Spanner RE2 has announced it will install 10 biomass combined-heat-and-power (CHP) plants, including peripherals, at a major corporation in Nagano, Japan, later this year. The plants will have a combined capacity for 490 kWe and 1.1 MWth.
The U.S. EPA has announced it is seeking nominations for scientific experts to serve on its Science Advisory Board and four SAB standing committees, including the SAB Agricultural Science Committee.
The U.S. EPA recently announced that it was going to provide some relief to the wood stove industry by reopening and modifying the Obama-era regulations that would have set stricter emission limits on stoves and boilers in 2020.
Explosions in the biomass industry are constant threats that have the potential to harm employees, stop production or destroy an entire facility
The U.S. and Canadian pellet feedstock price indices increased in early 2018, driven mainly by higher demand for pellets in Europe and Asia, according to the North American Wood Fiber Review.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration has released the July edition of its Short-Term Energy Outlook, predicting that nonhydropower renewables will provide more than 10 percent of electricity generation this year, up from slightly from 2017.
Fire risk within the wood pellet industry is high. While this raises numerous commercial, health, safety and environmental issues for operators within the industry, it also raises insurance questions.
Development of international standards for solid biofuels advanced at a recent meeting of the ISO committee responsible for that work, according to the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers.
The ITA has renewed its Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Advisory Committee and is soliciting nominations for membership. Renewable fuels, including liquid biofuels and biomass pellets, are among the goods addressed by the committee.
The U.K. Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has released first quarter 2018 energy statistics, reporting that the renewables' share of electricity generation increased to a record high of 30.1 percent during the quarter.
Since it upgraded half of the power station near Selby in North Yorkshire to use sustainable biomass instead of coal, Drax has transformed its business to become Europe's biggest decarbonization project.
On July 5, President Trump announced the resignation of Scott Pruitt as the administrator of the U.S. EPA. Deputy Administrator Andrew Wheeler is set to assume the role of acting administrator of the EPA on July 9.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration has filed a notice in the Federal Register requesting a three-year extension of data collection related to its monthly Densified Biomass Fuel Report, along with certain changes to the collection form.
On June 27, Canadian pellet producer Pinnacle Renewable Holdings Inc. announced that it has entered into two new long-term, take-or-pay off-take contracts with customers in South Korea and Japan.
On June 28, the U.S. Senate passed its version of the 2018 Farm Bill with a strong bipartisan 86-11 vote. The legislation, titled “The Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018,� includes mandatory funding for Energy Title programs.
Drax's plan to demonstrate a new carbon capture and storage technology at its power station in the United Kingdom has global implications.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration recently released data showing that U.S. manufacturers produced approximately 650,000 tons of densified biomass fuel in March, with sales reaching 600,000 tons during the month.
On June 18, the U.S. Department of Energy announced $40 million in funding for 31 projects to advance research in the development of microbes as practical platforms for the production of biofuels and other bioproducts from renewable resources.
On June 14, negotiators from the European Commission, the European Parliament and the European Council reached a deal on a revised Renewable Energy Directive (REDII) that sets new targets for renewables.
The Senate ag committee has approved its version of the 2018 Farm Bill with bipartisan support. The legislation includes an amendment offered by Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., that restores mandatory funding to Farm Bill Energy Title programs.
A new steam drying technique for wood developed through the EU-funded SteamBio project could significantly reduce transportation costs for biomass, according to the German-based Fraunhofer Institute for Interfacial Engineering and Biotechnology.
Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., has introduced legislation would allow carbon utilization technologies and biogas production to access USDA loan guarantees, research programs and rural development loans.
On June 7, Valmet announced it will supply a biomass-fired 75 MWe CFB boiler and flue gas cleaning system to Air Water & Energia Power Onahama Corp.'s Onahama Plant in Japan. The plant will be primarily fueled by wood pellets and palm kernel shells.
The Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry released its version of the 2018 Farm Bill on June 8. The bill reauthorizes Energy Title programs, but provides insufficient funding to ensure their success, according to the AgEC.
A coalition that includes the Russian Direct Investment Fund and JBICIG Partners have agreed to consider potential investments in Russia's wood pellet industry. Construction on a 135,000-tom-per-year facility is expected to begin this year.
On June 7, the U.S. EPA issued an advanced notice of proposed rulemaking, announcing the agency is soliciting public input on whether and how to change the way it considers costs and benefits in making regulatory decisions.
Drax Power Station June 6 took a step closer to achieving its coal-free ambitions by taking its fourth coal-fired power generating unit offline as part of a planned outage program as it prepares to convert it to run on sustainable biomass.
Illinois-based Walz Scale has developed new volumetric measurement systems for the biomass industry. The non-contact laser based measurement systems provide high accuracy volume measurement for trucks and conveyor belts.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration recently released data showing that U.S. manufacturers produced approximately 570,000 tons of densified biomass fuel in February, with sales reaching 640,000 tons during the month.
On June 4, a group of eight members of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry sent a letter to committee chair Sen. Pat Roberts and ranking member Sen. Debbie Stabenow expressing support for the Farm Bill energy title programs.
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