news
New biomass heating plant set for Finland Metso is to supply a biomass-fired heating plant to Elenia Lämpö in Turenki, Finland, which is due to come online by the third quarter of next year. The plant will generate 10MW of heat in addition to hot water for Turenki’s heating network. Biomass to be used in the plant includes locally sourced wood-based biomass such as forest residue and peat. The order, the value of which has not been disclosed, will include process equipment, buildings and installation work. Elenia Lämpö generates district heat and electricity and sells and distributes district heat and natural gas. l
A 3D image of the biomass heating facility
Saxlund part Bandit offers new micro chip drum option of E.ON’s A micro chip drum from French Bandit Industries is now available for a selection of biomass its whole tree chippers. power station Saxlund International has been awarded a material handling contract from Doosan Babcock, the main supplier for E.ON’s new biomass power station in Gardanne, France. When it comes online the Provence 4 Biomasse power plant will be the largest biomass-fired power plant in France, generating 150MW of renewable electricity and slashing CO2 emissions by some 600,000 tonnes a year. The contract, totalling SEK25 million (€2.8 million), includes delivery, supervision during installation and start-up services of a complete waste-wood distribution system with silos, rotor discharge machines and conveyors. Delivery will begin later in 2013 with start-up scheduled for next year. l
22 • September/October 2013
The drum design features double the knives found on a standard drum, delivering twice the cuts per rotation to produce woodchips as small as 3/16” in size. It can also be converted to a normal chipping configuration for standard sized chips, allowing users to produce several different chip sizes to serve multiple markets. The micro chip drum works in
conjunction with Bandit’s flow control option for the feed system, which finetunes the feed rate of the machine for minimum chip size with production and fuel efficiency. A new chip breaker system helps to enhance chip quality, serving to screen and break down oversized material exiting the drum. Chips leave the machine at high velocities without the need for a separate blower or chip accelerator. Bandit says its micro chip drum is an available option for models 2590, 3090 and 3590 whole tree chippers. The drum and accompanying systems can also be retrofitted to existing Bandit whole tree chippers. l
The new micro chip drum
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technology news
West Midlands businesses to provide new waste-to-fuel technology The European Bioenergy Research Institute (EBRI), based at Aston University in Birmingham, UK, is asking local businesses and manufacturers to send in their food waste. EBRI researchers have developed a new technology — a Pyroformer — which generates heat and power from its use of multiple waste sources. The technology has been trialled in the UK,
Germany and India and could benefit businesses serving a range of sectors such as construction, consultancy, engineering, financial services, investment and business development, land and property management, utilities and waste management. To continue the development of this technology, EBRI is calling on businesses located in the West Midlands area which have waste sources such as food and agricultural leftovers, sewage sludge, manure and biomass, as well as tall oil
from the pulp industry. Additionally, EBRI is welcoming this waste in a pellet form such as anaerobic digestion, municipal waste, water treatment plants and food processing industries. EBRI researchers are also looking to collaborate with companies with facilities including pellet mills, milling plants, drying facilities and logistics companies. As Tim Miller, director of operations at EBRI, explains: ‘You don’t have to chop down trees or grow crops to generate energy and meet renewable energy
targets. Instead energy can be derived from domestic, agricultural and industrial waste and will mean the amount of material sent to landfill will also be reduced.’ According to Miller, Birmingham has the potential to power itself using the waste it produces. A Pyroformer demonstrator plant was operational throughout 2012 at Harper Adams University in Shropshire and an industrial size demonstrator is being built on the Aston University campus which will be operational later this year. l
Vacuum-mounted trailer vibrator speeds up unloading A new airpowered vibrator from industrial manufacturer Martin Vibration Systems Solutions helps bulk carriers empty their hopper trailer by agitating settled materials and energising flow, while discouraging potentially dangerous manual operations. The MT-Fast Hopper Trailer Vibrator requires no mounting bracket, enabling it to be positioned at corners, valleys or other problem areas where material flow tends to stall. And, as it is fixed directly to the hopper wall, energy is transferred more efficiently than with a bracket-mounted vibrator. The new MVS vibrator is a non-impacting linear design to help prevent trailer
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The new MT-Fast Hopper Trailer Vibrator helps drivers empty loads more quickly and completely without resorting to manual labour
damage, while delivering 200lbs of force to effectively move materials. The lowfrequency, high-amplitude energy is well suited to
large particle sizes and low bulk density materials, such as grain, meal and other agricultural products. The design features adjustable
amplitude, while the frequency is factory set for optimum results. All models are explosion-proof and washdown-safe. l
September/October 2013 • 23
technology news
New impact crusher for biogas plants Lindner-Recyclingtech, a supplier of shredding equipment in Austria, has launched a new vertical crusher for improved biogas yields when used for processing biomass substrates.
Lindner’s Limator crusher
mills. While this led to good results in certain materials, it also showed unsatisfactory outcomes with others. Lindner says its new generation of vertical crushers operate on the principle of a blender with flexible grinding tools such as grains and hammers and
ics
The Limator impact crusher features a rotating multi-element bracket to which moveable crusher plates and crusher tools are attached. The charged substrates are broken up by the moveable crusher plates and tools, as well as by the momentum of the rotating substrates. The new shredder was launched following a number of research tests aimed at improving gas yield and quality while reducing running costs and preventing floating layers. Much of this research was carried out with conventional systems such as hammermills, granulators and impact
they mostly work in interval operation. It accomplishes gentle yet maximum possible break-up of substrates and therefore a high gas yield. Through a variable adjustable slider, the Limator can optionally be operated continuously or in batch processing mode. l
Pl
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C ni Live PD ng d -a & em cc fin o red an ns it ce tra ed ad tio vic ns e cli n
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24 • September/October 2013
17/09/2013 08:24
Bioenergy Insight
incident report Bioenergy A summary of the recent major explosions, fires and leaks in the bioenergy industry Date
Location
Company
Incident information
03/09/13
New Zealand
Nature’s Flame
A fire broke out at Nature Flame’s wood pellet manufacturing plant after two sawdust hoppers exploded. Around a dozen fire crews responded to the fire, which was contained by around 11pm. No-one was in the building when the incident happened and there are no reports of injuries. State-owned Solid Energy owns Nature’s Flame although it has been operating as an independent company since last year. Solid Energy, according to reports, has been trying to sell the business since May.
21/08/13
Seattle, Washington, US
All Wood Recycling
A large pile of woodchips caught fire at All Wood Recycling’s site in Redmond. Fire teams from Bellevue, Kirkland and Redmond arrived at the scene after the blaze was reported around 11am local time. Spontaneous combustion is thought to be the cause of the fire: hot weather and recent rains could have led to decomposition in the pile of biomass which generates heat, resulting in a fire. In order to get the fire under control All Wood Recycling staff used backhoes to pull the pile apart while fire fighters doused the fire from above with water. It took around 24 hours to completely extinguish the blaze.
20/08/13
Rhode Island, US
Inferno Wood Pellets Co.
An explosion at Inferno Wood Pellets Co.’s plant in Rhode Island was caused by dust. The blast resulted in a four-alarm fire which saw crews from East Providence, Seekonk, Providence, Pawtucket, Warren and Barring respond. The explosion occurred at around 2.35pm and proved difficult to extinguish due to the flammable material inside. Fire fighters were, at one point, ordered out of the factory when part of the building’s roof collapsed. One worker suffered first- and second-degree burns and was taken to Rhode Island Hospital.
12/08/13
Duplin County, North Carolina, US
Bioenergy Insight
A large volume of woodchips spilled onto a highway in Duplin County following a traffic accident. A tractor trailer carrying woodchips overturned on Highway 11, north of Kenansville, resulting in the road being closed between 12 and 13 August. The biomass had to be removed from the vehicle before it could be turned upright and removed from the highway. Local reports claim the driver was travelling too fast when he approached a construction crew carrying out repaving works and was forced to put the truck in a ditch. He was airlifted to hospital.
September/October 2013 • 25
Bioenergy green page
The bioenergy house that Chip built What could be more environmentally-friendly than a facility which produces renewable energy? Give up? Well, how about one made entirely out of recycled materials. That was the vision had by Chip Energy, and president Paul Wever and his team are currently bringing it to fruition in Illinois, US. A groundbreaking ceremony was held in June and work continues apace on the primary structure which is made from shipping containers. Wever calls it an ‘economical structure with a small footprint and a low impact on the surrounding community’. The containers are welded together to create sealed blocks and Wever claims the method has helped play a part in reducing construction costs from $5 million (€3.7 million) down to $1.5 million. ‘The facility will eventually be
‘No, that one was supposed to go on the other side!’
able to handle 100 tonnes of biomass a day to create fuel, mulch and other products,’ he adds. ‘We’ll use around 60 containers, with some acting as vertical silos, overall.’
It is a seemingly wonderful idea, but Bioenergy Insight does wonder if a particularly large ratio of Lego and Meccano sets made up Wever’s childhood birthday and Christmas presents! l
The bear necessities of renewable fuels Is an endangered species about make themselves new friends in the renewable energy world? The answer comes from the name of one of the test subjects — a resounding Ya!
Hands up who can create biofuels through simply chowing down?
26 • September/October 2013
Scientists have been studying the faeces of giant pandas Le Le and Ya Ya, who reside at Memphis Zoo, US and discovered microbes which could aid the production of biofuels. The bacteria used by giant pandas within their digestive pattern are highly efficient at breaking down lignocellulose. ‘We have discovered more than 40 viable microbes which could make biofuel production from plant waste easier and cheaper,’ head researcher Ashil Brown was quoted as saying. ‘This also underscores the importance of saving endangered and threatened animals.’ Brown believes, if properly developed, this research could go a way to easing the food-vs-fuel debate that grips the ethanol industry regularly. ‘The time from eating to defecation is comparatively short in the panda, so their microbes have to be efficient to get nutritional value out of the bamboo,’
she adds. ‘And efficiency is key when it comes to biofuel production, one of the reasons why we focused on this study.’ As it seems pandas can be considered a contender for potential renewable energy involvement, the next time you’re asked if the Pope is Catholic you can now respond: ‘Well, does a bear poop in a test tube?’ l
Top BI Tweets Here is a selection of interesting things from our Twitterverse! (@BioenergyInfo) EnergyforLondon @energyforlondon Vivienne Westwood highlights climate change at London Fashion Week
ePure @ePURE_ethanol We have more than enough global land to sustainably produce food and biofuels… but we need to use it better! Leonie Greene @LeonieGreene New Aussie PM Tony Abbott’s climate policies. Just a bit better than ‘absolute crap’ Vision 2020 @FoodWaste2020 Food waste costing the Earth $750 billion each year SCS Global Services @SCScertified Congrats to the Maple Hill landfill in Missouri, SCS verified carbon offset under the Climate Action Reserve! Kirk Environmental @Kirkenviro DEFRA reports steady growth in UK anaerobic digestion Harry Huyton @Harryhuyton Remember when Paterson said shale gas was God’s gift? Now Blackburn Diocese says fracking ‘damages God’s creation’
Bioenergy Insight
regulations Bioenergy UK biomass and co-fired plants generating just electricity have received two knockbacks of late: the introduction of a 400MW cap and no support under the CfD
Another blow for UK biomass sector
D
edicated poweronly biomass and co-firing plants will no longer be eligible for subsidies under the UK’s contracts for difference (CfD) — a new support mechanism due to be implemented from next year and will succeed the existing Renewables Obligation (RO) from 2017. According to the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC): ‘New build electricityonly biomass plants do not offer as cost-effective a means of decarbonising the electricity grid as other renewables technologies.’ That, in addition to the recently introduced 400MW cap on total new-build dedicated biomass capacity (excluding biomass with CHP and coal-to-biomass conversions) which can expect grandfathered support under the RO, is sure to lead to a race between biomass developers as they rush to seek guaranteed support. Grandfathering is a policy to maintain a fixed level of support for the full lifetime of a generating station’s eligibility under the RO from the point of accreditation, provided the station continues to meet the eligibility criteria for the RO and for the relevant support level. DECC is using a notification process to allocate places within the cap. This first opened for applications for priority projects (that
Bioenergy Insight
reached financial close by 20 August), while other projects were able to apply from 11 September. DECC published guidance on how to apply for a place within the 400MW cap on new build dedicated biomass project under the RO on 21 August. But with the RO to be eventually replaced with the CfD regime, many biomass developers were expecting to receive revised support in the future. However DECC believes dedicated biomass CfD support ‘would circumvent our policy intent to discourage electricityonly new build and to encourage more resourceefficient technologies such as CHP and heat’.
It was revealed its preference ‘is for full biomass conversions’ as they are ‘more sustainable and provide higher levels of renewable generation. Significant support for biomass co-firing under CfDs could potentially destabilise the plans for those seeking to make full unit or plant conversions’. Conversion projects are being offered a flat rate of CfD support to 2027, a shorter contract compared to other renewables due to the fact they extend the life of plants that are already quite old. DECC believes this method ‘offers a quick, cost-effective way to rapidly decarbonise electricity generation in the short- to medium-term’.
