Industrial Thermal Energy & District Heating

April 15, 2013

USDA proposes to simplify REAP application process

BY USDA Found In:Pellets, Power, Thermal, Biogas, Advanced Fuels, ChemicalsThe USDA has proposed a series of changes to make it easier for agricultural producers and rural small businesses to apply for renewable energy and energy efficiency funding. READ MORE

April 12, 2013

IBCE tours District Energy St. Paul, Target Field

BY Kolby HoaglandFound In:Power, ThermalA dedicated group of biomass professionals braved winter storm Walda to visit District Energy St. Paul, Environmental Wood Supply (EWS), and Target Field on the final day of the 2013 International Biomass Conference & Expo. READ MORE

April 12, 2013

ClearSign, Grandeg to cooperate on pellet boilers

BY ClearSign Combustion Corp. Found In:Pellets, ThermalClearSign Combustion Corp. and Grandeg have announced their intention to enter into a development agreement for the integration of ClearSign's proprietary ECC technology into Grandeg's line of commercial wood pellet boilers. READ MORE

April 11, 2013

Ala. DNR division to seek bids for 25-year timber-sale contract

BY Erin VoegeleFound In:Pellets, Power, ThermalThe Alaska Department of Natural Resources Division of Forestry has announced a decision to proceed with a 25-year timber sale on state land near Tok, an region approximately 200 miles south-east of Fairbanks. READ MORE

April 11, 2013

Wood fiber study will support new private sector investment

BY Minnesota Power Found In:Pellets, Power, ThermalMinnesota Power and its regional economic development partners have commissioned a study of northeastern Minnesota's and northwestern Wisconsin's available forest resources. READ MORE

April 10, 2013

White House issues fiscal year 2014 budget request

BY Erin VoegeleFound In:Pellets, Power, Thermal, Biogas, Advanced Fuels, ChemicalsPresident Obama has sent his fiscal year 2014 budget to Congress. It includes increased spending on several renewable energy initiatives. READ MORE

April 09, 2013

Biomass industry heads discuss priorities, challenges, at IBCE

BY Anna SimetFound In:Pellets, Power, Thermal, Biogas, Advanced Fuels, ChemicalsThe emphasis of the April 9 International Biomass Conference & Expo general session in Minneapolis could be summed up in one word: policy. READ MORE

April 08, 2013

Iona Capital finances farm-scale anaerobic digestion plants

BY Iona Capital Found In:Power, Thermal, BiogasIona Capital has announced the successful completion of an investment into JFS Howla Hay Biogas Ltd., a joint venture company with developer JFS & Associates Ltd. and a family run Farm in North Yorkshire, England. READ MORE

April 05, 2013

Metsa Group invests in CHP bioenergy in Sweden

BY Metsa Group Found In:Power, ThermalKatrinefors Kraftvarme AB (KKAB), a 50/50 joint venture owned by Metsa Tissue, part of Metsa Group, and the local municipal energy company VänerEnergi AB, will build a new biomass combined-heat-and-power (CHP) plant in Mariestad, Sweden. READ MORE

April 04, 2013

USDA opens funding opportunity for REAP

BY Erin VoegeleFound In:Pellets, Power, Thermal, Biogas, Advanced Fuels, ChemicalsThe USDA has published a notice of funding availability for the Rural Energy for America Program for fiscal year 2013. The program provides financial assistance in the form of grants and guaranteed loans for renewable energy projects. READ MORE

April 04, 2013

DOE funds Bioenergy Research Centers for additional 5 years

BY U.S. DOE Found In:Pellets, Power, Thermal, Biogas, Advanced Fuels, ChemicalsThe U.S. DOE has announced it will fund its three Bioenergy Research Centers for an additional five-year period, subject to continued congressional appropriations. The centers were established by the department's Office of Science in 2007. READ MORE

