Author Archive for Meghan Sapp
Ohio energy credits prices could fall 86 percent by 2014
In Ohio, renewable energy credits (REC) are among the most expensive in the country at $35/MWh but those prices could fall into the single digits, as low as $5/MWh by 2014, when the recently approved project to switch two coal-fired burners to biomass at the Burger plant comes online. Ohio currently has 9.72MW of [...]
Verso Paper Mill adds biomass capacity in Maine
In Maine, the Verso Paper Mill is planning to upgrade its biomass boiler and install another steam turbine at its mill in Bucksport, a multi-million project that will eventually allow the plant to produce extra electricity for sale to the grid. The project is in the late stages of development but still requires approval of [...]
Taylor Biomass Energy signs REC agreement for 20.2MW biomass plant
In New York, Taylor Biomass Energy has signed an agreement with the New York Power Authority for the purchase of renewable energy credits and ‘other environmental attributes’—who will then re-sell them on to the New York Port Authority—from the company’s proposed 20.2MW biomass-fired power plant. The plant’s construction is set to begin in mid-November and [...]
UK waste wood biomass gains permits
In the UK, planning permission has been granted for a 12MW gasification power plant in Lincolnshire that will use 140,000 metric tons of waste wood and biosolids from wastewater as a feedstock. Possibly the first of its kind to be approved in the UK, the project is a joint venture of Alternative Use Group and [...]
The BioEnergy Atlas debuts from NREL
In Colorado, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory has unveiled its BioEnergy Atlas that allows users to layer related bioenergy data onto a single map to gather information on biomass feedstocks, biopower and biofuels potential, production and distribution. BioEnergy Atlas is an improvement over current tools in that it enables more timely and accurate analysis of [...]
The Last Word: “This is a huge loss to the local economy.”
Seymour Crawford: Fine Gael TD for Cavan-Monaghan: “This is a huge loss to the local economy. The siting of such a plant in the Republic would have had a huge advantage for farmers in the Republic, especially all engaged in the poultry industry, through the disposal of waste and the recycling to create energy.”
American Wind [...]
Iowa publishes biomass harvest, infrastructure, storage report
In Iowa, the Council for Science and Technology has released a report outlining the infrastructure requirements needed to create biomass supply chains for energy. They conclude that the it is necessary to develop new methods and systems to routinely and reliably harvest, handle, store, and transport large quantities of bulky materials of varying characteristics.
“There is [...]
Japan sets 50 percent renewables target for utilities by 2020
In Japan, the government has outlined guidelines to help it reach its goals to halve CO2 emissions from homes and boost the share of electricity from non-fossil fuels to 70 percent of the total from 34 percent currently. Major electric power companies will be required to generate more than half of their power output from [...]
U Montana explores $13M biomass power project
In Montana, the University of Montana in Missoula is exploring the installation of biomass power for steam to reduce the school’s natural gas usage by 60%. The state of Montana granted the university $7 million in Qualified Energy Conservation Bonds for the $13 million project and the school will seek its own bonds to fund [...]
$14 million biomass boiler slated for Ohio’s Chillicothe Veterans Affairs Medical Center
In Ohio, the Chillicothe Veterans Affairs Medical Center is installing a $14 million biomass boiler to power all of its electricity and steam requirements. The funding comes of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and is the first biomass project of its kind at a VA hospital.
Using wood chips as the boiler’s fuel source is [...]