In the longer term, CHP projects are considered a less risky way of ensuring the use of biomass up until 2030 as they are more efficient compared to power-only plants. In a statement issued to the Combined Heat and Power Association (CHPA) and its members, DECC clarified that CHP plants which achieve full or partial certification under the CHP Quality Assurance (CHPQA) programme are permanently exempt from the cap, even if they subsequently lose their CHPQA certification. CHP plants that have obtained, or are intending to obtain, full or partial CHPQA are therefore ineligible to participate in the notification process. DECC also confirmed the cap does not change government policy towards grandfathering of biomass CHP plants under the RO. The Renewable Energy Association (REA), which called DECC’s decision ‘misguided’, is urging the government not to withdraw support for the construction of new biomass power plants under the forthcoming CfD scheme. CHP is an excellent use of the resource but it is not feasible in sites where there is no user for the heat load. The government will have serious regrets down the line if it excludes the construction of dedicated biomass plants from the new regime,’ said the REA’s CEO Nina Skorupska. l
September/October 2013 • 27
Bioenergy regulations US biochemical producers to receive support in the form of Qualifying Renewable Chemical Production Tax Credit Act
Legislation ‘levels playing field’ for biochemical sector
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enewable chemical producers will receive tax credits under legislation introduced on 12 September. Under the Qualifying Renewable Chemical Production Tax Credit Act of 2013, biochemical manufacturers will benefit from reduced taxes — something that is already currently available for other renewable energy producers — to help them commercialise home-grown technology and build new biorefineries in the US. The tax credit, introduced by Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr. and co-sponsored by Rep. Steve Stockman ‘is equal to $0.15 (€0.11) per pound of eligible content of renewable chemical produced by the taxpayer during the taxable year’, according to the text of the legislation. The term ‘eligible content’ refers to the bio-based content percentage of the total mass of organic carbon in a chemical, as determined by ASTM D6866. Speaking about the legislation, Pascrell explained supporting the biochemical industry is key to reducing the US’s dependence on
imported fossil fuel for a more sustainable future. ‘By levelling the playing field for the biochemical sector, we are strengthening America’s role as the leader in developing this groundbreaking industry,’
plastics, or formulated products. The bio-based chemical would not be eligible if sold into the food, feed or fuel markets. The Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) thanked Pascrell for introducing the
‘Few people realise fossil fuels produce many products used every day around the world. The Act would lead to greater use of renewable chemicals, reducing the negative impacts that come from relying on oil and gas’ Tjerk de Ruiter, CEO of LS9
he said. ‘Creating jobs is the best way to bolster our economy; this legislation does just that while reducing our reliance on foreign oil and ensuring a more sustainable future.’ In order to claim the tax credit, the renewable chemical must be manufactured in the US by the taxpayer and used or sold for the production of chemical products, polymers,
28 • September/October 2013
measure: ‘We’re already beginning to see renewable chemical companies put home-grown technologies to work to spur economic growth,’ says BIO president and CEO Jim Greenwood. The news has also been well received by many US biotech companies including Gevo, LS9, DSM, Renmatix, Verdezyne and Lignol Innovations. Tjerk de Ruiter, CEO
of LS9 said: ‘Few people realise fossil fuels are used to produce many of the products used every day around the world. Passage of the Qualifying Renewable Chemical Production Tax Credit Act would lead to greater use of renewable chemicals in the manufacture of those products, reducing the negative economic and environmental impacts that come from relying on oil and gas.’ Gevo’s chief licensing officer Brett Lund agrees, saying the tax credit ‘is a significant step toward encouraging the production and use of renewable chemicals’, while DSM president Hugh Welsh believes the legislation ‘will further support employment, economic growth and continue to encourage global companies to make additional investments’. Senior VP of Renmatix Mark Schweiker commented: ‘There is clear momentum for bioindustry to commercialise cost-competitive pathways to biochemicals. This bill will help leverage a variety of under-utilised, non-food biomass in America for conversion into renewable materials.’ l
Bioenergy Insight
regulations Bioenergy The biomass industry must prove it is using sustainable materials from April 2015 otherwise it will lose financial support
DECC: dedicated to sustainability
A
round 38% of the UK’s renewable electricity comes from bioenergy and biomass is expected to make a significant contribution to delivering the nation’s 2020 renewable energy target. And, under new changes made by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) to ensure the sustainability of wood fuel used to create this renewable energy, biomass electricity will generate over 70% greenhouse gas savings compared to fossil fuel alternatives. From April 2015, the biomass industry — which DECC estimates is worth over £1 billion (€1.2 billion) in new investment — must demonstrate its fuel is sustainable. If it doesn’t, however, it risks losing financial support. Under tough new criteria for sustainable forest management, all generators of 1MW capacity or more using solid biomass or biogas feedstock will be required to demonstrate that they are meeting the criteria in order to claim support under the Renewables Obligation (RO). The new criteria are based on issues including sustainable harvesting rates, biodiversity protection and land use rights for indigenous
Bioenergy Insight
populations. Organisations that do not comply with the new requirements could see financial support withheld. DECC says it is also introducing a new requirement for generators of 1MW capacity and above to provide an independent sustainability audit with their annual sustainability report. The sustainable forest management criteria will be based on the UK government’s Timber Procurement Policy Principles. The policy requires that all timber- and woodderived products be sourced only from independently verifiable legal and sustainable sources, including from a licensed Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) partner. Greg Barker, minister of state for energy and climate change, said: ‘The Coalition is committed to delivering clean, affordable and secure energy for consumers. This includes an important role for biomass power as part of the UK’s energy mix. The new criteria will provide the necessary investor certainty and, crucially, ensure the biomass is delivered in a transparent and sustainable way.’ By 2020 biomass generators of 1MW and above will have to meet a 200kg Co2eq/MWh annual target (72% saving compared to the EU fossil
fuel electricity average). This reduces further to a 180kg Co2eq/MWh from 2025 (75% saving compared to the EU fossil fuel electricity average). Plants producing 1MW and above covers around 98% of all biomass power generation in the UK. The other 2% (those with a capacity between 50kW and 1MW) will be required to report against the criteria, but not to comply with it. Microgeneration (under 50kW) are not included in the scope. In response to the UK government publishing its sustainability standards for energy generation from biomass, Greenpeace UK chief scientist Doug Parr said: ‘The loopholes in these sustainability standards are big enough to drive a logging truck through. Having learnt nothing from the biofuels debacle, the government has ignored the latest scientific research and produced standards that will take a potentially sustainability industry and transform it into one more way to green wash environmental destruction. The climate isn’t going to fall for creative accounting and neither should the public.’ The Renewable Energy Association (REA), on the other hand, rejects the arguments used by green campaigners who claim that biomass power is ‘dirtier than coal’ and
welcomes the new criteria. It believes they will ensure only projects with strong ecological protections and high carbon savings can be supported under the RO and count towards renewable energy targets. ‘It is absolutely right that biomass should only be supported if it can be proven to be good for the environment,’ said REA CEO Nina Skorupska. ‘These criteria enable the industry to do exactly that. They are challenging, but not unattainable. Generators are actually incentivised to overachieve on greenhouse gas savings in order to minimise the risk of non-compliance. ‘These sustainability criteria ensure the UK can reap the benefits of biomass, safe in the knowledge it is making a real dent in our carbon emissions and that ecologically sensitive land is being protected.’ DECC says the announcement will also help bring forward transitional biomass technologies, such as coal-to-biomass conversions which are one of the quickest and most cost-effective ways to help decarbonise the UK’s electricity supply. And, in order to provide certainty to industry investors and developers, there will be no further unilateral changes to the sustainability criteria before April 2027. l
September/October 2013 • 29
Bioenergy regulations Changes to the non-domestic RHI are soon expected, but the industry is disappointed with delays on a decision for expanding the scheme
New emissions criteria for non-domestic RHI
T
he number of biomass boiler projects to be installed under the non-domestic Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) represents over 93% of all installations. This is according to the latest quarterly report for the scheme, published by Ofgem in July. The second largest technology — solar thermal — accounts for just 3.47% of all installs. Since March a further 138.1MW of new capacity has been installed under the non-domestic RHI, a 45% increase over the last quarter, which has seen total installed capacity pass 400MW. The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) recently announced important changes to the RHI nondomestic scheme which were due to be implemented on 24 September — just as Bioenergy Insight had gone to press. These changes and their details include: Air quality compliance: all applicants with biomass burning installations must now submit an RHI emission certificate or an environmental permit with their application to show that the boiler complies with the required air quality limits. Simplification of the metering requirements: only meters necessary for the RHI payment formula will need to be installed. Additionally, heat loss from external pipes can be disregarded in certain circumstances (i.e. if properly insulated). If an applicant can prove that it is problematic to install a heat meter, they will instead be able to submit
a heat loss calculation. Minor regulatory amendments: • The current regulations stipulate heat must be used in a building. The new regulations will allow processes to occur outside of a building in certain circumstances. • Accredited installation will be able to be relocated and continue receiving RHI payments, providing the relocated installation meets the necessary requirements at its new location. Under the new emissions eligibility criteria, those planning to apply for the nondomestic RHI with a biomass boiler (including CHP) on or after 24 September 2013 will require an installation with emission levels no higher than 30g/GJ net heat input for particulate matter and 150g/ GJ for NOx. Proof that the system does not exceed these limits will need to be provided to Ofgem on application. Heating systems manufacturer Viessmann welcomed the forthcoming introduction of air quality emissions limits for all new biomass installations which, according to technical director Christian Engelke, ‘will set a much needed industry benchmark for biomass boiler design and combustion quality, and a foundation for improvement over time. We believe the introduction of these standards will correctly elevate the profile of this
technology to sit alongside other boiler technology types’. In September 2012 DECC published its plans for expanding the existing nondomestic RHI scheme and this included the introduction of additional technologies. On its website DECC says it is ‘progressing with work’ and aims ‘to publish plans for scheme expansion in the autumn alongside the outcomes of the 2013 NonDomestic Tariff Review’. The department’s delay on a decision to expand the scheme for non-domestic projects until this autumn — an entire year since the proposals were first released — has disappointed many, including the Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Association (ADBA), the Combined Heat and Power Association (CHPA) and the Renewable Energy Association (REA). ADBA CEO Charlotte Morton said the delay will make it harder for AD plants to be developed: ‘The announcement of yet another delay for
expanded RHI support is disappointing for AD developers and operators. The RHI is currently well below its projected budget and another delay will simply make it harder for our members to deliver the projects the government wants to see.’ The CHPA also expressed its concern, saying the continuing lack of clarity and certainty is unhelpful for the hundreds of millions of pounds of renewable heat projects currently under development. Tim Rotheray, head of policy and communications at the CHPA, said: ‘It is absolutely crucial the government now provide clarity and certainty. Any further delays to a decision on the expansion of the nondomestic scheme risks hundreds of millions of pounds of renewable heat investments.’ Under the proposals, DECC would introduce a specific tariff for biomass CHP which would receive 4.1p/kWh. l
Time’s up: the industry is eagerly awaiting DECC’s expansion plans, which have taken a year to be announced
30 • September/October 2013
Bioenergy Insight
construction Bioenergy Prince Charles opened the much-anticipated £60 million Helius Corde biomass plant in Scotland this April. Frank Lund of technology supplier AET speaks to Keeley Downey about his company’s role in the project
Cheers to that!
S
cotland’s malt whisky industry is worth around £4 billion (€4.6 billion) a year, generating around 423 million gallons of pot ale and 500,000 tonnes of draff annually. Pot ale, also known as burnt ale or spent wash, is a high protein residue and can be mixed with draff — what is left of the grain after fermentation — to make animal feed. However Helius Energy, a biomass energy development company, believed this solid residue from the whisky process could stretch further and so developed a plant in Rothes which uses the by-products of nearby malt whisky distilleries as feedstock to produce 8.3MW of heat and 8.2MWe of power. The facility was officially opened in April this year by Prince Charles and is today operating at full capacity. The project came to fruition through Helius Corde — a joint venture company established in 2009 between Helius Energy, Rabo Project Equity and the Combination of Rothes Distillers, comprising the major distillers of Speyside in Scotland. The project received financial backing from Rabo Project Equity, Lloyds TSB Bank and the Royal Bank of Scotland, enabling it to progress into the construction stage. The £30 million construction contract for the complete CHP plant, excluding civil works below ground level, was awarded to engineering and contracting company Aalborg Energie Technik (AET). ‘The high overall efficiency of the co-generation plant and our track record with biomass plants were some of the determining factors
Bioenergy Insight
The CHP plant is designed to handle 115,000 tonnes a year of draff
why Helius Corde chose us,’ says Frank Lund of AET. The plant was completed ahead of schedule and took 26 months to design, build, commission and test, plus a further three months for preengineering, but did not come without difficulties. ‘The site is quite small and this created some challenges as we had to design a compact plant. It also challenged the logistics of the installation,’ Lund explains. He continues: ‘The extensive use of 3D design ensured optimal plant layout and successful installation. Our experienced project management meant AET was able to maintain full focus on keeping the time schedule during all the phases of the
project and successfully delivered the plant on time.’ In addition to whisky byproducts, the plant has also been designed to handle woody biomass. It handles a total 115,000 tonnes per year of wet draff and a further 60,000 tonnes of clean, uncontaminated woodchips annually. These uncontaminated woodchips are first screened and then transported into one of the plant’s two 350m3 storage silos. The wet draff (distillers grain) arrives at the site in trucks and is first temporarily stored in a 400m3 silo. It is later pressed, dried and then injected directly into the furnace via the AET dust firing system.
The CHP plant’s technology is based on an AET biomass boiler, steam turbine and condenser, while its combustion system — made up of a dosing bin, rotary valves, spreaders and travelling grate — and biomass boiler ensure high overall efficiency and low emissions. The woodchips are injected into the boiler via the spreader stoker system and the wet draff is dewatered in a screw press and dried in a rotary drum dryer which utilises extraction steam from the turbine before being injected into the boiler via AET’s dust firing system. The 8.2MWe is generated by the steam turbine generator set. In addition to this, turbine extraction steam is delivered to an evaporator plant and 5.4MW turbine extraction steam is used in the draff drier. The Helius Corde plant is the second biomass plant built by AET in the UK; the first is a 15MWe power only plant at Western Wood in Port Talbot, Wales, which has been operating since 2008 utilising clean and recycled wood. As Lund explains: ‘We certainly used our experience from the first UK project during the execution of the Helius Corde project. In the meantime we have also delivered plants in France and Italy which are now operating successfully. Our basic technology — the AET Combustion System and Biomass Boiler — are applied in all our plants and we continue to improve and refine the details of this technology as well as our experience in project execution.’ The facility receives Renewable Obligation Credits (ROCs) under the Renewables Obligation. l
September/October 2013 • 31
Bioenergy profile xxxx Viridis Energy brought its latest wood pellet plant online at the end of August, but producing pellets is just one side of the business as Keeley Downey found out
From coast to coast
V
iridis Energy is the only pellet producing company in North America to own a plant on both the east and west coasts of the continent. In western Canada, in Kelowna, British Columbia, is its 60,000 tonne pellet facility — Okanagan Pellet Co. — which is well positioned to serve the emerging demand for wood pellets in Southeast Asia. And in the province of Nova Scotia, on the east coast, the company has just opened its second facility: a 120,000 tonne per year production plant in Middle Musquodoboit. This latter facility, built in what Viridis Energy’s CFO Michele Rebiere calls a ‘tremendous location’, will enable the company to also take advantage of rapidly growing demand for pellets in Europe. ‘That’s why we acquired the factory,’ Rebiere adds. The plant formerly operated as a wood pellet mill and at that time was the largest wood pellet manufacturing plant in Atlantic Canada. Enligna Canada owned and operated the facility before
its assets were purchased from a bankruptcy by Scotia Atlantic Biomass Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Viridis, for an undisclosed sum in February 2012. Since buying the facility, Viridis assessed the capital needs of the project and then raised the necessary funding to get the plant operational. It was determined small repairs and upgrades had to be done along with the acquisition of virtually all mobile equipment required to run an efficient pellet operation. Viridis then kept the plant dormant until it felt the market was right to begin manufacturing and selling more biomass fuel. ‘There have been some market issues, especially in the UK, that have disrupted the natural progression of price increases that we expected to see,’ Rebiere tells Bioenergy Insight. ‘One of them being the Department of Energy and Climate Change’s (DECC) review of long-term support for renewable energy, specifically biomass. The other is the closure of RWE’s plant in Tilbury. These two events have certainly caused some disruption to
32 • September/October 2013
the growth of the market.’ Nevertheless, Rebiere believes there is still significant demand for biomass fuel coming from Europe, partly because of the ‘unexpected growth’ of the residential heating market, particularly in Italy and Austria. As a result the competition for pellets in Europe continues to support ‘healthy’ prices for North American exporters and Viridis sees this as a good a time as any to get its latest project up and running. Subsequently DECC announced long-term support for sustainable biomass and other low carbon generation. ‘The plant is now open as of the end of August,’ Rebiere divulges. ‘We’re shipping several truckloads a day to the storage facilities at the Port of Halifax and will continue to do so every day until we load our first ship in December.’ More sides to the story Like the Nova Scotia plant, Viridis also acquired the British Columbia facility before it. ‘We look at the cost per tonne ratio for all our investments. We were successful in the two