April 04, 2013

Green Investment Bank awards funding for biomass boiler project

BY U.K. Green Investment Bank Found In:ThermalThe U.K. Green Investment Bank will provide GBP 18 million ($27.42 million) of funding towards a new energy innovation center for Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. READ MORE

April 02, 2013

Rep. Tonko to deliver Northeast Biomass Heating Expo keynote

BY Erin VoegeleFound In:Pellets, ThermalThe 2013 Northeast Biomass Heating Expo kicks off this week in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. This year's annual event will feature a keynote address from Rep. Paul Tonko, D-N.Y. on April 4, the first day of the expo. READ MORE

April 02, 2013

How it works: A Biomass Boiler

BY Chris Hanson Found In:Power, Thermal

April 01, 2013

Consultation on UK biomass rail charge ends

BY Anna SimetFound In:Pellets, Power, ThermalThe U.K. Office of Rail Regulation's consultation period on implementing a freight-specific biomass charge has ended, and the Rail Freight Group is urging the ORR not to proceed with proposals to increase charges paid for rail transport of biomass. READ MORE

March 28, 2013

Calif. Energy Commission awards funding to two biomass projects

BY Chris Hanson Found In:Power, Thermal, BiogasThe California Energy Commission awarded San Diego State University and Humboldt State University a combined $189,993 for their biomass research projects. One project focuses on electroporation pretreatment, the other on chemical energy production. READ MORE

March 28, 2013

Expanding the Typical Retrofit Mindset

BY Anna SimetFound In:Pellets, Power, Thermal

March 27, 2013

UK DECC publishes heat strategy, provides RHI scheme update

BY Erin VoegeleFound In:Pellets, ThermalThe U.K. Department of Energy & Climate Change has published its heat strategy and provided an update of the renewable heat incentive (RHI) scheme. The residential RHI scheme is expected to be up and running next spring. READ MORE

March 27, 2013

ARS researcher studies home heating with switchgrass pellets

BY USDA Agricultural Research Service, Ann Perry Found In:Pellets, ThermalStudies by a USDA scientist have provided a complete cost-benefit breakdown of using switchgrass pellets, which are potentially a cheaper source of energy, instead of fuel oil to heat homes and businesses in the Northeast. READ MORE

March 27, 2013

European Commission publishes progress report on RED

BY Erin VoegeleFound In:Pellets, Power, Thermal, Biogas, Advanced FuelsOn March 27 the European Commission published its first Renewable Energy Progress Report under the Renewable Energy Directive, showing that the EU as a whole is on its trajectory towards the 2020 RED targets. READ MORE

March 26, 2013

Pellet stoves make huge gains in market share

BY Alliance for Green Heat Found In:Pellets, ThermalIn 1999, pellet stoves only had an 11 percent share of the stove market. Nine years later in 2008, they had a nearly 43 percent market share. READ MORE

March 22, 2013

BNEF report more accurately compares renewable, fossil resources

BY Erin VoegeleFound In:Pellets, Power, Thermal, Advanced FuelsA new report published by Bloomberg New Energy Finance analyzed wind and bioenergy resources in the U.S. and Brazil using a lifetime production method, allowing for more accurate comparisons to oil and gas reserves. READ MORE

March 22, 2013

DONG Energy, AVA form biomass district heat agreement

BY DONG Energy Found In:Pellets, Power, ThermalDONG Energy and AffaldVarme Aarhus (AVA) have agreed on a new biomass-based heat agreement for the period until 2030. It will mean that Unit 3 of the Studstrup power station in Aarhus will have to be converted for firing with wood pellets. READ MORE

March 22, 2013

Kedco provides update of Enfield Biomass CHP project

BY Erin VoegeleFound In:Power, ThermalIreland-based Kedco plc has issued an update on its proposed 12 MW Enfield Biomass combined-heat-and-power plant under development in North London. According to Kedco, significant progress had been made on the project to date. READ MORE

March 22, 2013

Europe Helps Bioenergy Target Coal

BY Kolby HoaglandFound In:Pellets, Power, Thermal