January 2015 News and Matters of Interest

Remember to check our Highlights for new postings on other areas of Teru Talk.

Biomass Innovation Centre to Host Bioeconomy Strategy Consultation Series

The Biomass Innovation Centre (BIC) of Nipissing University, Ontario, Canada has scheduled a series of six half-day regional consultation sessions in February and March addressing development of the Northern Ontario Bioeconomy Strategy. BIC partnered with the Union of Ontario Indians in drafting the Strategy, and the two organizations now seek public stakeholder input. Each session will provide an overview of the Northern Ontario Bioeconomy Strategy, a discussion of regional opportunities and barriers, identify potential pilot projects for each region, and present a guest speaker. The Strategy identifies and explores major pillars within the bioeconomy: Jurisdiction Supply; Bioenergy and Biofuels; Biochemicals and Biocomposites; and Traditional Foods and Medicines. The hosts are encouraging individuals from the following sectors to participate: Municipalities; First Nations; Economic developers; Sustainable Forest License holders; Wood processing facilities; Forest harvesters and contractors; Bioenergy and bioproducts sectors; Greenhouse operators; Forest equipment providers; Distributors of forest products or bioproducts; Forest, biomass or renewable energy consultants; Non-profit or community groups. On-line registration is required. 01/30/2015

AnaeCo Granted Two Australian Patents for DiCOM Bioconversion Process

Australia based AnaeCo Limited has announced receipt of official notification of the issuance of two new patents by the Australian Patent Office. The two patents for inventions comprising part of AnaeCo’s next generation organics processing technology, the DiCOM™ bioconversion process, are Pressurized Recirculation of Organic Material and Inerting Method in Digestion. AnaeCo currently has twelve inventions protected by patents, or ‘patent families’. In addition there are two inventions at the ‘provisional patent’ stage. The first two patent families, covering the DiCOM™ Bioconversion Process and Pressure Aeration System, were registered in 1999 and 2000 respectively. AnaeCo holds nine granted national patents (Australia, United States, Canada, China and Japan) and has patents pending in the EU for these two inventions. 01/30/2015

Vencor International Brings First Torrefaction Machine Online

Colorado based Vencor International, Inc has announced that the first torrefaction unit utilizing recently acquired technology has been completed and is now online. The machine is the first of its kind and is capable of producing 30,000 tons of torrefied wood annually. As a result of the Company's recent acquisition of torrefaction technology, the machines manufactured by Virginia based Torretherm, LLC are produced for a fraction of the cost of other machines with similar capabilities. The reduced cost of the machines allows Vencor to manufacture its torrefied wood products at a price necessary to compete in the alternative energy marketplace. James Gaspard, CEO of Vencor: "We are pleased to have the first machine completed and in operation. Our plan is to have three of these machines operating during 2015. We are now moving very aggressively to capture as much business as possible and we couldn't have done it without the Torretherm machine. We recently announced that we have received a Purchase Order to produce 3,000 tons of torrefied wood called Bio-coal. This order will be produced using the new machine." 01/30/2015

SeAB Energy Selected by RBS Innovation Gateway for Micro-AD Trial

United Kingdom (UK) based SeAB Energy Ltd successfully pitched its patented approach to anaerobic digestion to the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and was awarded the opportunity to place its micro-scale system within the RBS' Innovation Gateway for real-time testing. SEaB Energy was one of over 140 companies from across the UK who submitted an idea to the RBS Innovation Gateway when the bank launched the project in March of 2014. The RBS Innovation Gateway, which is led by Marcela Navarro, Head of Customer Innovation at RBS, has three aims; to help RBS save more energy, water and waste, to nurture new, brilliant innovations and to help local inventors take their ideas to market. RBS is working with 2degrees Ltd to deliver the Innovation Gateway on an on-going basis, and is accepting registrations for participation. 01/30/2015

UN Declares 2015 as International Year of Soils, IBI Highlights Biochar

The 68th United Nations General Assembly passed Resolution A/RES/68/232, officially declaring 2015 as the International Year of Soils (IYS), and nominating the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) for program implementation with governments and the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification. The IYS 2015 program aims to increase awareness and understanding of the importance of soil for food security and essential ecosystem functions. The International Biochar Initiative (IBI) January 2015 newsletter makes a call for IYS participation, noting: "... this year provides the biochar community a good opportunity to highlight biochar’s potential role in creating and maintaining healthy soils. IBI encourages regional biochar groups and biochar supporters to host local talks on biochar and soils and to reach out to media to highlight the role of biochar in sustaining soil health. We invite you to send us any information on your work in relation to the IYS 2015 for posting on our website." 01/30/2015 