acquisitions that we did in Canada and bought those at a lower cost per tonne compared to a new build. That is the economic model we review,’ Rebiere explains With that in mind, Viridis is unlikely to build any new facilities in the near future, but Rebiere confirms the company is keen to ‘do additional acquisitions’ in 2014. An expansion could already be on the cards at the Nova Scotia plant, too. ‘That will depend on the availability of feedstock, an interest by the province and industry, and a willingness to support the wood pellet sector, but we want to expand as much as we can in Middle Musquodoboit,’ she adds. But manufacturing wood pellets is just one side of the business; Viridis also aggregates and brokers additional third party pellets and wishes to expand this part of its company significantly over the next year. Today it works with four different manufacturers and is looking to grow this to around 12. Rebiere says: ‘Our intention is to handle 1 million tonnes a year of pellets in total. Of that we would like
Bioenergy Insight
profile Bioenergy
Viridis opened its 120,000 tonne pellet plant in Nova Scotia at the end of August
to manufacture half and aggregate or broker the other half. We are continuing to look for sources of additional manufacturing plants.’ Securing supply Viridis is also studying the feasibility of trading biomass fuel between the US and Europe. Canada currently exports approximately 90% of its domestically produced wood pellets overseas as the local market is taking time to develop. However, regulations that were implemented this time last year could see things change in the coming years. Regulations for reducing GHG emissions from coalderived power were released in September 2012, stipulating that fossil fuel-based power plants cannot emit more than 420 tonnes of GHGs per GWh of electricity generated. This, coupled with a revised rule that coal-fired power plants must be shut down after 50 years of operation, will create opportunities to grow Canada’s pellet industry because the fossil burning plants must adopt one of two approaches in order to reduce emissions: implement carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology or co-fire with biomass, natural gas or a combination of both. Referring to these recent changes in regulation, Rebiere says: ‘We believe that over the next five years there will be demand for approximately 5 to 6 million tonnes a year of wood pellets in Canada,
Bioenergy Insight
primarily for commercial use. That is considerably more than the country produces so we do expect there will be a point in time when Canada will not be interested in exporting the majority of its pellets as it does today, but we’re not there yet. ‘Many European utilities are looking to sign long-term offtake agreements with Canadian producers and I’m sure this is one of the factors motivating this behaviour. Once our domestic industry develops, the feasibility of getting pellets out of Canada will be very low.’ One company that has secured a pellet supply agreement with Viridis, albeit just a two-year one, is Ekman and Co. — a trading house and wholesaler of forest products. The two companies entered into an agreement this July. Under the contract, Ekman serves as Viridis’ worldwide agent to market its entire wood pellet production. ‘Ekman will be handling our total 240,000 tonnes of pellets for the next two years,’ explains Rebiere. ‘We will assess how that goes and we may either renew and expand that agreement or we may look at one of the eight to 10-year agreements that have been presented to us by the utilities.’ The pellets made at Viridis’ new plant will use around 200,000 tonnes of both softwood and hardwood. With regards to finalising other agreements, such as feedstock supply contracts, Rebiere adds: ‘We really just started that work within the last two
to three months. We are still contracting some small lumber yards and sawmills but, for the most part, many of the suppliers are those that have been supplying this plant for many years in the former Enligna days. We’ve just reenergised these agreements.’ Viridis will be exporting its pellets from the Port of Halifax, an advantageous export facility located around 90km from the Nova Scotia factory. It is a well-serviced, deepwater port which remains accessible all year round. Helping others While Viridis’ pellet plant is well placed on Canada’s east coast to serve Europe, many of the nation’s wood pellet manufacturers are — counterintuitively — exporting from the western side of Canada. This involves transporting the pellets around 16,000km from British Columbia at the Port of Vancouver, through the Panama and over to Rotterdam or Italy. Rebiere, who is also on the executive board of the Wood Pellet Association of Canada, says this is because there is about 500,000 tonnes of unused/unproduced capacity as manufacturers in eastern Canada are not producing to their maximum nameplate capacity ‘as Europe is not perceived as a strong enough market’. To help change
this, the association has started an initiative to try and help eastern Canadian pellet producers export their products to Europe. Viridis is also working to aid trade from eastern Canada to Europe. Rebiere explains: ‘Viridis is going to try and help these Canadian producers by taking advantage of our contract with Ekman, and our logistics knowledge, to aggregate and broker pellets from some of that unused capacity in eastern Canada into Europe. For example, in addition to our Ekman contract, we can expand that to 300,000 or even 500,000 tonnes and provide additional pellets from other providers. ‘This is a great solution for some of those smaller plants that don’t feel they have the staff, time or resources to get that product to port or get it across the border into the hands of other customers,’ she adds. It would certainly seem Viridis has a successful business model in place: expanding its production capacity through acquisitions is saving capital and freeing up time, allowing the company to grow its aggregate and brokering activities. This side of the business, in the future, could help Canada remain a key pellet exporter, at least until the nation’s own hunger for wood fuel outweighs that of Europe. l
The first load of pellets will be exported from the Port of Halifax in December
September/October 2013 • 33
Bioenergy profile Harvest Power, taking its inspiration from Germany, now has three biogas plants under its belt and hopes to carve out an organic waste-to-energy market in North America…one Energy Garden at a time
Canada’s gardens of opportunity
T
by Keeley Downey
here are over 6,800 anaerobic digesters in operation in Germany, producing 17TWh of renewable energy while stimulating €5.9 billion in annual revenue. Projections for 2020 show rapid growth in the nation, with more than 25,000 digesters, 76TWh and €26.2 billion in annual revenue planned. North America pales in comparison with fewer than 200 digesters on the continent. Renewable energy resources account for 11.1% of Germany’s energy portfolio (the remaining 88.9% is made up of fossil fuels). While wind and solar contribute to this (1.5% and 0.9% respectively), biomass provides the majority of Germany’s renewable energy sources portfolio, accounting for 7.9%. From dream to reality Established in 2008 Harvest Power, a developer of organic waste recycling facilities, has a vision to re-create Germany’s success story in North America — a continent where the concept of creating renewable energy from organic waste has not yet really caught on — through the development of ‘Energy Gardens’. The company is currently preparing to open a multimillion dollar Energy Garden in the Canadian city of London, Ontario, bringing its total number of AD plants to
Using organic waste for energy has not yet caught on in North America
three (two in Canada and one in Florida, US). It also operates around 40 composting facilities throughout North America. ‘We call our facilities Energy Gardens because they produce energy and the fertiliser by-product from this process goes back onto the land, completing the circle,’ explains Paul Sellew, founder and CEO of Harvest Power. ‘From a technical standpoint they are AD facilities.’ The London project was purchased from a local developer back in October 2010 as at the time it was unable to ‘move forward’ with the development. The acquisition — funded through a combination
34 • September/October 2013
of debt and equity — enabled Harvest Power to design, build and operate the 6MW combined heat and power (CHP) facility, for which the Ontario Power Authority has signed a 20-year power purchase agreement. This is enough to benefit 1,400 homes and it also produces 5,000 tonnes a year of organic fertiliser. Following the acquisition of the project, Harvest Power commenced construction work in April last year. ‘There are still a few things that have to be completed but we’re in operations right now,’ Sellew tells Bioenergy Insight. Built on 10 acres of land, the plant handles 70,000
tonnes a year of industrial and commercial food waste, with the ability to expand beyond this in the future. ‘We source all of our waste from around the greater Toronto region,’ says Sellew. ‘We have a number of contracts with large food waste generators; we either collect the waste ourselves or other trucking companies pick up the material and deliver to our Energy Garden. We then process it, remove any contaminants, slurry it and put it into the AD system.’ Silencing the sceptics With a new organic waste processing project comes
Bioenergy Insight
profile Bioenergy
Specially engineered gastight doors at Harvest Power’s Energy Garden in Richmond
scepticism from the local neighbourhood, but Sellew says Harvest Power has received much support from within the community. One factor that may have contributed to this is its state-of-the-art solution for controlling odour. ‘When trucks come into the facility, they reverse into a holding area that is completely enclosed. The facility is under “negative air” meaning air is sucked into the building when the doors are closed, to the open receiving area to prevent any discharge,’ Sellew explains. ‘This contaminated air is then treated using biofiltration technology, completely de-odourising any potential smell from the facility. It is a well-proven technology driven by microorganisms; it achieves 99% removal of odours.’ The odour control technology installed at the plant was supplied by Biorem, while GE Jenbacher manufactured the engine and Global Water Engineering carried out the construction of the plant. This ‘low solids’ plant (referred to as which because the substrates being handled are pumpable) in London uses a wet digestion process,
Bioenergy Insight
the opposite to Harvest Power’s newly inaugurated Richmond, British Columbia plant which is a high solids AD project. Harvest Power employs a flexible approach, using different technologies in order to extract the maximum value from waste streams in a certain area. Sellew explains: ‘The Richmond facility borders Vancouver so it handles organics such as leaves, brush and grass mixed with food waste that is collected at the residential level. It’s
a high solids system so we move that material around with a wheel loader; we’re not pumping it because it’s a stackable substrate — that’s the key difference.’ This project was completed and entered operations around five months ago; its official opening ceremony took place in mid-September. It is a smaller AD plant, built on 2 acres of land and generating 2.5MW of energy from 40,000 tonnes of food and yard waste, in addition to 20,000 tonnes of compost. BC Hydro acquires all the electricity produced on site under a power purchase agreement. The Energy Garden operates in conjunction with Harvest Power’s adjacent composting operation which processes 200,000 tonnes of green waste per year. From start to finish There is no doubt Harvest Power is making progress towards achieving its goals with three organic waste Energy Gardens already under its belt. Nevertheless, the difficulties associated with developing such a project remain. ‘These projects are complicated,’ Sellew reveals. ‘You need to acquire the land and obtain all the permits — both on a local and federal level. The power purchase agreement with
a utility company needs to be arranged, as does the connection into the grid. Next you must procure all the organic feedstock from different waste generators and arrange transportation before building the facility, commissioning and then moving to full operations. That is where we are right now with our London facility.’ The Harvest Power CEO sees some areas of North America adopting renewable technologies and his company is certainly benefitting from ‘aggressive’ renewable policies adopted in some of Canada’s provinces such as Ontario and British Columbia. ‘Germany has opened up a whole new marketplace of opportunities that has driven its renewable energy industry and created federal policies that benefit those who invest in generating renewable electricity. North America is not there yet and I don’t see it getting there in the near future,’ he adds. ‘What we’re doing is utilising organic waste where we get a tipping fee — a source of revenue that makes the projects work economically. Some provinces such as Ontario and British Columbia have adopted very aggressive policies where you get a good price for the electricity, which is important.’ l
Harvest Power’s AD plant and composting facility in Richmond
September/October 2013 • 35
Bioenergy canada As Ontario prepares to free itself from coal and new regulations look to be promoting domestic growth opportunities, is Canada ready to finally kick its fossil fuel addiction? Keeley Downey finds out
Breaking the mould
R
Source: OPG
enewable energy capacity in Canada is expected to grow from 86GW in 2012 to 108GW in 2018, according to the International Energy Agency’s second annual Medium-Term Renewable Energy Market report. Within this, bioenergy will grow from 1.2GW to 3GW in 2018. Ontario, Alberta and Quebec are expected to be at the forefront of this growth. Ontario A decade ago Ontario — the second largest and most populous province, and once Canada’s largest consumer of coal — fired 25% of its grid from coal. By the end of 2014 the region will become the first jurisdiction in North America to shut down almost all of its coalfiring infrastructure after the provincial government adopted an aggressive renewables policy several years ago. Five coal-fired power plants were operating in Ontario in 2003, totalling 19 units. Today 11 of these units have already been closed down and that will reach 17 by the end of this year. Past 2014 there will be no coal-derived electricity generated in the province. Shawn Cronkwright, director of renewables at the Ontario Power Authority (OPA), tells Bioenergy Insight: ‘As part of closing down coal, we have to replace those supply resources with others. Renewable energy has played a very large part in this.’ When it resumes operations in 2014, Ontario Power Generation’s (OPG) Atikokan generating station will be
Atikokan’s storage system will be able to handle 90,000 tonnes of biomass
the largest 100% capacity biomass-fuelled power plant in North America. The former coal burning plant, which first opened in 1983, was shuttered last September and is currently being transformed into a biomass and wood pellet burning facility. When it re-opens in the middle of next year it will generate 200MW a year of renewable power. Work on the $170 million (€125 million) conversion is underway and is reported to have reached the halfway mark. The company was not available for comment but says on its website that wood pellet biomass was chosen as the preferred fuel ‘because the energy content is very similar to the lignite coal that Atikokan was designed to burn and much of the existing equipment can be adapted. OPG will buy wood pellet biomass fuel through
36 • September/October 2013
a competitive process and will require the wood fibre is sourced from sustainably managed forests’. The project also includes the construction of a biomass storage and handling system for up to 90,000 tonnes a year. But while a conversion to solely firing biomass is a solution suited to the Atikokan station, this option is not feasible for all projects. ‘It’s not a case of one-size-fits-all and we’re looking at what makes sense for each facility,’ Cronkwright highlights. ‘For instance, in Toronto, one facility was closed down and demolished in 2005, and there are another two in southern Ontario scheduled to be shut down by the end of the year. Of the remaining two stations in the north of the province, Atikokan is being converted to biomass only and assessments are being carried out at the second as to whether
it’s feasible to convert it to natural gas. We just have a few more steps to go.’ Since 2005 the Ontario government has invested C$25 billion (€18 billion) in renewables, Cronkwright reveals, adding: ‘It’s important to note that we rely on the private sector; we’re seeing a lot of facilities being designed and built by the private sector who are buying into the province.’ FIT review The province’s bioenergy industry received another boost in August when the OPA announced changes to its Feed-in Tariff (FIT) pricing. Following a review, farm-based biogas projects generating between 100 and 250kW will receive over 13% more under the updated scheme, while other biogas projects will also benefit from a 2.5% rise. All
Bioenergy Insight
canada Bioenergy
Bioenergy Insight
FIT price schedule changes Renewable fuel
Project size Tranche*
26 August ‘13 Price (C$/kWh)
5 April ‘12 Price (C$/kWh)
% change
≤10kW
39.6
54.9
-27.9%
> 10 ≤ 100kW
34.5
54.8
-37.0%
> 100kW
32.9
53.9
-39.0%
(non-rooftop)
≤10kW
29.1
44.5
-34.6%
>10kW
28.8 38.8 -25.8%
Solar (PV) (rooftop)
Solar (PV)
On-shore wind
All sizes
11.5
11.5
0%
Waterpower
All sizes
14.8
13.1
13.0%
Biomass
All sizes
15.6
13.8
13.0%
On-farm biogas
≤100kW
26.5
19.5
35.9%
>100kW ≤250kW
21.0
18.5
13.5%
Biogas
All sizes
16.4
16.0
2.5%
Landfill gas
All sizes
7.7
11.1
-31%
Table 1
The plant came online in January this year, following a one year construction cycle, and was officially opened in June. It is Energy Ottawa’s second joint venture with Integrated Gas Recovery Services and together they also own and operate the recently expanded 6MW Trail Road landfill gas-to-energy plant in the city of Ottawa. Energy Ottawa’s latest C$13.5 million landfill gasto-energy project, which was financed through a private lender, is located at the Laflèche Environmental site, on which there are currently 2.6 million tonnes of landfill waste in place. Around 1,200 cubic feet per minute of biogas is extracted from this — enough to operate four GE Jenbacher engines and generate 4.2MW of energy, while preventing more than 100,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) from being released into the atmosphere. As Clarke explains: ‘In terms of carbon emissions, methane is 20 times more harmful to the environment than carbon; it’s beneficial to be utilising
it. In Ontario we have to flare methane so why not harness the energy and use it to generate electricity?’ Grappling with garbage While harnessing gases released from decomposing waste has its environmental benefits, operating a renewable energy facility on an active landfill can also be challenging. Clarke describes such projects as ‘tricky’, especially when the heavy duty compacting machinery come into contact with the network of gas collection pipes running underneath the site. ‘That’s a challenge,’ he says. ‘There is the potential for compactors to hit a well or break one of the collection pipes. But we have a partnership with the landfill owner and we work together to minimise the impact and damage to the gas collection infrastructure.’ For example, the compacting vehicles feature an in-built GPS system installed with Energy Ottawa’s underground network. ‘They know where
our wells and collection piping are but accidents do happen of course.’ Another, far more widereaching, issue is Ontario’s current battle with its growing volume of waste. The province is heavily against incineration but also refuses to grant new licenses to landfill operators. ‘This issue is coming to a bit of a crux,’ says Clarke. ‘Moose Creek was the last site to be granted a license and the sites that have licenses are filling up. There’s a lot of resistance to incineration but they are not prepared to do the more traditional land filling either. As a result some jurisdictions are now exporting waste to the US; states such as New York and Michigan are taking waste from Ontario, but that’s not a sustainable long-term plan. We don’t know what the alternative is and so it’s going to be interesting.’ In addition to establishing more projects across Ontario, Clarke says that Energy Ottawa is also keen to pursue opportunities outside of the province, but it is hesitant: ‘The challenge there is other provinces aren’t as
September/October 2013 • 37
Source: Ontario Power Authority
biomass-based projects will also see higher rates with an increase from 13.8 cents last year to 15.6 cents per kWh. ‘The most recent tariff schedule was published in August and the first opportunity for interested parties to apply is targeted for November. In the case of bioenergy, we’ve increased the prices and made adjustments that should encourage a greater participation in the bioenergy space,’ says Cronkwright. ‘We always strive to reach a balance between providing value for the energy ratepayer while the developer receives a fair return. The biogas sector has argued for a while this balance may not be quite right. We have made some adjustments and think these should provide a fairer opportunity for folks looking to develop those projects.’ However, the OPA’s alterations to its FIT scheme will not have come as good news to everyone. As Table 1 shows, landfill gas prices have declined and projects will receive 31% less going forward. One company that will be affected by this is Energy Ottawa, a subsidiary of Hydro Ottawa, which has recently opened a new landfill gas-toenergy project in Ontario’s Moose Creek. But with a long-term power purchase agreement already in place that will see the OPA acquire electricity generated at this site, Hydro Ottawa’s COO of generation Greg Clarke remains positive. ‘Landfill gas is one of the renewable sources Ontario is interested in. We signed a 20-year power purchase agreement with the OPA and that is going to power around 4,000 homes,’ he says. ‘The FIT programme has really stimulated the industry; it’s been positive and there are lots of developments going on. In terms of landfill gas opportunities, we’re hoping to secure other projects around the province.’
