Valmet has delivered a range of technology to Metsä Group’s newly started bioproducts mill in the Finnish town of Äänekoski. According to a statement from Valmet, the company’s technology will maximise the use of bioenergy and make the pulp mill totally fossil fuel-free. The technology supplied to the mill includes a recovery boiler, pulp... [Read More]

Norway-based secondary fuels specialist Geminor has secured a major contract with UK-based Hull City Council. The agreement, which is for an initial seven-year term (with extensions for a further three and two-year period), will see Geminor implement an integrated waste processing solution to divert more than 80% of the northeast England-based region’s municipal... [Read More]

The Bioenergy Insight Conference, a world-leading bioenergy event, will be held in Edinburgh, Scotland, on 4 and 5 October 2017, covering the whole bioenergy supply chain. The show will focus on all the new developments and the latest challenges. Topics covered in the seminars include the global biomass market, financing bioenergy projects and ensuring sustainability... [Read More]

Passenger planes in the UK could be powered by biofuels made from waste under a scheme to cut emissions, according to the UK’s Department for Transport (DfT). In an announcement, the DfT said that it was keen to cut carbon emissions, which contribute to climate change. Aircraft and lorries powered by waste fuels could use up to 90% less carbon than with fossil fuels. Trials... [Read More]

Researchers in Zurich have identified all the genes required by bacterium to use methanol – a common product of biogas plants – as a food source. It is hoped that the new insights will help scientists advance the use of bacteria in the field of biotechnology. A common focus for chemists is determining how small carbon molecules such as methane and methanol... [Read More]

A new study by scientists from Cornell University has looked into the possibility of coupling anaerobic digestion (AD) with hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) for the conversion of food waste into energy products. Hydrothermal liquefaction converts food waste into oil and an aqueous phase rich in carbon. This hydrothermal aqueous phase may then be converted into biomethane... [Read More]

Leading US advocates for advanced liquid and gasified biofuels have united to urge the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to stand behind President Trump’s commitment to driving investment in the next generation of ‘homegrown’ fuels under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). Leaders of the American Biogas Council, Advanced Biofuels Business Council,... [Read More]

Bioenergy Infrastructure Group (BIG) has announced substantial additions its portfolio by acquiring 20 assets from the UK Green Investment Bank. The assets included as part of the transaction are four biomass and waste-to-energy facilities, 15 anaerobic digestion plants and a materials recovery facility, which combined have a generating capacity of more than 70MW. BIG... [Read More]

Glennmont Partners has completed the £150 million refinancing of the Sleaford Renewable Energy plant. Located in Lincolnshire, UK, Sleaford REP is a 40MWe straw-fired biomass plant. In operation since 2014, the plant is operated by Burmeister & Wain Scandinavian Contractor (BWSC). It provides free heat to the local community under long-term offtake contracts. Glennmont... [Read More]

A consortium led by Macquarie has completed the acquisition of the UK’s Green Investment Bank. Macquarie Group (Macquarie), Macquarie European Infrastructure Fund 5 (MEIF5) and Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS) have paid the UK government £2.3 billion to purchase the institution, which was set up in 2012 to fund renewable and low-carbon projects. According... [Read More]

Sweden has launched a ‘Bioenergy Day’ to promote how bioenergy is benefitting the country. The day was unveiled on 21 August. It is specifically aimed at educating the national media on the benefits of bioenergy. The Swedish bioenergy day is part of a broader pan-European campaign coordinated from Brussels by Aebiom that will be replicated in most EU-28... [Read More]

Scientists in Mexico have developed a method to convert the prickly pear cactus into biogas, AFP reports. The distinctive, bright green cactus is farmed on a massive scale in Mexico, for use in drinks, medicines and shampoo. In May 2017, a pilot project was launched at Milpa Alta’s cactus market, which produces up to 200,000 tons a year of prickly pear cactus. Up... [Read More]

Frozen vegetable company Greenyard Frozen will receive new Entrade biomass energy units that will provide clean electricity, heating and cooling for two UK sites. Entrade is a Germany-headquarted biomass equipment specialist. Thirty-two new biomass units will replace old gas boilers and electric heating units at Greenyard Frozen’s operations at Kings Lynn and Boston,... [Read More]

A family run farm in Wales has received a six-figure financial package to purchase a new biomass boiler, according to Farming UK. The funding from HSBC will allow the farm to significantly reduce its fossil fuel consumption while increasing its grain yield. The new biomass boiler will provide Tythegston Farm in Glamorgan with a sustainable heating solution to boost the... [Read More]

Scientists at Clemson University have received a federal grant to evaluate the effectiveness of producing biofuels to mitigate climate change. The development of effective land-use policies could be greatly aided by quantifying the net impact that growing biomass feedstock for biofuel has on local temperature and carbon sequestration. This is the key focus of the new research... [Read More]

The UK's geology is unsuitable for fracking as a result of changes that happened millions of years ago, a geoscience expert has claimed. The comments by Professor John Underhill, the chief scientist at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, have been welcomed by campaigners who object to the technique claiming it causes environmental damage. Underhill said that "the science... [Read More]