Stobart Signs 14-Yr Supply Contract for 40MWe Biomass Plant in Wales

Stobart Group Ltd has signed a 14-year index-linked agreement with Glennmont Partners to supply fuel for a proposed 40MWe waste wood-fuelled biomass plant near Margam, South Wales. Glennmont Partners completed purchase of the project from ECO2 Ltd and Western Logs Group on behalf of its dedicated clean energy fund in a £160m deal. The purchase and upcoming construction of the project is being supported by debt arranged by Deutsche Bank with the support of Eksport Kredit Fonden, the export credit agency of Denmark. Stobart Energy will source, process, and supply 250,000 tonnes annually of recycled waste wood to the plant over 14 years, equating to 3.5 million tonnes over the life of the agreement. Stobart Energy's Transport business will also be responsible for delivering 250 loads of biomass fuel each week. The plant was developed and will be managed by ECO2 Ltd (developer of other biomass projects at Sleaford, Snetterton, Port Talbot and Brigg). The build period will be 24-26 months, with commissioning scheduled for early 2017 and operations to commence in March 2017. 01/28/2015

RSB Launches Public Consultation on P&Cs for Biomaterials Certification

The Switzerland based Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials (RSB) has announced that the 60-day public consultation is open for revision of the Principles & Criteria (P&Cs), the core of the RSB certification system for sustainable production of biomass and biomaterials. The comments received will feed into the discussions among RSB members over the forthcoming Version 3.0 of the P&Cs, which is expected to be approved by the RSB Assembly of Delegates at the end of 2015, following the ISEAL Standard-setting Code. The following documents are available for review and comment: RSB Principles & Criteria, Guidance on P&Cs, Use of Terms, and Glossary. An online webform is provided to submit your comments, or you may submit your comments to <>. The deadline for submitting comments is March 28, 2015. 01/28/2015

B&W Vølund Contracts to Construct 40MWe Biomass Plant in Wales

The North Carolina headquartered Babcock & Wilcox Company has announced that its Denmark-based subsidiary, Babcock & Wilcox Vølund A/S, has been awarded contracts by Margam Green Energy Ltd. for more than $200 million to engineer, procure, and operate a state-of-the-art biomass power plant in Margam, Wales. B&W Vølund’s consortium partner, Interserve Construction Ltd., will build the plant. The plant will be designed to burn 335,000 tons of wood waste biomass annually and generate approximately 40 megawatts of electricity (MWe). The facility also will be capable of using municipal waste as a fuel source in the future. The plant will feature advanced environmental controls designed by B&W Vølund and its Götaverken Miljö AB subsidiary, including a dry flue gas desulfurization system (dry FGD), fabric filter baghouse, continuous emissions monitoring equipment and an advanced DynaGrate® dynamic fuel combustion system. Engineering is underway in B&W Vølund’s Denmark offices. Construction is scheduled to be completed by the second quarter of 2017. 01/28/2015

Greenbelt Resources to Manufacture EcoPAS Vapor-Capture System

Paso Robles, California based Greenbelt Resources Corporation has announced its selection by Pasadena company EcoPAS LLC to manufacture the company's passive alcohol capture system (PAS) for recovery of ethanol vapor from wineries. The PAS device captures ethanol vapor emissions released during commercial-scale winery operations; a portion of this recovered resource may serve as feedstock for Greenbelt’s modular distillation and dehydration systems. EcoPAS recently completed a successful pilot test at a commercial winery in Santa Barbara County. The full-scale PAS will be utilized in a soon-to-be-announced commercial winery during the grape harvest this summer and fall. Integrated with EcoPAS' other winery monitoring systems, additional value is generated from tradable emission credits, relaxed regulatory production caps and saleable by-products. The 2015 goal of EcoPAS is to become designated as a Best Available Control Technology (BACT) to assist in smog reduction from winery emissions, while retaining the otherwise lost vapors for their commercial value. 01/28/2015  

Innovate UK to Host Webinar for Agri-Tech Catalyst Round 4 Funding

A networking and briefing event exploring the United Kingdom's recently opened Round 4 of the £70m Agri-Tech Catalyst funding scheme is scheduled for February 24, 2015 in Birmingham. The United Kingdom's (UK) Innovate UK program, previously known as the Technology Strategy Board, maintains numerous Knowledge Transfer Networks (KTN) focused on various aspects of UK socio-economic development; the KTN Agri-Tech team is hosting the informational networking event. The Agri-Tech Catalyst will fund proposals relating to (1) primary crop and livestock production, including aquaculture, (2) non-food uses of crops including ornamentals (for example, for biomass feedstock), (3) food security and nutrition challenges in international development, and (4) challenges in downstream food processing, provided the solution lies in primary production. Round 4 in this competitive grant program proposal submittal dates in April 2015 and June 2015, spanning early stage, industrial research, and late stage solicitations designed to help businesses and researchers develop innovative solutions to global challenges in the agricultural technology (‘agri-tech') sector. The briefing will also be available via webcast. 01/27/2015