Bioenergy canada well developed when it comes to offering power purchase agreements and these landfill gas-to-energy projects are dependent on finding someone to buy the power on a long-term basis. Consolidation With the strong backing of its provincial government, Ontario is undoubtedly one of the nation’s success stories when it comes to slashing GHGs through the use of renewables. Canada’s latest regulations aimed at lowering its GHG output from coal-fired electricity were announced in September last year. Under these policies, which will come into effect in 2015, coal plants can emit a maximum of 420 tonnes of GHGs per GWh of electricity generated — compared to 1,050 tonnes which is now typical for coal power. While these regulations sound tough, they only apply to newly constructed power plants or those that are at least 50 years old. Since the regulations do not apply to most of Canada’s existing coal power fleet, they will have no real impact on its emissions. So is Ontario just a silver lining around Canada’s coal-coloured cloud? Gordon Murray, CEO of the Wood Pellet Association of Canada, thinks so. ‘I’m not happy about these regulations at all,’ he says. ‘So far our government hasn’t taken CO2 reduction seriously. While it has publicly stated that Canada will reduce its GHG emissions by 17%, it has no plan to achieve this. Moreover, most people know Canada withdrew from the Kyoto protocol. This is a national embarrassment; these new coal power regulations are all for show.’ And a lack of governmental support at the federal level is not all Canada has to worry about; only 10% of its 2 million tonnes a year of wood pellet exports are being shipped
from the eastern regions. This can be attributed to the east’s unconsolidated industry of smaller pellet plants (between a quarter to a third smaller on average) which are scattered along the Saint Lawrence River. ‘The economies of scale are not great for the pellet plants in eastern Canada,’ aads Murray. ‘In the west, all the operators have cooperated and they have created strong economies of scale by shipping into a single terminal in Vancouver. This enables lower port handling fees and they are able to fill large ships frequently to keep product moving. Port storage and handling costs are thus more affordable than if they were each
as much as 1 million tonnes a year from the east’. West is best For now, at least, the majority of Canada’s wood pellet exports (which account for around 90% of total production) will continue to be shipped from the west, and the market is showing no signs of slowing down. Between 2010 and 2012 wood pellet production in the nation rose by 33% after the number of plants grew from 33 to 42, according to a report filed with the USDA Foreign Agriculture Service’s Global Agriculture Information Network. Pinnacle Renewable Energy, a Canadian pellet producer with six factories across British Columbia, is in the process
the catchment area for a great deal of fibre that is underutilised right now.’ The new Westview Terminal will receive Pinnacle’s wood pellets via rail, initially with around 25 railcars expected to deliver to the site each day. It will feature seven storage silos which will be built in two stages. Phase one includes four 12,500 tonne silos with a total capacity of 50,000 and phase two includes building a further three silos with a total 90,000 tonnes of storage capacity. Both supramax- and panamax-type vessels will be accommodated for. The project ‘began in earnest’ towards the beginning of this year and Pinnacle expects the terminal to be operational and loading
Canada’s oil and coal industries create over C$100 billion a year in revenue
operating independently. The eastern Canadian producers need to learn from this.’ With this in mind the Wood Pellet Association of Canada is trying to consolidate the industry in the east by working with all parties, such as producers, terminals and ports, in the hope of achieving larger volumes of pellets to pass through the ports. Murray believes that ‘in the next three to four years there is the potential to consolidate
38 • September/October 2013
of developing its own export terminal at the Port of Prince Rupert. It currently only uses a terminal located in Vancouver. Speaking to Bioenergy Insight Pinnacle’s Vaughan Bassett, VP of sales and logistics, reveals: ‘We want to expand our business and therefore we need additional terminal facilities. We have a strategic preference for two export facilities and Prince Rupert was an obvious choice because it’s
vessels by November. At the beginning of August the company announced it entered into an agreement with Metro Ports to operate the Westview Terminal. Metro Ports is a wholly owned subsidiary of Nautilus International Holding. Leading by example While British Columbia’s domestic demand for wood pellets might be fairly small, North America’s
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largest university has some pretty big ideas. Built on 1,000 acres of land and home to 80,000 students, staff and residents, the University of British Columbia (UBC) is actively seeking ways of reducing its GHG emissions and fossil fuel consumption. UBC more than complies with the province’s Climate Action Plan and has also established its own, more stringent, one. Under its independent plan, the university aims to reduce its GHGs from 2007 levels by: 33% by 2015; 67% by 2020; and by 100% by 2050. In order to reach these targets, UBC partnered with Nexterra and General Electric to install a C$28.5 million bioenergy R&D facility onsite. The biomass-fuelled heat and power system generates syngas for burning to produce steam, or it can be conditioned to create ultra clean syngas that is injected into an internal combustion engine to generate electricity. The technology was officially launched last September and today burns 13,000 bone dry tonnes of clean woody biomass, supplied by a local wood-fuel aggregator, to provide 1.9MW of electricity and 3.8 MW of heat to UBC’s Vancouver campus. ‘We met our Kyoto targets about five years ahead of schedule and since then we’ve established our own targets,’ says Brent Sauder, director of strategic partnerships at UBC. ‘There’s no point just saying we should worry about climate change and GHGs; we must show how to act. We’re running a city here and we are committed to these targets. We have a responsibility to walk the talk.’ Can a leopard change its spots? Canada has been exporting almost all of its pellet capacity overseas since 1998 (domestic consumption is only about 175,000 tonnes a year), however this percentage has been declining in recent
Bioenergy Insight
years and in 2012 the US overtook Canada as the North American pellet export leader. According to the USDA Foreign Agriculture Service report, domestic consumption reached 233,000 tonnes last year and could increase to 690,000 tonnes in 2014. Such positive figures are hard to ignore and hints to the fact that Canada’s new coal regulations could be creating opportunities for the domestic pellet market, despite disappointing many in the industry when initially released. But Murray remains sceptical. ‘We were really excited when the coal power regulations first came into force last year, thinking they would create a great opportunity for wood pellets to replace coal. But, after studying them and seeing the reaction of the coal power companies, we are sceptical that these regulations will have any effect whatsoever.’ It also cannot be forgotten that Canada is a fossil fuel producing nation. Its oil and coal industries create more than C$100 billion a year in revenue, and it is the second largest GHG emitter behind only the US. Releasing 23.2 tonnes of GHGs per capita, the nation’s emissions are higher than China and India, who emit 5.8 and 2.1 tonnes per capita, respectively. ‘There is just such a fossil culture in Canada and anything that attempts to reduce emissions is really not taken seriously,’ Murray notes. Canada’s coal utilities seem conservative and appear unlikely to make a decision any time soon on whether they will meet the new regulations or just shut down. For now, then, the country must focus on tapping into its domestic heat market, which could see each household burn up to 6 tonnes of pellets a year if more efforts were made to educate consumers on modern-day pellet appliances. l
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Bioenergy plant update
Plant update – Canada Biomass Secure Power
Location Port Allen, British Columbia Alternative fuel Wood pellets Capacity 4 million tonnes a year Construction / expansion / Construction acquisition Project start date March 2013 (announced) Investment $400 million (€300 million) Complete Senergy Systems Location Grand Falls, New Brunswick Alternative fuel Biogas Feedstock Organic wastes Construction / expansion / Construction acquisition Project start date February 2013
Innovente
Location
Saint-Patrice-de-Beaurivage, Quebec Alternative fuel Combined heat and power Capacity 4.6MW Feedstock Organic waste Construction / expansion / Construction acquisition Completion date Mid-2013 Investment Investment Québec provided $5million (€3.7 million) for the acquisition and construction of new assets and equipment
Emera Energy Location Alternative fuel Feedstock Construction / expansion / acquisition Project start date Completion date Investment Comment
Millar Western Forest Products Nova Scotia Renewable power Biomass Emera Energy has acquired the Brooklyn Power plant December 2012 (announced) July 2013 $25 million (€18.7 million) Emera bought the plant after its power purchase agreement with Nova Scotia Power was terminated
Location Alternative fuel
Alberta Biogas used to generate renewable energy Capacity 5.2MW Feedstock Pulp waste Construction / expansion / Construction acquisition Project start date September 2012 (announced) Completion date Late 2013 Investment $42 million (€31.5 million)
Energy Ottawa Location Moose Creek, Ontario Alternative fuel Biogas Capacity 4.2MW Feedstock Landfill gas Construction / expansion / Construction acquisition Project start date 2012 Completion date January 2013 (official opening: June 2013) Investment C$13.5 million (€9.7 million) Harvest Power Location Richmond, British Columbia Alternative fuel Biogas Capacity 6MW of combined heat and power Feedstock 70,000 tonnes of waste food Construction / expansion / Construction acquisition Designer / builder Gicon Project start date Mid-2012 Completion date September 2013 Investment Financing was supported by $4 million (€3 million) from Natural Resources Canada and a $1.5 million contribution from BC Bioenergy Network
40 • September/October 2013
Mustus Energy Location Alternative fuel Capacity Feedstock
Alberta Renewable power 41.5MW Biomass such as residual wood from aspen trees processed by local lumber mills Construction / expansion / Construction acquisition Project start date September 2012 Investment $170 million (€127.6 million)
Nova Scotia Power Location Port Hawkesbury, Nova Scotia Alternative fuel Renewable power Capacity 60MW Feedstock Biomass Construction / expansion / Construction acquisition Completion date July 2013 Investment $213 million (€160 million)
Bioenergy Insight
plant update Bioenergy Ontario Power Generation Location Alternative fuel Capacity Feedstock Construction / expansion / acquisition
Project start date Comment
Sanimax
Ontario, Ottawa Renewable power 200MW Wood pellets Converting its Atikokan Generating Station from a coalburning plant to one that uses wood pellets September 2012 (taken offline for conversion) OPG awarded wood pellet supply contracts to Atikokan Renewable Fuels (45,000 tonnes) and Resolute Forest Products Canada (45,000 tonnes)
Plasco Energy Group Location Ottawa, Ontario Alternative fuel Renewable energy Feedstock 150,000 tonnes a year of MSW Construction / expansion / Construction acquisition Project start date Second half 2013 Completion date 2015 Investment $250 million (€187.7 million)
Location Alternative fuel Feedstock
Lévis, Quebec Renewable energy Waste from the cattle industry, including carcases Construction / expansion / Construction acquisition Project start date May 2013 (announced) Investment $7.6 million (€5.7 million), funded by the federal government Comment Sanimax claims the plant will also reduce carbon dioxide emissions by around 22,000 tonnes annually Viridis Energy Location Alternative fuel Capacity Feedstock Construction / expansion / acquisition Project start date Completion date Investment
Middle Musquodoboit, Nova Scotia Wood pellets 120,000 tonnes a year Waste wood Viridis Energy’s subsidiary Scotia Atlantic Biomass acquired the plant from Enligna Canada February 2012 August 2013 Undisclosed
*This list contains major plant projects in Canada, including the information available at the time of printing. If you would like to update or list any additional plants in future issues please email keeley@bioenergy-news.com
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Bioenergy Insight
September/October 2013 • 41
Bioenergy sustainability What is the FSC certification and what are the benefits? SGS’s Gerrit Marais explains
The FSC certification revealed
T
he Forest Stewardship Council’s (FSC) international labelling scheme for forest products provides a credible guarantee that the product comes from a well-managed forest. Founded in 1993, it serves to support environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial and economically viable management of the world’s forests. Forest products carrying the FSC logo have been independently certified as coming from forests which meet the internationally recognised FSC principles and criteria of forest stewardship. The primary objective is to provide the marketplace with an incentive for good forest management: the consumer is guaranteed the product came from a forest that has been evaluated and certified as being managed according to agreed social, economic and environmental standards. Accreditation of certification bodies Accredited certification bodies are required to evaluate all forests aiming for certification according to the FSC principles and criteria, and the FSC has developed rigorous procedures and standards to evaluate whether organisations can provide an independent and competent forest evaluation
service. Their performance is also closely monitored by the FSC. Products originating from forests certified by these accredited certification bodies are eligible to carry the FSC logo providing the chain of custody has been reviewed. Chain of custody is the process by which the source of a timber product is verified. In order for the products originating from certified sources to be eligible to carry the FSC trademark, the timber must be tracked from the forest through all the steps of the production process until it reaches the end user. Only when this tracking has been independently verified is the product eligible to carry the FSC logo. The certification process The FSC forest management certification process is initiated through preassessments. This is intended as a certification gap analysis, providing the applicant with information related to the areas of concern that will need to be addressed before they are assessed for certification. This is followed by a main assessment against the FSC standard. This process includes an opportunity for stakeholders to provide input into the checklist that is used in the assessment, as well as comment on the management of the forest that
is being considered for certification. After certification the forest is visited a least once a year to follow up on any outstanding matters and to ensure that there is continued compliance with the standard. Throughout the life of a five-year certificate all stakeholders have the right to comment on the policies and management activities of the certified forest. The benefits of forest certification The FSC certification has contributed enormously towards responsible forest management throughout the world. The forest certification has opened the doors to the public making environmentally informed decisions in their purchases, which impacts the way forestry and other industries operate and consider the environment. While there are many critics of commercial forestry, it is providing an essential product that can be produced in a responsible and accountable manner. World forestry has set the scene and many other industries, such as palm oil, soya bean and sugar, are now following suit. l For more information:
This article was written by Gerrit Marais, Qualifor programme director, SGS’s international forest certification programme, gerrit.marais@sgs.com
Ensuring continued compliance with the FSC standard: the 10 principles 1. Compliance with legal and regulatory requirements and the FSC principles and criteria. 2. Respect for tenure and use rights of land and responsible processes to ensure this. 3. The legal and customary rights of indigenous peoples to own, use and manage their lands shall be recognised and respected. 4. Assurance of good community relations and workers’ rights, health and safety. 5. Efficient use of the forests’ multiple products and services
to ensure economic viability and environmental and social benefits. 6. Mitigation of environmental impacts and the conservation of biological diversity. Control of chemical use, the use of exotic species and forest conversion. 7. A management plan shall be written, implemented and kept up-todate. The long-term objectives of management shall be clearly stated. The forestry enterprise is also required to make publically available a summary of their
forest management plan. 8. Monitoring to assess the condition of the forest, yields of forest products, chain of custody, management activities and social and environmental impacts. 9. Management activities in high conservation value forests shall maintain or enhance the attributes. which define such forests. 10. Plantations should complement the management of, reduce pressures on, and promote the restoration and conservation of natural forests.
The certification process assesses operations, documentation and staff and worker performance against these principles. Any non-conformities identified during an assessment is recorded as a Corrective Action Request. The forest is then given time (depending on the significance of the non-conformity) to correct this. A complete reassessment is undertaken every five years.
42 • September/October 2013
Bioenergy Insight
sustainability Bioenergy With the UK expected to be at the forefront of European wood pellet imports, where does the government stand on sustainable biomass?
Developing biomass power sustainability compliance criteria
T
he UK government has given mixed signals recently in relation to its support for biomass power. This includes the exclusion of dedicated biomass from its list of supported technologies under the new contract for different support mechanisms (designed to replace the Renewables Obligation (RO) which will close to applications in 2017) and the 400MW capacity cap which has been imposed on support payments protected at current rates for dedicated biomass power-only generation under the existing RO. In contrast, the government’s own Bioenergy Strategy identifies that bioenergy has an important role to play in helping the UK meet its renewable energy targets, and continues to favour coal-to-biomass conversions as a quick and cost-effective means of decarbonising UK electricity generation. These plant conversions will account for the bulk of UK biomass demand over the next decade. Based on the biomass demand for plants currently generating, and those in development, industry analysis by consultancy firm NNFCC indicates that UK biomass demand is anticipated to rise to around 11 million oven dried tonnes (ODT) in 2015
Bioenergy Insight
and to around 18 million ODT in 2020, when additional generating sets have been converted to biomass by the leading conversion projects. Dedicated biomass could add a further 3 million ODT to these figures. The vast majority of this demand will be met from imported wood pellets, primarily sourced from North America. Recent figures published by the European Biomass Association suggest European wood pellet import as a whole is expected to reach 6 million tonnes in 2013; the UK will be at the forefront of such imports. This reflects
a European trend where biomass pellet imports are growing at a faster pace than domestic production. UK biomass power generators are making efforts to secure these wood supplies and the long-term agreements required to satisfy their financial investors. Large-scale biomass converters like Drax Power, which alone will require around 7 million tonnes of biomass by 2017, have invested heavily in pellet mills in the US and associated port infrastructure. Drax has also designed and built new rail trucks to speed transport logistics from UK ports. The opportunity to
supply UK power generators is recognised in the US and Canadian forestry sectors and has been cited as the driver for record exports of wood pellets from North America (1 million tonnes in the first quarter of 2013 alone, compared to 750,000 tonnes annually just four years ago). Such large-scale developments have unsurprisingly raised questions about the sustainability credentials of biomass sources, particularly those shipped over large distances. Such concerns are clearly recognised and the UK government is only prepared to support use of biomass that: • Delivers genuine and cost-effective carbon reductions meeting UK carbon emissions objectives • Minimises impacts on other sectors that might otherwise use the resource • Can be sustainably sourced, protecting environmentally sensitive land types and, with respect to the first point, preserves highcarbon soil stocks and forest carbon stocks. In support of this the UK government published its response this August to a consultation on proposals for implementing mandatory sustainability criteria for solid biomass and biogas, which biomass power generators
September/October 2013 • 43
Bioenergy sustainability will report against from April 2014. Stations above 1MW will be mandated to comply with these criteria from April 2015. These build on the EU Renewable Energy Directive (RED) sustainability criteria for biofuels which the European Commission is also using as a baseline to develop its own proposed sustainability criteria for solid biomass, which are expected to be published later this year. In general the industry has welcomed the certainty provided via publication of these long-awaited decisions and the fact the criteria now reflect some of the issues industry brought to the attention of the UK government to ensure the criteria were workable. However, there are other areas where further detail is still required. The ‘land criteria’ of the RED prohibit sourcing from protected land of high biodiversity value (including primary forest), wetlands, peatlands or continuously forested land. However, this fails to recognise the role and value of sustainable forest practices. In the UK, virgin timberderived biomass complying with accepted sustainable forest management criteria, or based on those within the UK Timber Procurement Policy and supplying appropriate evidence, will be seen to comply with the land criteria. Other biomass (excluding wastes) will have to demonstrate compliance or be established under a recognised support scheme. The UK government intends to publish further guidance on how definitions of sustainable forest management will apply later in the year. Mass balance approaches to material handling will be permitted to ease supply logistics. Generators using virgin wood will still be required to report on the land use at source, the origin and the wood types used, so that data can be tracked on the characteristics and source of UK wood biomass
New-build dedicated biomass
All other biomass power
Cap on any single consignment
April 2014 to March 2020 240kg CO2eq/MWh
April 2014 to March 2020 285kg CO2eq/MWh
285kg CO2eq/MWh
April 2020 to March 2025 200kg CO2eq/MWh
April 2020 to March 2025 200kg CO2eq/MWh
270kg CO2eq/MWh
April 2025 to March 2030 180kg CO2eq/MWh
April 2025 to March 2030 180kg CO2eq/MWh
260kg CO2eq/MWh
Figure 1: GHG trajectory for UK biomass sustainability criteria for RO
used in power generation, particularly use of ‘high quality wood’(i.e. that with potentially other uses). The adopted approaches do not currently address the issue of preservation of land carbon stocks in forestry systems and the UK government will continue to review the evidence, with a view to possibly amending sustainability criteria for new biomass generation coming forward after April 2019 to more directly address such issues. A key area where the criteria have been tightened, particularly when seen against developing policy in the European Commission, is the greenhouse gas (GHG) trajectory for renewable power generation which the UK government has adopted. Until 2019 biomass power technologies will be expected to deliver a 60% GHG saving (cradle to grave) versus the EU grid emissions average, delivering the emissions equivalent of 285kg CO2/MWh. Dedicated biomass plants will be expected to deliver greater savings, equating to 240kg CO2/MWh. In all cases, post 2020, these thresholds will be harmonised for all renewable technologies and will fall over time as shown in Figure 1. These will be annual average targets, but no individual consignment should exceed the cap shown. Averaging will be permitted for dedicated biomass from April 2015 and for other biomass plants from April 2020. In calculating emissions, all generating stations over
44 • September/October 2013
1MWe will have to use a GHG emissions calculation tool to support its reporting to Ofgem (who host the UK’s official GHG and biogas carbon calculator). Use of high-level whole supply chain default values will not be permitted, and data will have to be calculated on a stage by stage basis. Defaults can be used in this case with the exception of data regarding the type of energy and amount used in pelleting, and transport distances at each stage in the supply chain. NNFCC analysis has shown that in terms of meeting these targets, getting down to 200kg CO2/MWh and below will be problematic for some supply chains, particularly North American pellet supply chains based on use of forest residues and fossil fuel use for drying. Pelleting energy is a significant contributor to the emissions profile and needs careful scrutiny of the process steps included. However other supply chains, for example pellets from British Columbia based on sawmill residues and dried using sawmill waste, should meet these tougher GHG saving targets. The message from this is to carefully check the GHG impacts of proposed supply chains, particularly where long-term contracts are being entered into. Generators using biomass feedstocks will also be obliged to provide an independent assessment audit of their sustainability report required by Ofgem to check the claimed land use and GHG compliance. To provide certainty for early adopters, the UK
government promises not to make any changes to the agreed sustainability criteria for accredited plants before 1 April 2027, when support for coal-to-biomass plants under the current RO will come to an end. It is anticipated this commitment will be carried across to the new contract for difference support mechanism for plants commissioning before April 2019. The tightening GHG trajectory is ahead of where Commission thinking is currently, where leaked proposals indicate that a GHG saving of 60% for solid biomass power is being considered, though clearly this could be ramped up further as discussions progress, particularly when looking at longer timeframes. This could create a problem if a twotier approach to standards is adopted across the EU. To create a liquid market in feedstocks there is a need to ensure the greatest possible fungibility of loads between end users, to ensure generators can react to fluctuations in the market and deal with any supply interruptions. There is therefore a need to agree on and recognise common sustainability criteria and assurance procedures across the EU, and a need for generators and trade associations to come to a common agreement on assurance systems that can be implemented as simply as possible. l For more information:
This article was written by David Turley, policy and strategy manager at NNFCC, www.nnfcc.co.uk
Bioenergy Insight
sustainability Bioenergy Biomass used to produce bioliquids has the potential to eliminate the hotly-debated risks associated with first generation biofuels
Biofuels and forests: revisiting the debate
M
uch of the initial optimism about the contribution of biofuels to energy security, climate change mitigation and rural development has given way to skepticism about its economic viability and bad publicity about related land grabbing and environmental destruction. Within a highly polarised discourse of ‘for’ and ‘against’, the debate has shown little nuance and has been rife with poorly qualified assumptions. With the biofuel sector still in its infancy, do these assumptions really hold up to further scrutiny or are biofuels being prematurely dismissed? Evidence to date seems to suggest the interactions between the biofuel economy and forests, food production and the rights of the rural poor are decidedly complex and should not be overgeneralised and oversimplified. Rather than dismissing biofuels outright, more attention should be placed on developing appropriate mechanisms for leveraging the sector’s developmental potential, while mitigating its potential costs. First generation development In response to changing global conditions, several countries established consumption and production targets for biofuels, as part of a wider shift toward greater incorporation of renewable energy sources into the energy mix and the promotion of a low-carbon
Bioenergy Insight
economy. Large markets such as the EU, US and Brazil currently mandate biofuel blends. To ensure blended biofuels meet environmental objectives in the EU and the US, they must meet strict sustainability criteria. Critics contend these measures are inadequate to protect against the full range of potentially adverse effects of such policies. Additionally, many argue that when indirect land use changes (ILUC) are accounted for, many biofuels will not meet the greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction targets, which typically only consider direct land use changesi. As a response to this criticism, the EU in 2013 imposed new measures, including a limit on the amount of food-based biofuels that can be used and additional criteria pertaining to GHG emitted from ILUCii. Add to existing pressures Although total biofuel production grew more than tenfold between 2000 and 2010, only 9% of vegetable oils produced globally are used to make biofuelsiii. In many countries, ethanol is produced largely from leftover molasses and not cane juice, which is usually reserved for sugar production. Therefore, the relationship between biofuels and undesirable types of land-use changes such as deforestation is often not direct and not in proportion to pressures from other end-markets. Considering, therefore, the
limited use of key crops for biofuel production, the debate about the impacts is largely in the realm of projection. Moreover, although important analytical efforts have been undertaken so fariv, estimating ILUC effects on forest conversion is difficult to establish in practice and still requires substantial methodological refinementv. Additionally, research suggests GHG emissions generated from land conversion for biofuel feedstocks may take decades or even centuries to reversevi. To date, however, the precise environmental footprint of biofuels remains unclear. Social and economic impacts
The local socio-economic impact of biofuel feedstock cultivation is variable and often depends on which feedstock and the magnitude and nature of displaced land usesvii. For example, large plantations generate new employment, income opportunities and offer smallholders the possibility to participate in global commodity markets through contract farming schemes. On the other hand, many plantations tend to displace local systems of production in areas where property rights are not sufficiently secure, exacerbating local income, food insecurity and disrupting traditional social relations. Ascribing these effects, like the environmental effects, to a specific endmarket is difficult.
