The use of residual forest biomass for rural development faces significant economic hurdles that make it unlikely to be a source of jobs in the near future, according to new research by economists from Oregon State University. In a model of the forest industry, researchers in the College of Forestry combined an evaluation of costs for collecting, transporting and processing... [Read More]

A new 15-year combined heat and power (CHP) contract is set to provide low carbon electricity and heat to Churchill College in the University of Cambridge. The contract will continue the energy services started in 1993 and see one of the latest generation of Veolia CHP units installed to provide the campus with secure energy supplies.   The service will replace the... [Read More]

More than 40% of the electricity generated on Christmas Day came from renewable sources, according to a Drax-commissioned report. On average, 12.4GW of electricity generated came from green sources – 63% more than in 2015 when just 25% of the electricity generated came from renewables, and up 195% compared to five Christmases ago in 2012 when just 4.2GW (or 12% of... [Read More]

Swedavi, a state-owned group that owns, operates and develops ten airports across Sweden, has received sustainable aviation fuel at Stockholm Arlanda Airport, which has been supplied by SkyNRG and Air BP. It marks the start of deliveries of sustainable aviation fuel through the Fly Green Fund and demonstrates Swedavia’s commitment to sustainable aviation. Fly Green... [Read More]

The European Biogas Association (EBA) has presented its sixth edition of its Statistical Report - the reference publication on the state of the art of biogas and biomethane in Europe. The report reflects the steady growth in the biogas sector, with the number of biogas plants practically tripling during the past six years. “There were 17,376 biogas plants and 459... [Read More]

GMB, the UK-based trade union for workers in the energy sector, is calling on the UK government to commit itself to complete transparency, efficacy, value for money and equity on all of the costs associated with decarbonising the economy. It has also called on the UK government to commission a review of the cost effectiveness and fairness of the policies being pursued,... [Read More]

The US Department of Energy (DOE) has announced the selection of six projects for up to $12.9 million (€12.4m) in federal funding, entitled, ‘Project Definition for Pilot- and Demonstration-Scale Manufacturing of Biofuels, Bioproducts, and Biopower’. These projects, required to share the cost at a minimum of 50%, will develop and execute plans for the... [Read More]

Signing off for Xmas. The editorial team will be closed for the festive period from Wednesday 21 December 2016. The team will be in the office and back to business on Tuesday 3rd January 2017. Have a wonderful, relaxing break and we'll see you all next year!... [Read More]

China Everbright International has signed an investment agreement with the municipal government of Can Tho to develop its energy-from-waste (EfW) project in Vietnam. In a statement, the Hong Kong-based environmental services specialist said it had obtained a project investment license issued by the municipal government. In attendance at the signing ceremony were representatives... [Read More]

GB Railfreight (GBRf), one of the largest rail freight operators in the UK, has announced it has signed a rail haulage contract with Lynemouth Power (LPL), to build 50 new purpose built high capacity biomass hopper wagons, following a successful tender submission. The new hoppers are estimated to start their service on the 1st October 2017. GBRf plans to run 27 trains... [Read More]

Finland-based energy equipment supplier Wärtsilä has been awarded the contract to supply a biohybrid production plant to the German energy company, Erdgas Südwest. The new plant will produce both bioLNG (liquefied biogas) and LNG. The contract with Wärtsilä was signed this month (December 2016), and delivery will be made on a fast-track basis. The... [Read More]

The third generating unit at Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire, UK, has been given European Commission (EC) approval to be fully powered by sustainable biomass. Drax can now complete the upgrade of the third of its six units to run on wood pellets, a process that started in July 2015. Now half the power station will produce renewable electricity, saving 12... [Read More]

Northern Ireland’s First Minister Arlene Foster will face a vote of no confidence in her leadership at the devolved Assembly over allegations about a scandal involving the renewable heat incentive (RHI) scheme that is estimated will cost taxpayers £400m (€383m). The Social Democratic and Labour party (SDLP) has won cross-party support for its motion censuring Foster over... [Read More]

Finnish energy equipment manufacturer Wärtsilä will supply a 100MW combined heat and power (CHP) plant to Germany-based energy producer Kraftwerke Mainz-Wiesbaden. The Smart Power Generation power plant, consisting of ten Wärtsilä 34SG engines running on natural gas, is scheduled to be fully operational by the end of 2018. Wärtsilä's scope... [Read More]

The UK renewable energy industry has reacted positively to the government’s renewable heat incentive (RHI) scheme plans. Changes to the scheme were proposed in a public consultation in March. At that time, the renewable heat industry was deeply concerned that the revised tariffs would result in a steep fall in the deployment of many renewable heat technologies. Proposed... [Read More]

Shipping company Dampskibsselskabet Norden has announced a nine-year contract to transport pellets for Canada-based Pinnacle Renewable Energy Inc. Under the contract, starting in 2018 NORDEN will transport 3.5 million metric tons of wood pellets from Vancouver and Prince Rupert in western Canada to Europe. According to Norden, it will make eight shipments per year... [Read More]