City of Palo Alto and TerraPass Partner to Provide Carbon Offset Program

The City of Palo Alto, California, has contracted with TerraPass to launch and maintain the city's voluntary PaloAltoGreen Gas carbon emissions offset program for the next three years. PaloAltoGreen Gas is the first Green-e® Climate certified natural gas offset program offered by a municipal utility. Utility customers in the city can add a small premium to their monthly natural gas bill to help fund greenhouse gas emissions reduction projects. The Green-e® Climate certified program bundles a customer's regular natural gas purchases with carbon offsets that reduce the amount of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere. Through PaloAltoGreen Gas, carbon offsets are sourced from livestock methane capture projects, such as the Green Valley Dairy in Krakow, Wisconsin. Green Valley Dairy uses an anaerobic digester to capture methane as the manure breaks down. The methane is destroyed when it is burned as a fuel to produce electricity that is used onsite. The project is certified by the Climate Action Reserve. Green-e® Climate certifies the carbon offsets being sold through the PaloAltoGreen Gas program. TerraPass is a Just Energy Group company that provides sustainable solutions to climate change. Green-e® Climate is an independent certification program for greenhouse gas emissions reductions (carbon offsets) sold in the voluntary market. 01/27/2015 

UPM BioVerno Renewable Diesel Receives the Finnish Key Flag Symbol

UPM BioVerno, UPM's renewable wood-based diesel has received yet another acknowledgement when it was granted the Finnish Key Flag Symbol. The Key Flag Symbol can be granted to products that are manufactured in Finland and have a domestic origin degree of over 50 per cent. The 50-year-old Finnish Key Flag Symbol is very well known in Finland by over 90 per cent of consumers. UPM BioVerno's degree of domestic origin is well over 50 per cent; for example, most of the raw material used in the production is Finnish crude tall oil that UPM gets from its pulp mills as a residue. UPM BioVerno diesel is only produced in Lappeenranta, Finland. The renewable diesel reduces greenhouse gas emissions significantly when compared to fossil diesel produced from imported crude oil. UPM BioVerno is a high-quality fuel that has been proven to suit all diesel engines as well as traditional diesel fuel. 01/26/2015

PHG Energy Acquires MaxWest Gasification Plant And Patents

Tennessee based PHG Energy LLC (PHGE) has officially acquired multiple intellectual property assets and a municipal gasification plant due to the bankruptcy of Florida-based MaxWest Environmental Systems, Inc PHGE President Tom Stanzione: "They had made a very significant investment in development of new technology to cleanly dispose of biosolids through gasification. What they successfully accomplished has real value to a company like ours as we look at ways to deploy new and varied methods and systems in the marketplace." The US Environmental Protection Agency made an official determination in December 2013 that the MaxWest thermal system is a gasifier and not an incinerator. The MaxWest company began in 2008 and ceased operation of its Sanford, Florida, installation that served three cities in the region in May of 2013. Assets purchased in the bankruptcy auction included previously issued patent work as well as in- progress intellectual works, the Sanford gasification plant, and other confidential technology, financial information and essential data owned by the company. The future of the biosolids gasification plant in Sanford has not yet been determined. 01/26/2015  

CEC Releases Notices of Proposed Awards for Distributed Gen, Bioenergy

The California Energy Commission (CEC) has posted two Notices of Proposed Awards (NPOAs) for PON-14-303, "Advancing Cleaner, Less Costly, More Reliable Distributed Generation to Enable Customer Solutions and Zero-Net Energy Communities", and PON-14-305, Electric Program Investment Charge, Demonstrating Bioenergy Solutions That Support California's Industries, the Environment, and the Grid. PON-14-303 was developed to fund up to $19,500,000 in applied research and development activities that will increase the technical performance and value of distributed biopower and photovoltaic technologies. Two of the four categories addressed bioenergy. Successful proposals in Group 1: Develop Modular Bioenergy Systems for Forest/Urban Interface Areas were submitted by West Biofuels, Interra Energy and All Power Labs. For Group 2: Develop Waste-to-Energy Bioenergy Systems, proposed awards will go to Taylor Energy, Southern California Gas, Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, and InnoSepra. PON-14-305 also divided funding into four groups. Group 1 awardees included California University at Irvine and Recology for bioenergy emissions control advances. No awards were recommended for Group 2, fuel handling and delivery. Group 3 focused on biochemical conversion, and six awards were proposed: Lakeview Farms Dairy, West Star North Dairy, Organic Energy Solutions, Kennedy/Jenks, Biogas and Electric, and Lawrence Berkeley National Labs. Group 4 addressed thermochemical conversion and one award was proposed, for the Watershed Research & Training Center's North Fork Community Power Forest Bioenergy facility. Funding of proposed projects is subject to approval by the Energy Commission Board and execution of a grant agreement. 01/24/2015  