Although the EU and the US have adopted comparatively strict environmental sustainability requirements, social criteria are largely absent. The EC, for example, argued ‘the inclusion of social criteria raises technical issues, administrative issues and issues connected with international law (and therefore) it is not recommended to include social criteria in the sustainability scheme’viii. The underlying argument for exclusion rests on the assumption that social impacts cannot be easily attributed to a specific biofuel consignment and, therefore, any interference could constitute a breach of World Trade Organization (WTO) rules. This highlights the political and legal complexities of introducing social guidelines in trade-related commodities. As a result of the reluctance of regulating extra-territorial social issues, an imbalance threatens to be created where stringent environmental criteria will compel producers to seek out lands of lesser environmental significance, which are more likely to contain other socio-economically valuable land uses. Different pathways Under current conditions, there clearly remain unanswered questions about the sustainability of biofuels and difficult tradeoffs between policy options.
September/October 2013 • 45
Bioenergy sustainability policy incentives to reduce deforestation in the Amazonxii. Unfortunately, in many cases, the national governance systems in producer countries are ill-equipped to deal effectively with the pressures from markets and influential investor groups, and to deal with issues that require adopting complex land use management reforms and expensive incentive structures.
Brazil is working to reduce deforestation in the Amazon
However, new pathways being explored could alleviate these uncertainties and dilemmas. Under first generation technologies, emissions from land use change dominate pathway emissions, if such emissions take place, while the lowest emission pathways use wood and agricultural residues as feedstock. The latter require, however, second generation conversion technologies which remain too expensive. Second generation biofuels are derived not from food crops like first generation, but from woody crops, agricultural residues, waste and crops such as switchgrass. This could reduce foodversus-fuel competition and in many cases will not displace socio-economically significant land uses. However, while second generation biofuels may contribute to reducing GHG emissions, they may still place some pressures on forestsix. Moreover, these biofuels are currently not cost-competitive due to the high costs of converting woody, non-edible products into fuelx. While not offering simple solutions, with short-term technological advances, second generation biofuels may, over time, serve to improve some of the environmental and social risks associated with first generation biofuel development.
Consequences of European Biofuel Policies. IFPRI, Washington DC. http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/ docs/2011/october/tradoc_148289. pdf; Gao, Y., M. Skutsch, R. Drigo, P. Pacheco and O. Masera. 2010. Assessing deforestation from biofuels: Methodological challenges. Applied Geography 31(2):508-518 doi:10.1016/j.apgeog.2010.10.007 v In Brazil, there is an important body of literature to assess iLUC, some of the most relevant efforts are: Andrade de Sá, S., C. Palmer & S. di Falco (2013) Dynamics of indirect land-use change: Empirical evidence from Brazil. Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, 65, 377-393; Arima, E., P. Richards, R. Walker & M. Caldas (2011) Statistical confirmation of indirect land use change in the Brazilian Amazon. Environmental Research Letters, 6, 024010; Lapola, D. M., R. Schaldach, J. Alcamo, A. Bondeau, J. Koch, C. Koelking & J. A. Priess (2010) Indirect land-use changes can overcome carbon savings from biofuels in Brazil. PNAS, 107, 3388-3393. vi Achten, W. and Verchot, L. 2011 Implications of biodiesel induced land use changes for CO2 emissions: case studies in tropical America, Africa, and Southeast Asia. Ecology and Society 16 (4): 14.
A complex puzzle The technical, political and economic complexities of developing a viable and truly sustainable biofuel economy reveals the interconnectedness of global social and environmental issues, the instability of international commodity markets, and in particular the need for improved governance of land and forests across diverse scales. One of the first needs in this regard is to connect, in a more effective way, public and corporate governance initiatives, and the second is to link local realities to global processes as a way to progress toward building more inclusive multi-stakeholder and multi-scale governancexi. Despite the emphasis on policies in consumer societies like the EU and US, some producer countries are starting to play an important role as evidenced, for example, by the progress made in Brazil to improve land management laws and enhance
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These deficiencies could potentially be compensated by good corporate governance, with some private actors selfregulating through voluntary certification systems. Greater complementarities need to be explored to strengthen the synergies between the public and private sector, as well as to ensure that global processes support simultaneously sustainable and inclusive local development. l References
i See for example Searchinger, t., R. Heimlich, R. A. Houghton, F. Dong, A. Elobeid, J. Fabiosa, S. Tokgoz, D. Hayes, T. Yu. 2008. Use of U.S. croplands for biofuels increases greenhouse gases through emissions from land-use change. Science 319: 1238-1240 ii Van Noorden, R., 2013. EU debates U-turn on biofuels policy. Nature Vol 499: 13-14 4 July 2013 iii May-Tobin, C., Boucher, D., Decker, E., Hirowitz, G., Martin, J., Mulik, K., Roquemort, S. and Stark, A. 2012 Recipes for success solutions for deforestation-free vegetable oils. Union of Concerned Scientists and Climate Advisers USA. Cambridge, MA http://www.ucsusa. org/assets/documents/global_ warming/Recipes-for-Success.pdf iv See for example, Laborde, D. 2011. Assessing the Land Use Change
vii German, L., G. C. Schoneveld, and P. Pacheco 2011. The social and environmental impacts of biofuel feedstock cultivation: evidence from multi-site research in the forest frontier. Ecology and Society 16(3): 24. http://dx.doi. org/10.5751/ES-04309-160324 viii European Commission (EC) 2008. Staff Working Document—Annex to Impact Assessment. SEC(2008)85. European Commission, Brussels, Belgium http://ec.europa.eu/ clima/policies/package/docs/ climate_package_ia_annex_en.pdf ix Popp, A., Krause, M., Dietrich, J.P., Lotze-Campen, H., Leimbach, M., Beringer, T. and Bauer, N. 2012. Additional CO2 emissions from land use change — forest conservation as a precondition for sustainable production of second generation bioenergy. Ecological Economics 74: 64-70. x Eisentraut, A. 2010. Sustainable production of second generation biofuels: potential and perspectives in major economies and developing countries. International Energy Agency, Paris, France. xi Mwangi, E. and A. Wardell, 2012. Multi-level governance of forest resources (Editorial to the special feature). International Journal of the Commons special issue Vol. 6(2):79 http://www.thecommonsjournal.org/ index.php/ijc/article/view/374/282 xii Galford GL, Soares-Filho B, Cerri CEP. 2013. Prospects for land-use sustainability on the agricultural frontier of the Brazilian Amazon. Phil Trans R Soc B 368: 20120171. http:// dx.doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2012.0171
For more information:
This article was written by Pablo Pacheco, George Schoneveld and Krystof Obidzinski from the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), www.cifor.org
Bioenergy Insight
biogas Bioenergy Over 8,000 cow and swine operations are suitable for AD installations in the US
Navigant Research discusses the relatively untouched potential of the US biogas market
New markets for biogas
I
n Europe, particularly Germany, the use of anaerobic digesters (ADs) has grown rapidly in recent years. The US has found it difficult to replicate German-style growth rates in this sector, despite its untapped potential, especially in the agriculture and food industries. US agri-food AD potential On a commercial-scale there are now at least 15,000 farm-based digesters operating throughout the world. Half of these operate in Germany, the outright leader in biogas capture from AD platforms. Over the past several years however, as the domestic market becomes increasingly saturated, firms have ventured abroad
Bioenergy Insight
to seek low-hanging opportunities in markets with growth potential. The agri-food sector in the US, which includes animal feedstock operations (AFOs) and industrial facilities processing farm commodities into higher value products, is especially ripe for AD growth. With ample feedstock supply, firm energy demand and government support for renewable technologies, the US is currently the biggest prize globally. AFOs in the US produce an estimated 12 billion dry tonnes of manure, according to the 2011 update to the Department of Energy’s Billion Ton Update, but less than 1% of this potential is currently utilised by ADi. According to the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA), there are more than 1 million livestock farms across the country; of these, dairy cow, swine, poultry and beef feedlots are among the most attractive targets for AD installations. As the livestock sector continues to consolidate — concentrating herds in fewer operations and less acreage — manure management practices are evolving. AgStar estimates that more than 8,000 dairy cow and swine operations are suitable for AD deployment todayii. Less than 3% of these farms currently utilise AD. The opportunity for deploying AD at foodprocessing facilities is less defined. Including a range of facilities that process the spectrum of raw farm products, the AD feedstock potential is assumed to
be much greater than in livestock operations. An estimated 30,000 food processing facilities are in operation today, according to the latest US Census. A third spend a significant portion of their revenues on managing waste and buying electricity, expenditures that could be mitigated through the use of ADs. An estimated 200MW of AD capacity is currently deployed across the US agrifood sector, composed of on-farm digesters treating livestock waste and systems operating at industrial foodprocessing facilities, such as breweries, slaughterhouses, and dairy operations. The agri-food sector has the technical potential to support more than 10GW of installed AD capacity.
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Bioenergy biogas
Biomethane and fertiliser According to estimates published in Navigant Research’s Renewable Biogas report, worldwide production of biomethane from biogas is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 23% between 2012 and 2022iv. There are currently more than 100 biogas upgrading facilities throughout the world producing biomethane. This figure is growing rapidly as biomethane liquefied natural gas (bioLNG) and biomethane condensed natural gas (bioCNG) emerge as viable alternatives to both traditional and renewable transportation fuels. The use of biomethanederived transportation fuels has gained traction in European countries and developing markets like Brazil and Pakistan. In Sweden — a pioneer in using these fuels in a number of transportation fleet applications — there were over 23,000 gaspowered vehicles in use and 104 public filling stations at the end of 2009v. Although lower natural gas prices in the US restrict the number of viable gas-togrid injection projects for AD, bioLNG and bioCNG are both qualifying fuels under the EPA’s revised Renewable
Fuel Standard (RFS2) and California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard. According to published EPA data, 8 million gallons of biogas fuel have been registered as ‘Advanced Biofuel’ under the RFS2 in 2013 to date, up from around 2 million in 2012vi. Despite these opportunities, the US is expected to contribute relatively little to the global supply of biomethane-based fuels over the next decade. Producers must contend with a spot-RIN market (currently advanced biofuel category RINs are fluctuating between $0.75 and $0.85 (€0.57-0.64) per RIN)vii. The addressable market, meanwhile, is principally focused on captive fleets like buses and other service vehicles returning to a centralised fuelling hub and, to a lesser extent, longrange shipping. Despite low natural gas prices relative to oil, a shift from petrolpowered internal combustion engines to engines burning methane-rich gases remains highly unlikely in the US. The nutrient recovery market is also grappling with market constraints limiting market growth in the near-term. Although synthetic fertiliser prices have increased rapidly in the US in recent years, fertiliser manufacturing has moved back onshore to take advantage of lower natural gas prices. This could have a stabilising effect on fertiliser
prices and potentially lead to lower input costs for farmers, squeezing out manure-based alternatives. Future outlook The US agri-food AD market has the potential to be large. Although a number of factors inhibit market growth today, AD is favoured by environmental mandates in force today and ones that are likely in the future. Monetising these opportunities remains difficult. The US is first and foremost a petrol market. A shift to LNG or CNG equivalents on the consumer level would take time, assuming demand was ever to materialise. Although nutrient loading on farms, especially with excess nitrogen, continues to threaten the country’s freshwater ecosystem, it can be challenging to move captured nutrients from onsite AD systems to neighbouring farms. The past history of new technologies and alternative value propositions, particularly in agriculture, indicates that the challenges for AD, at least in the US for the foreseeable future, outweigh the opportunity. l References
i U.S. Billion Ton Update, U.S. Department of Energy, 2011. ii Market Opportunities for Biogas Recovery Systems at U.S. Livestock Facilities, Environmental Protection Agency, 2011. iii Oil and gas Security: Germany, International Energy Agency, 2012.
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Source: Navigant Research
Despite this ample opportunity, the field of potentially viable projects is constrained by a mix of structural, political and logistical challenges. Whereas the German agrifood AD market has benefitted from high electricity prices, energy security challenges (nearly all oil and natural gas supplies are imported) and generous feed-intariff (FIT) rates, market forces in the US are more disparate and complexiii. Projects are typically subject to a matrix of policies and regulations that cross federal, regional, state, county, municipal and utility jurisdictions. Fuelled in part by abundant coal capacity and a burgeoning shale gas opportunity meanwhile, the power sector in the US remains well-supplied with low-cost fuel. Accordingly, electricity rates are comparatively lower than in most European Union markets. Typically less expensive on a per kW basis to deploy than most renewables, biogas power generation and other distributed energy resources remain an important piece of the puzzle in meeting Renewable Portfolio Standards. But solar and wind have been the primary beneficiary of RPS mandates and key incentives to date. Nevertheless, emerging AD business models targeting agri-food feedstocks in the US are widening the field of potentially viable projects by producing biomethane (highBtu biogas) for transportation applications and mineralising agricultural inputs like nitrogen and phosphorus. Finding strategic partners to pay for these products can dramatically increase project revenues, but biogas upgrading and nutrient recovery usually involve higher upfront costs. In both cases, however, target markets are still evolving
and the specific opportunity for biogas-derived products has yet to be fully defined.
