Biomass Digest» wood

US Forest Service grants $1.7m to expand use of waste wood

Jim Lane — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 14:58:48 +0000

In Arizona and New Mexico, the US Forest Service has granted $1.7 million to small business in order for them to expand their use of waste wood from National Forest land for energy production.
The companies in Arizona receiving funding include Cooley Forest Products in Phoenix, Arizona Log and timberworks in Eagar and San Carlos Apache Timber Products. The New Mexico firms are J.L. Shavings in Tularosa and Restoration Solutions in Corona. The projects required a 20% match with own funds.

Clenergen acquires 18MW biomass power plant in India

Jim Lane — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 12:26:08 +0000

In India, Clenergen has agreed to acquire an 18MW biomass-fired power plant located 40km from Chennai, subject to bank approvals of the company’s assumption of previous outstanding debt and loans.

The facility, which runs on wood waste, was upgraded from 12MW in 2008 and sells its electricity to the local utility via short-term power supply contacts at prices ranging between $0.13 and $0.16 per KWh. It is anticipated that a cost savings of up to 30% will be achieved from the use of Clenergen’s own propriety biomass feedstock which the Company plans to implement over time, as its energy crop plantations production capacity grows.

The Last Word on Biomass: “What was overlooked was that some ”waste” — like sawdust — was actually being sold.”

admin — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 20:29:29 +0000

Charleston (W.Va.) Daily Mail, on misguided congressional economics: “Congressmen should act like physicians when they tend the national economy — and first do no harm. But over and over again, legislative prescriptions imposed by policymakers in Washington have poisoned the economy. Take the Biomass Crop Assistance Program, a half-billion-dollar subsidy program included in the 2008 farm bill. The provision encourages sawmills and lumber companies to sell their ”waste” for conversion into biofuels. What was overlooked was that some ”waste” — like sawdust — was actually being sold, in this case to composite wood manufacturers. They make panels for home entertainment centers and kitchen cabinets. In other words, this waste was not being wasted. But with the subsidies, the Washington Post reported, sawmills can get twice as much selling it for biofuel as they can by selling it to their traditional buyers.”

Wisconsin PSC approves switch of Ashland plant from coal to biomass

admin — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 20:34:52 +0000

In Wisconsin, the state Public Service Commission OK’d a proposal by Xcel Energy to switch its Ashland plant from coal-fired power to forest-residue gasification by 2012. The conversion project at the Bay Front Power Plant will cost $58.1 million, according to the utility’s plan, and will utilize wood waste from logging operations.

The utility already has two wood gasification boilers in use at Ashland, and the cost of conversion covers the third boiler, and would convert the entire 60 MW facility to renewable power generation, enough to serve 50-60,000 homes. The state PSC also noted that the proposal would allow the plant to switch from out-of-state feedstock to local resources.