Conference panel: Southeast woody biomass opportunities

While wood-based electricity production has been practiced for well over a century, there are still lessons to be learned. At the Southeast Biomass Conference & Trade Show, which is being held Nov. 2-4 in Atlanta, hear experienced industry professionals discuss how the wood energy industry and fuel procurement market have evolved over time, and about the opportunities they offer in the Southeast.

Dean McCraw, president of McCraw Energy, will participate in the panel Forest Derived Biomass Resources in the Southeast and share details of his real-life experience in the forest residue-to-energy sector. “Biomass harvested from the Southeast’s vast forest resources is nothing new,” he said. “In the ‘80s, I managed the harvesting of forest biomass for the world’s largest paper mill. In my presentation I’ll discuss the lessons learned, including mistakes, from this experience, how these lessons can influence current plans for development of biomass energy in the Southeast, and how my firm can help those new to the business avoid feedstock supply blunders.”  

Claude Yearwood, vice president and chief operating officer at Price Biostock, will explore factors that affect the price of wood, feedstock processing options and their comparable advantages and disadvantages.“There are many lessons to be learned from the established forest products industry about locating certified supplies of woody biomass, harvesting sustainably, supplying and preparing feedstock, and converting residues into marketable products like pulp, paper, pellets, liquid combustible fuels and green power,” Yearwood said. “In this presentation, I’ll discuss how some of the fundamentals of feedstock procurement, logistics, storage and preparation are addressed as key considerations for siting and developing wood-based conversion facilities for the production of bioenergy.”

Joining McCraw and Yearwood will be Peter Stewart, president and CEO of Forest2Market, who talk discuss ways in which wood bioenergy markets—specifically electricity generation—are maturing in the South and Raymond Burelle of AE&E Inc., who will review several electricity-generating projects completed by AE&E that were designed specifically to use renewable fuels including paper mill sludge, bark and construction and demolition debris.

The panel will be moderated by Lee Freeman Sr., solutions manager at Fiber & Energy, Lanworth.

To register for the Southeast Biomass Conference & Trade Show, visit http://se.biomassconference.com.