North America
90
Europe
80
Asia Pacific
70 (BCFC/Year)
Challenges and opportunities
ROW
60 50
30
vi RFS2 Data, EPA. http://www.epa. gov/otaq/fuels/rfsdata/2013emts. htm (Accessed September 3, 2013).
For more information:
20 10
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
Biomethane production by region, world markets: 2012-2022
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v A Biogas Road Map for Europe, European Biomass Association, 2009.
vii Argus White Paper: Argus RINs Prices, Argus Media, 2013.
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iv Renewable Biogas, Navigant Research, 2012.
2019
2020
2021
2022
This article was written by Mackinnon Lawrence, principle research analyst with Navigant Research’s Energy Team (www. navigantresearch.com), and Adam Borison, a director with Navigant’s Energy Practice (www.navigant.com)
Bioenergy Insight
risk Bioenergy De-risking the supply chain will help unlock the investment potential of new and existing biomass projects
Managing the feedstock supply chain
I
n the February 2013 update of the UK government’s Renewable Energy Roadmap, first published in 2012, it estimated that biomass could contribute as much as 11% of the UK’s total primary energy demand (across heat, transport and electricity) by 2020. Currently bioenergy accounts for 3% of total primary energy consumption in the UK (and 38% of its renewable energy consumption), with 65% of that being used in power generation. Clearly there is a way to go to meet the 2020
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targets and it will require new plants to be developed, as well as the expansion of existing plants and the conversion of others. Despite these targets, biomass plant developers face increasing challenges to secure financing. In August the government announced that only 400MW of new electricity-only biomass projects would be eligible to receive support under the Renewables Obligation (RO). As of the same month, all energy companies operating biomass plants with a generating capacity
of at least 1MW (around 98% of them) will not be able to claim under the RO unless they produce an independent report verifying that the field employed meets new land-use criteria. A growing market The perception of the supply chain is holding back investors, and these concerns need to be addressed as more feedstock will be required in the coming years. Research commissioned by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC), focussing on biomass supply
chain infrastructure, found that demand from the UK power sector to be for 23 million tonnes of feedstock by 2020. Understanding the implications and the security of this widening supply chain is key. The new land-use criteria are an example of how sustainability of the supply chain is one major concern. As the supply chain extends around the globe, this is becoming a more complicated proposition and the direct and indirect social and economic aspects, such as the problem of food security and biodiversity
September/October 2013 • 49
Bioenergy risk losses, need to be fully investigated and understood. A longer and larger supply chain also gives rise to more opportunities for failure. There can be a disparity between the supplier and operator expectations of raw material quality, pricing and timing of delivery. In addition, while contracts may operate longterm, the need for feedstock is often managed on a shortterm basis, with purchases made just months, or sometimes weeks, in advance. Concerns As biomass plants are contractually obliged to provide a certain amount of power, a failure in the feedstock can severely damage their finances and they face the dilemma of how to compensate for the shortfall. Inability to fulfil their contract will leave them in breach of contract, activating costly penalty clauses which will have an immediate impact on their balance sheet, plus potentially lead to reputational damage with a longer-term effect. The alternative is to source energy from the spot market to meet demand but, as plants use long-term contracts to manage their supply, this is likely to be more expensive and, again, will have a negative financial impact. The sustainability and security of this supply chain is, naturally, a major concern for current and potential investors. As a consequence, many plants find themselves in a Catch 22 situation where project finance is hard to find without evidence of long-term and sustainable fuel supplies, but these supply contracts are hard to secure without committed financing. With more stringent criteria for government subsidies in place, the need to present an attractive investment opportunity has never been so pressing.
Solution A solution to this is to mitigate the financial risk the supply chain poses and ease the concerns of jittery investors. A new service from R K Harrison and Savills aims to do just this, combining an audit of the supply chain to identify potential weaknesses and insurance to mitigate the financial risk. Until now the insurance options available to biomass plants have not directly addressed the problems posed by an increasing and diversifying supply chain. Most plants buy traditional business interruption insurance which provides cover for loss of income, but only as a result of physical damage. This means if the biomass plant itself is damaged, or the facility of a supplier they have named on the policy is damaged, then they will be covered. However in the context of a wide supply chain, this suddenly looks restrictive. The limitations of business interruption insurance were highlighted in 2010 when the Icelandic ash cloud stopped flights across Europe and the Atlantic, with a knock-on effect on the roads and rail networks. Businesses found that their suppliers were unable to deliver their goods and, as a result, lost revenue as they had to slow production, missed targets or incurred higher costs by seeking short-term suppliers to cover the shortfall. However, because there was no physical damage to the business itself or its suppliers, their insurance did not cover losses. A biomass supply chain is exposed to similar scenarios. Political instability or extreme weather events could close transportation lines without causing physical damage. Poor weather could lead to a bad harvest, as happened in May last year, or floods, like those in the north of England last October, which block roads and rail networks. The ongoing tough economic
50 • September/October 2013
conditions make it more likely that a supplier could fail. In fact, as many of the current feedstocks are traded under long-term bi-lateral contracts, many biomass fuel security challenges can be traced back to counterparty risk, like seller insolvency and supplier credit worthiness. Where supply chain insurance differs to business interruption is that it will cover these instances where supply failure causes a loss of revenue or an increase in costs, but no physical damage. For example, a farmer is transporting feedstock to a plant. There is an accident, which does not damage the feedstock but delays the delivery. The biomass plant has to make a temporary purchase to meet its commitments. As the feedstock is not damaged, business interruption insurance would not cover the cost of the temporary purchase, but supply chain insurance does. Another example where the supply chain cover can help a plant is if one of its suppliers finds itself unable to fulfil the terms of its contract midway through. Even under a long-term contract, for which the plant will often pay a premium to guarantee the price of supply, the supplier may find itself unable to meet its obligations or could deliberately default. This means the plant has to source an alternative supply from others in the supply chain or the spot market. Once again, the plant is left with increased costs of working, but as there is no physical damage, business interruption insurance will not cover it, but supply chain insurance would. This frees the plant to seek an alternative supply to cover its shortfall without worrying about the impact on its balance sheet. In effect, reduction of income is the trigger for this insurance, and it is not reliant on an event or damage. This is a wider scope of coverage than is offered by business
interruption insurance, and a better reflection of the risks faced by the supply chain, and provides better financial security for plants and their investors. It will hopefully unlock finance for new projects and encourage interesting refinancing options for existing operators. In addition to insurance, the service will also look closely at the supply chain to identify areas of weakness and suggest improvements. For example, there is a tendency for plants to chase the long-term contracts with investment grade suppliers, but that also means a plant has a single point of failure. Having a number of shorter contracts with lesser covenants may be better practice because, if a couple of those fail, it would be relatively easy to find replacements. If a single supplier accounting for a larger percentage or even all of a plant’s supply fails, it will be much harder to find replacements. As well as looking at the supply chain as a whole, the service will also look closely at biomass suppliers to check they operate in line with good practices and are strategically equipped to deal with adverse events, down to the type of machinery they use and the experience of their staff. If necessary, a risk mitigation programme, designed to protect profits, balance sheet, brand and reputation will be designed. De-risking the supply chain will help unlock the investment potential of the new and existing biomass projects. By offering greater balance sheet security and a thorough assessment of the supply chain, it will help reduce a funder’s exposure and therefore help reduce the cost of capital and may encourage more long-term, institutional investors into the industry. l For more information:
This article was written by Paul Marsh, renewable energy consultant for R K Harrison, www.rkhgroup.com
Bioenergy Insight
pellets Bioenergy It once operated the world’s largest pellet production plant and now Green Circle Bio Energy is building a second facility. The company’s CEO talks to Keeley Downey
Ready for round two
G
reen Circle Bio Energy is a USbased wood pellet manufacturer. It owns one production plant in Cottondale, Florida and in July announced it was to build another, slightly smaller facility in Mississippi. The $115 million (€86 million) plant will export 100% of its 500,000 tonne capacity to the UK, but it is proving a challenge and ground has not yet even broken on the project. As Morten Neraas, Green Circle’s president and CEO, explains: ‘The progress of the incentive system in the UK is very frustrating and has been the one thing that is delaying our progress the most.’ Trouble overseas In May this year the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) launched its latest consultation on its plans to limit new biomass projects under the Renewables Obligation (RO) scheme, which could see a 400MW cap introduced for new build biomass projects. In July the department responded to this consultation stating a subsidy guarantee could be introduced for all financed biomass-fired power stations. As long as these plants meet the eligibility criteria, they would be guaranteed RO support, even if capacity exceeds the 400MW limit. The response from DECC said: ‘We will allocate places within the cap to all projects that apply within the priority application window and are able to demonstrate that they meet the specified eligibility criteria for a priority project,
Bioenergy Insight
even if this exceeds 400MW.’ Discussing the RO scheme, Neraas says DECC’s efforts are ‘slow going’ and while ‘what is coming out may have the best of intentions, it is causing unintentional consequences that have led to the implementation of these projects being delayed’. Sustainability Responsibly sourcing its biomass materials is at the core of Green Circle’s operations as it claims to be a ‘sustainable renewable business’. ‘We want to be a serious, responsible operator in the industry and so we need to be able to prove that we have a sustainable operation,’ Neraas explains. With that the company chose to build its second pellet plant in George County Industrial Park in Mississippi. As Neraas highlights: ‘There are always
two key areas that we evaluate when we look at building a wood pellet plant. First is the wood basket, ensuring there is a sustainably growing wood basket around where we want to put the plant. Secondly we consider the logistics — that there is a cost-efficient logistics solution for such an operation.’ Mississippi, like many other US states, has a strong wood basket with a positive growthdrain ratio (the volume of trees being grown compared to the volume being utilised). Green Circle only targets working forests — those established with the purpose of being harvested — in areas where the growth-drain ratio is more than one and, where possible, considerably higher. And once the plant comes online Green Circle will have certification in place to comply with its customers’ sustainability requirements.
Typical certification initiatives include SCI, SFC or American Tree Farm System. Logistics The plant’s location means the pellets will have to be transported around 43 miles south to the Port of Pascagoula before they can be shipped to the UK. Although a rail line is already in place, which runs from the site in George County Industrial Park to the port, Green Circle will be moving the pellets via trucks for the foreseeable future as it is cost-efficient. Additionally, there is still some work outstanding on the line that will not be complete for a numbers of years. ‘We will be trucking the pellets to the Port of Pascagoula for at least five years but maybe even longer,’ Neraas confirms. ‘If we
The Port of Pascagoula is a strategic location from where Green Circle can export its 500,000 tonnes of wood pellets to the UK
September/October 2013 • 51
Bioenergy pellets commit to trucking, that’s a significant investment so we will stick with it to give us and our partners enough time to depreciate our assets.’ Talking about why the Port of Pascagoula is a strategic one for Green Circle, Neraas says: ‘Pascagoula is an industrial deep sea port in the Gulf, able to handle fairly large ships. It has quick access into the Mexican Gulf so we don’t have to go far up the river — it is a short distance from the ocean into the dock.’ There is also an opportunity for the company to build storage silos on available land at the port, with the option of these being expanded in time. ‘The port would invest and build the storage terminal and we would operate it. Pascagoula could handle 1.5 million tonnes of wood pellets annually no problem and has significant room on which to build more storage capacity. We are still discussing and analysing how much storage we are going to build but we think it’s going to be between 60,000 and 80,000 tonnes,’ Neraas reveals. Green Circle’s second plant will produce half a million tonnes of wood pellets a year when it comes online in 2015. Construction is slated to begin in early 2014 and work expected to take between 18 and 24 months. The pellets will be manufactured from a combination of hard and softwoods sourced from within a 50-75 mile radius. Neraas estimates between 1 and 1.2 million tonnes a year of biomass will be needed to meet the plant’s output capacity. Time to reflect Green Circle’s first pellet production facility in Florida is today the world’s second largest facility, producing 600,000 tonnes of wood fuel annually and, according to Neraas, ‘is still the only plant in the world operating 24/7 at designed capacity’.
Neraas says Green Circle has learnt a lot from its first pellet factory in Cottondale, Florida
It came online in 2008. Asked if Green Circle would be doing anything differently second time around, he replied: ‘One of the good things about DECC holding up proceedings is we have had plenty of time to learn a lot from operating the Cottondale plant. This is a good learning experience for us and we will take a lot of those experiences forward. We have also learned things from Florida that we want to do differently. It won’t look exactly the same but I can’t elaborate on that at this time. This is intellectual property that is hugely valuable to us.’ Future opportunities When Green Circle was established back in 2006, the US was, according to Neraas, never considered a ‘relevant’ market for the company and this does not look set to change anytime soon. ‘Shale gas became readily available in the marketplace and energy prices then dropped tremendously in the US. Today energy prices are so cheap thanks to the abundance of shale gas and we don’t see a lot of political support on the federal level
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for renewable energy and certainly not when it comes to wood pellets,’ says Neraas. The industry then faced a further setback in July when the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit handed down a decision that industrialscale biomass-fired power plants cannot be exempt from the Clean Air Act limits on carbon dioxide pollution. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued the exemption for ‘biogenic carbon dioxide’ in 2011. The Natural Resources Council of Maine was one of the organisations who brought this lawsuit to the federal court. Its clean energy director Dylan Voorhees said of the result: ‘This is good news for addressing climate change and good news for relying on science in our nation’s clean air policies. The decision will help ensure investments in clean energy go to clean energy sources, while protecting the forests we love and depend on.’ He continued: ‘We opposed the EPA’s decision to simply ignore climate emissions from biomass because burning biomass emits a significant amount of carbon pollution. It’s true that some of it may ultimately be re-absorbed
by trees in future years, but determining how much is complex. That’s why we need the EPA to set forth rules to evaluate biomass emissions, not ignore them.’ Summing up the market for renewables in the US at the moment Neraas says: ‘The result of this lawsuit is getting the federal government and some environmental groups excited about regulating CO2 at a federal level. While future new regulations from the EPA could force some utilities to also include biomass, we believe this will be simply window dressing for the renewables sector.’ While Green Circle could be one day redirecting some of its pellet supply away from Europe for use in the domestic market, for now its opportunities lie overseas as the EU works towards its 2020 renewables target. A report published at the beginning of this year found Europe’s appetite for wood pellets could reach 29 million tonnes by 2020, a significant rise on the 8 million in 2010. Around 66% of this (19 million tonnes) will be imported from outside the continent, mainly from North America, Russia and Brazil. l
Bioenergy Insight
moisture Bioenergy An enhanced automation system and integrated moisture measurement help to optimise biomass combustion
Controlling biomass moisture
T
here is a wide choice of biomass feedstock available for energy use with the most popular types being virgin biomass, energy crops and waste wood. However, since each of these fuels has different requirements for combustion and handling, it is critical that all parts of the boiler and fuel material handling system are engineered to suit the characteristics of the available fuel. To help operators with the design of their equipment, European biomass fuel standards (EN 14961-1:2010) and fuel quality assurance schemes (EN 152341:2011) have been developed. Biomass boilers can present operating challenges to their owners. Unlike oil and gas supplies which are consistent, and predictable in terms of their combustion performance and heat value, biomass fuel varies in size, moisture content and Btu per volume. This variability often affects the ability of the boiler to supply steam consistently and/or respond to demand changes. To address these issues, owners often use large amounts of costly gas or oil as supplemental fuel. Fuel variability also often makes it difficult to maintain boiler operations within emissions constraints. Biomass fuels vary considerably in their energy content. Fuel that has high moisture content will
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generate less heat and will have a significant effect on energy recovery in steam generators. For example, while air dried log wood (moisture content of around 20%) will typically deliver around 1,420kW/m3, oven dried wood will deliver 2,070kW/m3 — an increase of around 45%. Most users will specify a moisture range to their supplier, but the nature of biomass means that there can be significant variations within a delivery that make it difficult to maintain optimum conditions. The traditional approach to this variability is for operators to monitor steam flow, pressure, temperature, excess oxygen and other process variables, and use monitoring devices such as video cameras focused on the bed and flame. Using their knowledge and experience, the boiler control set-points are continually adjusted in response to changes in the combustion process and other process variables. However, with each operator developing their own particular style and routines, control inconsistencies are introduced. This semi-manual mode of operation is not the optimal way to run a major power generating unit. Another way Suppliers of automation solutions have responded to these needs by enhancing their control systems to
take into account the special requirements of burning biomass fuels. These systems can maximise steam production, quickly respond to different fuel characteristics, help to reduce emissions and provide a faster response to upsets. In order to achieve this improved operation, boiler air and fuel distribution systems must be properly set up and instrumentation and control functionality must be able to compensate for biomass fuel variability in real time. Intelligent field devices and industrial communication networks are essential to achieving the desired results. For example, the Ovation control system from automation company Emerson Process Management is optimised for the power generation industry. It includes embedded applications such as fully co-ordinated boiler/ turbine control, emissions optimisation and fleet management. Processes such as model based air-fuel control and control routines help overcome the difficulty of burning agro biomass efficiently by continually adjusting the combustion process to take account of the varying characteristics of the fuel content. Continuous monitoring Systems like Ovation have features such as predictive control, which allow them