ABC Presents Upcoming Webinar on Reinventing Biogas Financing

The American Biogas Council (ABC) has announced a webinar scheduled for January 28, 2015 on the subject of "Reinventing Biogas Financing". To build more biogas projects, most project developers need both access to low cost financing and an assessment of where market opportunities lie. ABC's newly formed Finance Working Group has organized the presentation to take a fresh look at financing possibilities. Featured topics will include past financing practices, tangible financing opportunities to be drawn from the federal Biogas Opportunities Roadmap, an examination of new and innovative financing strategies, and the application of new project development tools. The webinar is free to members (email ABC for your pass), non-member fee is $89.00. 01/23/2015

ANDRITZ Provides Woodyard Equipment to Two US Biomass Pellet Plants

Austria headquartered ANDRITZ has announced receipt of an order from Maryland, US based Enviva to supply woodyard equipment, engineering, and field services for two biomass pellet plants in Ahoskie and Northampton, North Carolina. The Ahoskie facility is Enviva's flagship with a 370,000 metric ton capacity that began operations in November 2011. Enviva's Northampton facility has a production capacity of 500,000 metric tons per year which are manufactured from a mix of untreated raw wood, waste wood and residuals. ANDRITZ will supply several products for manufacturing high-quality mini-chips from round timber at high production rates. At the heart of the wood processing line is the HHQ30 chipper with TurnKnife system, a combination of chipper and knife system that produces the highest percentage of accept chips and the thinnest chip on the market. 01/23/2015

St. Landry Parish Approves $2.8M Landfill Gas to Biofuel Expansion

The St. Landry Parish Solid Waste District in Louisiana has announced its approval of expansion of the Opelousas Landfill biogas to biofuel conversion plant during their regular meeting last month. The St. Landry Solid Waste District Vehicle Fuel Project will be expanded to include an additional system and a remote CNG fueling station. BioCNG, LLC, which partnered with the District to develop the original system, has been selected to design, install and commission this "mother-daughter" BioCNG station format- the first of its kind in the country. The expansion is part of a contract between St. Landry Solid Waste and Progressive Waste Solutions. In exchange for continuation of its existing waste hauling contract with the District, Progressive Waste has agreed to purchase new CNG-powered trucks, and will have access to the increased BioCNG generated from the expanded system. The expanded project will also provide BioCNG fuel to St Landry Parish residents. 01/22/2015

Due 03/18/2015: Peak Capacity Power Proposals to APS in Arizona

Arizona Public Service Company (APS) has announced that it will release a Request for Proposals (RFP) for dispatchable capacity to meet peak capacity demand. The RFP will be released on January 30th with a bid submittal deadline of March 18, 2015. APS is seeking approximately 300 megawatts of peaking capacity, which may be bid as a power purchase agreement or a build, own and transfer structure. Proposals must demonstrate that projects can achieve commercial operation by the summer of 2018 or 2019. The entire RFP process will be monitored and reviewed by a third-party independent monitor. Proposals will be evaluated and compared to an APS self-build option to expand the existing Ocotillo Power Plant site located in Tempe, Ariz. Registration with the PowerAdvocate platform is required; contact Sibia Manzanarez at <> for additional information. 01/22/2015

New Remanufacturing Research Hub Opens in Scotland

The Scottish Institute for Remanufacture officially opened today (January 21) with a mission to help grow remanufacturing businesses in Scotland and to develop an international research institute. The goal of the Institute is to drive the circular economy in Scotland, in which products are made over and over again, and nothing is wasted. Based at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, the Institute has been backed by more than £2m from the Scottish Government and private sector businesses and is the first of its kind in Europe. Remanufacturing describes a range of activities through which used products or components are rebuilt and returned to the marketplace as equivalent new products. Estimated to be worth £2.4 billion to the United Kingdom's economy, remanufacturing is already common in various industrial manufacturing processes including engines, pumps, and gearboxes in the aerospace, automotive and energy sectors. 01/21/2015

Edeniq Secures $16 Million in Funding for Cellulosic Sugar Production