to closely manage the combustion performance. But even with this level of control, there are some installations where the types of fuel being used, and the characteristics of the boiler, have highlighted the need for the feedstock moisture content to be determined before it enters the combustion chamber. This enables the control system to anticipate changes required to the combustion air, delivering the exact amount that the system needs, and ensuring efficient combustion. Monitoring and controlling combustion air can dramatically influence profits and costs of boiler operations: excess oxygen reduces boiler efficiency by absorbing heat that could be used in steam production. An integrated solution from Emerson combines a biomass fuel moisture sensor with its Ovation system. Suitable for new or existing installations, the system comprises a small skid that takes biomass fuel from the transport system, measures its moisture content using microwave technology and returns it. It provides a volumetric evaluation of feedstock humidity every two to three minutes. The moisture sensor is connected via Ethernet to the Ovation system, providing an input to the boiler and thermal-cycle control logic. The data provided is analysed to provide fast and
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Bioenergy moisture accurate information on the temperature and moisture content of the feedstock. The system uses this data to adjust the combustion air to match to the characteristics of the fuel based on the master set-point output (MWe steam or pressure), boiler response and the thermal cycle overall. The additional input from the moisture sensor provides stability for the steam parameters, helping to increase net yearly MWh production, improving load control, reducing thermal stresses and minimising maintenance costs. To confirm the benefits provided by the addition of Emerson’s continuous monitoring solution, it was evaluated by a power generating company in Italy on a 15MWe — 50MWth power station fuelled by woodchips. The company has several suppliers of
woodchips, each delivering fuel with a different moisture content. This means that the combustion process needs to be continually adjusted for different mixes of fuel. The addition of the moisture sensing system has helped improve plant efficiency and reduce maintenance costs. Increasing MWh The latest automation systems are designed to cope with the special requirements associated with burning biomass fuels, providing efficient and effective control of a wide range of boiler types and feedstocks. Manufacturers continue to develop and enhance these systems in response to changing market demands. For installations where variable moisture content can affect combustion efficiency, a system that incorporates continuous
The integrated system comprises a small skid that takes biomass fuel from the transport system and measures its moisture content using microwave technology
fuel moisture monitoring will help to increase net yearly MWh production, reduce thermal stresses and minimise maintenance costs. These systems can
be implemented during an upgrade of existing facilities, or specified for new plants. l For more information:
www.emersonprocess.com
15% DISCOUNT AVAILABLE UNTIL 18TH OCTOBER 2013 INTERACTIVE DEBATE ON MARKET OPPORTUNITIES, TRADING STRATEGIES AND BIOENERGY POLICY CLARIFICATIONS FOR MORE INFORMATION & REGISTRATION CONTACT: MOHAMMAD AHSAN +44 0 203 141 0606 MAHSANACIEU.NET
54 • September/October 2013
Bioenergy Insight
landfill gas Bioenergy A Japanese automaker and a UK cleantech business are helping Mexico deliver on its new Climate Change Act as it uses renewable power derived from landfill gas
Landfill gas generation explained
E
nergy generated from landfill gas is evolving worldwide at increasing speed, spurred on by the need for cleaner, cheaper energy and carbon reduction policy and regulations, such as the Kyoto Protocol. Biodegradable waste deposited in landfill sites decomposes in the absence of oxygen to produce landfill gas; a mixture of methane (CH4), carbon dioxide (CO2) and trace amounts of volatile organic gases. Some 50% of the landfill gas produced is methane which, despite being a highly damaging greenhouse gas, is a valuable fuel that can be used to run combined heat and power (CHP) systems and electricity generators. Disposing of this damaging gas while utilising its energy value creates a double environmental benefit. Case study: Nissan in Mexico Under its new Climate Change Act, Mexico is committed to cutting its carbon dioxide emissions by 30% by 2020, and by 50% below current levels by 2050. It is also working on generating 35% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2024. Car manufacturer Nissan is embracing these targets by converting its production factory in the municipality of Aguascalientes to running on renewable energy derived from landfill gas produced
Bioenergy Insight
at the San Nicolás landfill site. This is the first automotive plant in Mexico to use electricity from biogas, and is the first project of its kind for any Nissan manufacturing plant in the world. Nissan is harnessing renewable energy produced at a landfill site in Aguascalientes, Mexico The 104 site by approximately order to achieve the desired acre landfill 90,000 tonnes per year. de-rated capacity of 2.5MW site, which is owned The two-phase biogas electricity capacity. The by the municipality of generation project — biogas supply is expected to Aguascalientes, receives the first in Mexico to be last for at least 15 years. household, commercial and registered with the United As Hugh Richmond, MD of industrial waste. A total 3.9 National under the Clean Ener-G Natural Power and million tonnes of waste is Development Mechanism, part director of the company’s currently deposited at the of the Kyoto Protocol — began Mexican subsidiary, explains: 10-year old site. The Nissan back in 2006 when Biogas ‘This project is converting production site receives Technology was appointed damaging greenhouse gases almost 2.5MW of clean by the Mexican municipality into renewable power that energy — sufficient to produce to collect and destroy the is benefitting Mexico’s car 37,000 vehicles per year. biogas emissions by flaring. industry, providing income The landfill gas generation Phase two saw Ener-G for the municipality of facility came about Natural Power install two Aguascalientes and benefitting through a partnership 1.6MW biogas generators the environment. We are between UK-headquartered as part of a six-month build building more of these plants cleantech company Ener-G programme. This involved in Mexico to match the strong and Aguascalientes. The arranging the sale of desire and commitment by renewable energy division electricity to Nissan through the Mexican government for Ener-G Natural Power and a wheeling charge mechanism investment in renewables.’ its sister company Biogas governed by national grid VP of manufacturing at Technology generate the clean owner the Federal Commission Nissan Mexicana Armando energy, which is supplied of Electricity (CFE). Avila adds: ‘This project to Nissan’s factory under a Due to the ‘thin’ air at allows us four years to long-term power purchase the high altitude of the advance the environmental agreement. Ener-G invested San Nicolás site, Ener-G challenges of our programme £4.4 million (€5.2 million) in was required to install an Nissan Green Program 2016 the project, which reduces oversized 3.2MW system in to reduce CO2 emissions.’ CO2 emissions at the landfill
September/October 2013 • 55
Bioenergy landfill gas Other projects Ener-G has since built a project for the municipality of Durango and contracted a further three sites in 2013 at Xonacatlan, Celaya and Tultitlan. These are now in
the design and permitting phases, with anticipated commissioning for mid-2014. The £2.3 million biogas power generation facility at Durango will capture the methane gas emitted from 1 million tonnes of waste
and convert it into 1.5MW of clean energy — enough to supply the municipal government with half of its street lighting for the city. The other three landfill gas generation projects, totalling £4 to £5 million,
will turn the methane gas into a further 4 to 5MW. l For more information:
This article was written by Ian Cooper, renewables division business development director for Ener-G Natural Power, www.energ.co.uk/biogas
Exploiting landfill gas: a guide Phase one: analysis and assessment The first step in exploiting landfill gas resources is to ascertain the amount of gas produced from the site to determine its capacity to support renewable energy generation. This involves collating information about a power generation opportunity, which would examine when the site started taking waste and when operations will cease. This fact finding also ascertains what tonnages and types of waste have been disposed of to date and the likely figures for the future. A decline in the organic content of the waste, thanks to the advent of recycling targets, composting and alternative technologies, is likely to be the biggest single influencing factor in the viability of a landfill gas project going forward. Should a particular site not have sufficient or reliable historic waste data, a pumping trial can be conducted. For example, a pumping trial flare could be established on the site with gas extraction wells to establish the site’s gas production rate over a short period of time. This makes it possible to establish the anticipated generation capacity that each site is able to support. Using assumptions for a ‘typical’ landfill, the collection efficiency is usually set at between 50 and 75% and an indicative gas curve is generated from the data analysis. This also assumes good operation of the site, with low levels of leachate, reasonable daily cover and areas of temporary and permanent capping systems to keep rainfall out of, and landfill gas in, the site. The calculation would also factor in scheduled service and average maintenance downtime. Phase two: site-based assessment An on-site gas resource assessment is undertaken during the due diligence process and based on historical and projected waste inputs to establish the volume of landfill gas the site will produce. The underlying waste input figures are broken down into
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four primary categories: domestic, commercial, industrial and inert, which are then further sub divided for accuracy. Site construction, operating methods, moisture content and temperature are also assessed and this information is fed into a gas model to produce a more accurate gas yield curve. The observations and the experience of the landfill gas technician are key to the site analysis, drawing insights from visual evidence such as seeing leachate weeping from the sides of the landfill, lack of daily inert covering material and poor compaction on site. Phase three: specification of landfill gas technology The generating capacity of each site over the time period is then generated and the individual generator packages are specified to match the amount of fuel available. Phase four: extraction and exploitation Landfill gas is extracted from the waste mass at an optimal rate. Excess gas not used for generation is automatically spilled to an enclosed ground flare. Gas is drawn from the site by exerting a vacuum on the waste mass, using a centrifugal blower, through a network of pipes and out to the gas wells. The power is then fed into the grid. The process of exploitation involves installing a network of deep wells into the waste mass and abstracting the gas using a pump and blower unit, which directs it through a surface laid system of connection pipework to a generation compound. In the compound, spark ignition reciprocating engines utilise the fuel to generate renewable electricity, which can be sold to the local network operator. The process sounds simple. However, should oxygen greater than 5%v/v enter the system, it can have the catastrophic effect of destroying the generator units. It is necessary to balance the gas from each well to optimise the quality being delivered to the compound. l
Bioenergy Insight
landfill gas Bioenergy An overview of siloxanes and the importance of preventative actions in dealing with this trace compound
Siloxanes and biogas
A
ccompanying the main biogas components — methane and carbon dioxide — are a large number of other compounds including nitrogen, oxygen, hydrogen sulphide, mercaptans, halogenated hydrocarbons and siloxanes. Of these compounds, volatile methyl siloxanes (VMS) have the most adverse effect on the overall utilisation of landfill gas. Siloxanes are nontoxic compounds that are frequently added to consumer products such as detergents, shampoos, deodorants (to improve texture and feel), cosmetics, paper coatings and many textiles. Their use in consumer products has increased over the past decade, resulting in a rise in the concentration of siloxanes at landfills worldwide. While some siloxanes quickly volatilise into the atmosphere, others remain present and can be found in the biogas. With some researchers estimating siloxanes could be present in every landfill site in North America and Europe, landfill operators and gasto-energy project managers are spending more time investigating siloxane levels. Newer landfills are more likely to result in higher concentrations of siloxanes, due to consumer consumption and the increase of siloxane use in consumer goods. How siloxanes cause harm Although non-toxic compounds that can be combusted in a typical landfill gas flare,
Bioenergy Insight
The Hickory Ridge system complete with Abutec’s flare and siloxane adsorber technology
siloxanes can damage combustion engines, turbines and other equipment used in the gas-to-energy process through the formation of silica and silicates deposits. These deposits, which are difficult to remove, lead to the abrasion of engine parts and often result in changes to the combustion chamber. This, in some cases, induces higher emissions of carbon monoxide and formaldehyde, possibly violating air emissions regulations. Reciprocating piston engines experience fouling in the combustion chamber, on the valves, valve seats, pistons crowns and cylinder walls. Often these deposits collect under the exhaust valves, resulting in blown and burnt valves. This
damage can affect the maintenance intervals of combustion equipment and operators often face engine rebuilds, change outs and, in extreme cases, incur engine replacement costs. Engine warrantees now specifically mention silicon levels and the parameters of coverage regarding silica have become more stringent. Siloxane determination methods Analysis of biogas siloxane can assist a project manager in determining whether a siloxane removal system is warranted. The most common sample collection techniques are canister whole air sampling, impinger liquid adsorption and sorbent solid adsorption.
1. The canister collection method is used to measure siloxanes present in the gas phase of the biogas. The sample is collected as a whole gas grab and the evacuated canister and a particulate filter are attached to the process feed line. The canister valve is then opened to fill the canister with the sample. After collection, the canister containing the sample is shipped to a laboratory for analysis. 2. Using the impinger sampling train, the biogas sample is drawn through a series of solvent-filled impingers. Siloxanes present in the biogas dissolve in a chilled solvent. Then a needle valve and rotameter after
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Bioenergy landfill gas
Siloxane flare on site at the Hickory Ridge landfill in Atlanta
the second impinger adjusts and measures the flow rate through the train. After the desired sampling duration, the vials are capped and returned to a laboratory for analysis. 3. A third method for level measurement involves drawing biogas through a solid sorbent designed to trap the siloxanes. The sample train is similar to the impinger train, with the tube replacing the meth impingers. After the sample is collected, the sorbent is shipped to a laboratory for extraction and analysis. Once the level of siloxanes are determined within the biogas stream, a decision must be made to either install a gas purification/siloxane removal system or control the issue of siloxane compounds with more frequent maintenance intervals. Siloxane removal technology choices When facing high levels of siloxane, removal of this compound is often the best alternative before the silica deposits reach equipment. There are several removal technologies on the
market: adsorption (fixed and fluid bed), absorption, gas chilling and biological removal. Adsorption-fixed bed technology is the most commonly used. Two variations of this technology exist. One uses carbon non-regenerativebased media and the other uses regenerative non-carbon based media. In the non-regenerative adsorption, siloxane and other contaminants are collected in the media bed. When the first bed experiences breakthrough, it is replaced by switching biogas into a fresh adsorber. The first spent media is replaced with new media and made ready to process biogas. This concept is referred to as ‘lead and lag’. Adsorber medias are replaced in regular intervals to effectively remove biogas contaminants (including siloxanes). Regenerative non-carbonbased systems use fixedbed adsorber/desorber applications. In temperature swing adsorption (TSA), biogas is processed through one absorber for gas purification, and contaminants are desorbed from a second adsorption bed that contains
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exhausted media (media holding the contaminants). During desorption, an air stream is flushed through the bed at a high temperature to release contaminants (siloxanes and other VOCs) off of the media. The VOCs and siloxanes are entrained in the air stream that flows to an off gas flare to be thermally destroyed or combusted, thus meeting state regulations regarding the destruction of VOCs. Case study In Atlanta, US, landfill gas from the Hickory Ridge Landfill is being used to help provide electricity to the adjacent Coca-Cola syrup plant. It features an off gas (siloxane destruction) flare from Abutec. The process involves using a Venture Engineering regenerative non-carbonbased siloxane removal system that sends a stream of containments, including siloxanes, to Abutec’s High Temperature Flare for combustion. This unit is third-party tested with 99.9% destruction efficiency to ensure all VOC containments are combusted, meeting
state emissions regulations. The flare has a natural draft, requires no assist blowers, regulates its own temperature and produces no radiant heat to the surrounding area, resulting in a small carbon footprint, contributing to the overall successful use of a renewable fuel. It is essential the operation of the flare be aligned with the adsorber regeneration process. If the reliability of the flare cannot be determined, this may lead to frequent shutdowns of the system due to the inability to destroy the containment VOC compounds. An estimated 6.5MW of power are produced for the Coca-Cola cogent plant from this gas-to-energy project. The clean burning fuel from the landfill biogas is delivered via a six mile pipeline to the cogent plant and is used by generators to produce energy. This gas-to-energy project has been successful in that the overall system provides 100% of the plant’s energy needs, with an expectation of reducing the plant’s overall carbon footprint by 20,400 tonnes annually. Siloxane removal results in not only a successful, environmentally friendly waste-to-energy project, but also has economic advantages for landfills and their partners. l References:
Ajhar, M., Travesset, M., Yuce, S., and Melin, T. 2010. Siloxane removal from landfill and digester gas — A technology overview. Dewil, R., Appels, L. and Baeyens, J. 2006. Energy use of biogas hampered by the presence of siloxanes. Hayes, H., Saeed, S., Graening, G. and Kao, S. 2003. A summary of available analytical methods for the determination of siloxanes in biogas. Slatosky, B. 2009. Siloxane Removal System — Venture engineering announces new offering to landfill and digester gas customers. Treatment solutions or landfill gas fuel applications, XEBEC, October 2007.
For more information:
This article was written by Andy Smith, president and CEO of Abutec Industries, abutec.com/products/ biogas/siloxane-destruction
Bioenergy Insight
biogas analysis Bioenergy Continuous gas analysis sheds light on the ‘black box’ fermenter
Process control for biogas production
T
he production of biogas is a complex biotechnical process. Not all biogases are the same — the composition of gas mixtures from different plants can vary a great deal and different qualities mean the plant’s earning potential can also vary substantially. Ideally, the calorific value of the biogas should be as high as possible, whereas the proportion of harmful components in the gas must be as low as possible. The concentration of methane — the key component in the biogas — can vary from 40%
up to 75%, which changes the calorific value enormously. If the calorific value is too low, then the combined heat and power plant (CHP) cannot use the gas mixture and the costly biogas has to be burnt off via the flare. A situation such as this not only puts the plant’s figures deeply into the red, it is also disastrous for its environmental performance. Environmental protection and economic benefits go hand in hand here, as is so often the case with renewable energy. The organisms in the fermenter can only produce perfect biogas if the working conditions are ideal. The
Biogas composition Methane Carbon dioxide Nitrogen Oxygen Hydrogen Ammonia Hydrogen sulphide
40-75% 25-55% 0-5% 0-2% 0-1% 0-1% 0-1%
factors which affect the production are complex: temperature, feed-in amounts, fertiliser composition, foreign and harmful substances in the substrate, settings of the agitator and fumigation are some of the main parameters in the production process. This means a single plant can produce at different levels of quality from day to day. As well as the calorific value of the biogas, which affects the performance of the CHP plant,
it is crucial to watch out for any undesirable components in the gas, such as hydrogen sulphide (H2S) and ammonia (NH3). Even small amounts can impair the motor or the turbine in the power plant and cause irreparable damage. To make the biogas plant profitable, the quality of the biogas is therefore paramount. First and foremost, process optimisation can be achieved by continuously collecting and analysing the concentration of gas in the fermenter using analysers. This keeps the quality of the biogas mixture under constant observation in real time, allowing for immediate action to be taken if necessary. Other methods of analysis, such as using external laboratories or just an input/ output analysis, fall short and do not bring the desired results.
Comprehensive biogas monitoring improves efficiency for both conventional and flexible plants
Bioenergy Insight
September/October 2013 • 59
Bioenergy biogas analysis Taking a sample and then having it analysed in an external laboratory is expensive, risky and it can take days before the results are available. If, on the other hand, only the input (substrate fed in) is recorded and the efficiency (amount of electricity produced, disruptions in electricity generation) is controlled, then the running of the process is basically left down to experience and luck. Ultimately, the processes in the fermenter can be almost impossible to replicate, making it difficult to produce ‘ideal’ biogas over long periods of time. No continuous monitoring of the gas runs a risk of not being able to keep up with the bio process, and major processes and changes in the fermenter cannot be detected in time. Without a real time process analysis, these processes become a ‘black box’ containing readings which can be only speculated about.
gas tank temporarily and only supplied to a CHP to generate electricity when needed. This type of production is more complex than a conventional biogas plant in terms of the process as well as the licence. It must be possible, therefore, to switch the output on and off and adjust it up and down. Certain times can be used for producing electricity with peak load; those times when a lot of electricity is used and a higher price can be gained. At times when the market price is low, the CHP can be operated at lower output or serviced if required. It is feasible to plan full feed-in during the day. Intermediate storage offers many new options for optimising the process. This makes it conceivable
process. Flexibility can be a decisive argument, especially regarding the acceptance of biogas technology within the population. Many other renewable energies, such as solar or wind power, cannot be readily controlled as flexibly as biogas. From preliminary test to major plant Whether it is a conventional or a flexible plant, comprehensive monitoring of gas production contributes to the efficiency. Upsetting the fermenter or damage to the CHP plant can quickly lead to financial losses for the biogas plant owner. With so many unknown process parameters and changing substrates, a
New requirements for biogas plants Alongside the challenges of being able to operate a continuous process productively, there are even more challenges to come for some plant operators. The more renewable energy is produced, the more important flexible plants become which do not constantly produce the same amount of electricity. In this way, fluctuations in the output of solar and wind energy can be evened out. After Germany’s scheduled withdrawal from the nuclear energy programme, small, flexible plants will be needed to feed electricity into the public grid on demand. Different prices can also be obtained here depending on the time of day. Due to the demand-driven supply into the power grid, a higher price can be achieved. For plants continuously producing biogas, this means the biogas is first stored in a
The CH4 sensor from BlueSens on a 1¼” pipe
for the substrate yield to be improved, as well as the quality of the gas. Through constant monitoring of the gas concentration in the storage tank, the production process can be observed and variations in gas quality can still be subsequently offset. This is an option that does not exist if the gas is used immediately. Biogas has the potential to play an important role within future energy provision by means of a flexible
60 • September/October 2013
preliminary test in the laboratory provides an ideal gas yield. On a small-scale, different process flows can be simulated in advance and then transferred to production scale. Ideal parameters can be determined in advance and critical situations identified. German manufacturer BlueSens provides complete systems for preliminary testing and detecting CH4 gas formation potential on a laboratory scale. Its
Yieldmaster system comprises up to 12 fermentation bottles, each with its own methane measurement and automatic recording of the amount of gas formed in real time. The CH4 gas formation potential of different experimental approaches and substrates can be determined as a result and ideal parameters for the production scale can be gained. The production process can be implemented in situ with the same robust gas measuring technology based on the sound principle of infra-red measuring technology (ie, directly on-site in the process). The sensors illuminate the test gas and calculate the main gas components, such as methane and carbon dioxide, by means of light absorption. The measurement does not interfere with the process and production can carry on continuously. In flexible plants, the gas in the storage can be measured and any variation in the gas quality can be offset. A sample or additional processing of biogas is not necessary for an analysis. And plants that are already up and running without a gas analyser can be retrofitted with sensors. The device has a variety of mechanical connection options and can be directly installed on pipelines already in place. The data it produces is sent to a computer or a control system which records the data and controls the process automatically if required. Continuously recording the concentration of gas in the production process results in transparent processes which can be documented and traced, and puts an end to the unpredictability of the ‘black box’. High quality biogas has an immediate impact on the CHP plant — it can operate more reliably and efficiently and ultimately increases the plant’s profitability. l For more information:
This article was written by Björn Friedritz, head of marketing at BlueSens, www.bluesens.com
Bioenergy Insight
biomass boilers Bioenergy
Improving biomass boiler performance and emissions
F
uel delivery is a common problem in biomass plants. Wood fuel is non-uniform in shape, density, moisture content, ash content, and energy content. Over-sized or stringy pieces of wood fuel will cause bridging and wet fuel sticks to the sides of fuel chutes, often causing plugs. Fuel delivery problems result in decreased efficiency, boiler upsets, lower steam production and emissions violations. The fact that wood fuel is so problematic is the justification many plants use for resorting to manual fuel control. An operator running a boiler in manual mode will make a fuel adjustment once every five minutes. More often than not, the adjustment is excessive, resulting in predictable system oscillations which negatively affect steam production, fuel efficiency and emissions. For the plants that use automated fuel control, most
use a controller based on drum pressure. While a pressurebased controller is likely to have fewer oscillations than would be caused by an operator1, it is inherently slower and less accurate than a controller which uses O2 as a process variable. An alternative to the pressure-based controller is a fuel delivery system based on furnace O2. An O2 controller makes fuel adjustments according to the amount of excess O2 in the flue gas. Instead of trying to directly stabilise drum pressure, it stabilises combustion which results in stable drum pressure. As excess O2 can be used as a leading indicator of drum pressure, an O2 controller can prevent drum pressure errors by adjusting the fuel rate before the error occurs. Nearly all boiler upsets and emissions problems can be traced back to swings in O2. An O2-based fuel
Figure 1: Effects of O2 swings on CO, NOx, temperature and efficiency
Bioenergy Insight
controller will stabilise the combustion process, resulting in increased steam flow, reduced average O2 (which leads to greater efficiency), stable temperatures and reduced emissions violations. A well-designed controller will pay for itself within a year. The importance of excess air as a control parameter Air is one of the most critical parameters for attaining good combustion and boiler efficiency. Too little air results in spikes in CO and other unburnt combustibles; too much air reduces boiler efficiency and increases stack losses. ‘Excess O2 is important because it is nearly an exact indication of excess air.’ [Stultz] Figure 1 shows a set of characteristic curves for a theoretical boiler. The curves represent the effect swings in O2 have on load, efficiency, furnace temperature and
the production of CO and NOx. Swings in O2 have a predictable and detrimental effect on efficiency and emissions. NOx increases with O2. Load, efficiency and temperature decrease with O2 and CO increases for variations away from the corner point. For conditions of low O2, CO increases asymptotically. The corner point shown in Figure 1 is the ideal O2 operating point. It is the balance point where boiler efficiency and control of emissions are optimised. Every boiler has a unique corner point. The controller concept The role of the O2 controller is to stabilise the combustion process around the boiler’s corner point. Given a fixed amount of air flow into the furnace, the controller varies the fuel rate in order to maintain an O2 set point. The amount of air flow is selected by the operator based on the desired steam flow or MW output. If the O2 is consistent, then drum pressure, steam flow and furnace temperature will also be consistent. As the combustion air is constant, the only reason the excess O2 in the flue gas will increase is because the amount of O2 being consumed in the combustion process has decreased. The possible causes of this condition are a decrease in screw speed, fuel piling, fuel bridging or a negative change in fuel quality and/ or moisture. Increasing O2 is a leading indication of decreasing drum pressure and steam production.
September/October 2013 • 61
Bioenergy biomass boilers 140
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INCREASED CO LEVELS POSSIBLE EMISSIONS VIOLATIONS
Figure 3: O2 and fuel variations
data were collected in one minute increments. The data presented here are from June 2010. Steam flow, drum pressure, O2, feed rate and control mode
Pressure and Fuel Variations - Manual Control
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Figure 2a shows that changes in drum pressure follow the changes in screw speed; the pressure response lags the change in fuel rate by about six
Pressure and Fuel Variations - Auto Control
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DECREASE IN STEAM REVENUE
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O2 and Fuel Variations - Manual Control
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Furnace temperature varies inversely with O2. A decrease in amount of excess O2 in the flue gas will occur if the amount of O2 being consumed has increased. Decreases are caused by a rise in fuel screw speed or a positive change in fuel quality and/or moisture. Decreasing O2 is an indication of increasing drum pressure and steam production. A decrease in O2 is usually accompanied by an increase in furnace temperature. Unlike an operator, an O2-based fuel controller can continuously monitor the combustion process, making several small adjustments
Figure 2: Drum pressure and fuel variations
in screw speed every few seconds. By relating changes in O2 to changes in screw speed, the controller can establish a baseline fuel grade and can therefore detect subtle changes in fuel quality and make adjustments accordingly. Although the controller cannot discriminate between fuel bridging and fuel piling, it can detect that one of these two conditions is present and alert an operator to impending drops in drum pressure or combustion conditions which might lead to emissions violations. Case study An O2 controller was installed in a cogeneration plant in 2010 and process
(auto or manual) were collected. Variations in screw speed, pressure, steam flow and O2 are represented as a percentage of their respective averages. Results Figure 2a shows 100 minutes of variations in drum pressure and metering screw speeds while operating in manual mode. The metering screws are controlled by variable frequency drives (VFDs); screw speeds are entered by the operator in Hertz. In 100 minutes, the operator made 24 changes ranging in magnitude from -15 to 10 Hz with the average adjustment magnitude being 5.08 Hz. The average VFD speed is 36.05 Hz.
62 • September/October 2013
minutes. The average pressure during this period is 404 psi. The standard deviation of the pressure is 20.66 psi. This variation represents 5.1% of average. The pressure rating for the boiler is 400 psi. The pressure swings represented in Figure 2a range from 354 to 440 psi. The upper end of these oscillations is either near, or in the range of, the high drum pressure alarm set point. If the operator pushed the boiler any harder without reducing the swings, the tops of the oscillations would trip the boiler. Figure 2b shows 100 minutes of variations in drum pressure and metering screw speeds while operating in auto mode. In auto mode the fuel controller is
responsible for making the changes to the screw speeds. The controller made more changes in the same time period, and the magnitude of changes was much smaller than in manual mode. In 100 minutes the controller made 80 changes ranging in magnitude from -3.5 to 2 Hz, with the average adjustment at 1.18 Hz2. The average VFD speed is 33.24 Hz. The pressure swings shown in Figure 2b range from 391 to 416 psi. The average pressure is 402 psi with the standard deviation of 5.02 psi. This is slightly more than 1% variance from average. Figure 3a shows variations in O2 and metering screw speeds for manual mode. Note that the O2 changes inversely as the metering screw speeds. The O2 lags the changes in fuel rate by about one minute, which means O2 leads pressure by about five minutes. The range of O2 shown is 2.73% to 7.94%; the average O2 is 5.73%. The standard deviation is 1.07%. Figure 3b shows variations in O2 and metering screw speeds while in auto mode. The controller set point for this time period was 4.97%. The range of O2 shown is 3.84 to 6.09% with an average of 4.97%. Figure 4a shows variations in steam flow and metering screw speeds for manual mode. Changes in steam flow lag the changes in fuel by about five to six minutes, which is the same as the pressure. The correlation
Bioenergy Insight
biomass boilers Bioenergy Steam and Fuel Variations - Manual Control
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Figure 4: Steam flow and fuel variations
between oscillations in steam flow and fuel delivery is apparent. The average steam flow shown in Figure 4a is 58,595lbs/hour. The standard deviation is 3,674.4lbs/ hr. This represents a 6.3% variance from average. Figure 4b shows variations in steam and metering screw speeds for auto mode. The average steam flow shown in Figure 4b is 67,129lbs/hr with a standard deviation of 698.9lbs/hr. This represents approximately 1% variance from average. Effect of swings on performance The difference in drum pressure trends in Figures 2a and b is significant. For manual fuel control the pressure trend is almost sinusoidal. In auto control there are still some pressure swings, but the frequency is much lower and the magnitude smaller. The most obvious effect of auto control is stability. The three spikes in O2 represented in Figure 3a can be directly correlated to decreased steam production. The average O2 in auto mode was 4.97%; in manual mode it was 5.73%. This difference of 0.76% corresponds to an increased load on the boiler fans, increased stack losses and decreased furnace temperature. The increased stability is also reflected in steam flow. The average steam production for the manual control data
Bioenergy Insight
increase by approximately 21°C for each per cent decrease in O2. The swings in O2 shown in Figure 3a have a 5% variation which suggests a temperature swing larger than the effective temperature window of the SNCR control. Conclusion
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was 58,595lbs/hr; the average steam production for the auto control data was 67,129lbs/ hr. This is an increase of 14.6%, or approximately 1MW increase in electrical production. At $0.06 (€0.05) per kWh, this represents a potential increase in revenue of $480,000/year.
By contrast, the emissions based on the manual mode data in Figure 3a were likely to be very significant. The three pronounced dips in O2 represented in Figure 3a can be directly correlated to spikes in CO. This in particular is important because maximum achievable
An O2 controller makes fuel adjustments according to the amount of excess O2 in the flue gas. It can prevent drum pressure errors by adjusting the fuel rate before the error occurs
The data for these two examples were taken eight hours apart and no information is known about the possible differences in fuel quality. While improved stability will result in an increase in steam production, it cannot be stated with certainty that the improved boiler stability is responsible for the entire increase in steam production. Effect of swings on emissions For the auto mode data represented in Figure 3b the CO and NOx emissions were likely to be negligible or non-existent. The O2 was consistent, staying within 1% of the set point.
control technology (MACT) uses CO as a surrogate VOC as an indication that other hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) are present. The O2 spikes in Figure 3a can be related to increases in NOx production. The three dips in O2 can also be correlated to increases in furnace temperature and decreases in NOx control efficiency. Selective non-catalytic reduction (SNCR) is temperature dependent, having an effective window of approximately 777°C to 902°C for a O2 concentration of 5%3. SNCR control loses its effectiveness at temperatures above 955°C. Furnace temperatures
In order to optimise boiler efficiency and emissions control, the combustion process must be stable. The benefits of stable combustion are increased steam flow, increased efficiency, and the avoided costs associated with emissions violations. An O2-based fuel controller is designed to stabilise combustion. While a pressure-controlled system may be better than a manual system in some respects, the pressurecontrolled system is designed to correct an error in drum pressure only after it has already happened. In contrast, an O2 controller can predict and prevent the error from happening in the first place. Furthermore, a pressure-controlled system has no means of detecting problems in combustion such as bridging and/or piling. l
Footnotes and references: 1 For poor fuel conditions a pressure-based controller may be less effective than manual control 2 It is likely that the controller is actually making more than 1,000 speed changes in 100 minutes, however the slow data collection is unable to accurately represent all the changes. 3 Yonghun Park and Jerald Caton, The Use of Urea for Selective Non-Catalytic Removal (SNCR) of Nitric Oxides: Laboratory Biomass Boiler Performance and Emissions
For more information: This article was written by Andrew Gentile, P.E. and Sheldon Schultz, P.E. of Yanke Energy, www.yanke-energy.com
September/October 2013 • 63
Bioenergy feedstock preparation Don’t miss your chance
to feature in the November/December issue of Bioenergy Insight magazine
Dust extraction/ spark prevention
Biomass densification
How biomass densification overcomes handling difficulties, the density properties of solid biomass and what compacting technologies are available
The role of dust control systems, explosion detection equipment and risk assessment at the biomass plant
Biomass storage
Trading
The factors to consider when designing and building a biomass fuel storage facility
A look at the biomass supply chain and its key issues, markets and supply logistics
Bio-based chemicals/ biorefineries
Gasification
A review of gasification technologies and its promise for the future
In such a fast-developing market, when will the commercial-scale production of bio-based chemicals come to realisation? A look at some of the industry’s players and their strategy moving forward
Feedstock focus
Regional focus
Oil palm biomass
Asia
Bonus distribution:
Fuels of the Future 2014, Germany 4th Central European Biomass Conference, Austria Deadline for editorial and artwork: 1st November 2013 For advertising information and prices in North America contact Matt Weidner, +1 610 486 6525, mtw@weidcom.com For the rest of the globe contact Anisha Patel, +44 (0) 203 551 5752, anisha@bioenergy-news.com For editorial suggestions contact keeley@bioenergy-news.com, +44 (0)20 8687 4183 64 • September/October 2013
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4
5
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9 - 10 October 2013 Sat Sun 22 - 24 October 2013
6
7
29 - 30 October 2013
Biomass Power and Pellets Brazil
Sao Paulo, Brazil
7 - 8 November 2013
EABA Expo & Conference
Florence, Italy
11 - 13 November 2013
Wood Pellet Association of Canada
Vancouver, Canada
18 - 20 November 2013
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20 - 21 November 2013
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10
11
World Sustainable Energy Days World Biofuels Markets 2014
Amsterdam,12 the Netherlands
13
Austria
3 - 5 February 14 2014 26 - 28 February 2014
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4-6 March 2014
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International Biomass Conference & Expo
Florida, USA
24 - 26 March 2014
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16
Argus European Biomass Trading 2014
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18
19
20
1 - 4 April 2014
21
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12 - 14 May 2014
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27
3 - 5 June 2014
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