The US will produce 30% more renewable energy by 2030 under the new clean power plan (CPP), presented by President Obama on 3 August. The new federal regulations sets limitations on CO2 emissions for existing power plants in separate states with a target to cut emissions by 32% from 2005 levels by 2030, which is up from the earlier proposal of 30%. However, states will... [Read More]

The first commercial-scale UK seaweed farm is scheduled to be scheduled in Argyll off the coast of Scotland in late summer 2015. The new facility, planned by scientists at the Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS) in Oban, will be run as a demonstration project that will help shape the UK’s fledling seaweed cultivation sector. Seven native seaweed... [Read More]

The use of pulsed electric fields for conditioning substrates can significantly enhance yields in commercial biogas plants, a new study by the Institute for Bioprocessing and Analytical Measurement Techniques, a German researcher, finds. Although the primary effect of an electric field in biogas production is cracking cell structures for better availability of nutrition,... [Read More]

UK on-site biogas plants increased their power generation by 40% in the last year, a survey by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) has found. According to DECC’s annual Digest of United Kingdom Energy Statistics, the farming sector led the rise in biogas capacity from 164MW in 2013 to 216MW in 2014. Anaerobic digestion (AD) plants took the lead from... [Read More]

France is set to increase its feed-in tariffs for biogas installations and small photovoltaic (PV) systems, says the Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy. The feed-in tariff for electricity produced by cogeneration installations running on biogas will be raised for both new and existing installations. On a project basis, depending on individual size... [Read More]

Viaspace has completed the engineering and design work for a 2MW biogas power plant in Papua New Guinea for Clean Energy Solutions Pacific (CES). CES, based in Salt Lake City, US, is an independent power producer focused on developing power for frontier and emerging markets with experience in project development and management, engineering, and construction of power plants. The... [Read More]

Saxlund International, a fully owned subsidiary of energy and environmental technology group Opcon, has received an order from Babcock & Wilcox Vølund, Denmark, for the delivery of a biomass handling system to a green energy project in Margam, Port Talbot in South Wales, UK. The scope of Saxlund's order encompass the design, manufacturing, delivery and commissioning... [Read More]

Drax Group, the energy generation business responsible for supplying some 8% of the UK's electricity, has awarded ESG a five-year contract to continue fuel testing and analysis work at its plant near Selby, North Yorkshire. This follows a seven-year partnership between the two companies. The new contract means ESG will continue to provide a wide range of biofuel testing... [Read More]

Greenlane Biogas, global supplier of integrated full system solutions to upgrade biogas released from organic waste to biomethane, has partnered with China Agricultural University (CAU) to install a biogas upgrading system to facilitate research in the generation of renewable natural gas (RNG). The top academic institution in China for agricultural studies, CAU will use... [Read More]

Enel Green Power has brought online the world's first biomass plant used to heat geothermal steam at the Cornia 2 geothermal power plant, which is located in Castelnuovo Val di Cecina in Tuscany. The project will increase both the energy efficiency and the power output of the geothermal cycle. The existing geothermal plant has been joined by a small power plant fuelled... [Read More]

Researchers at Aston University have developed a new portable technology called Pyrofab to convert organic waste materials, even including baby wipes, into carbon neutral fuel and biochar. The Pyrofab is based on Pyroformer technology, developed in the UK by the European Bioenergy Research Institute (EBRI) at Aston University. The Pyrofab has the ability to process... [Read More]

Alkcon Corp., a developer of natural gas processing equipment, has entered into an exclusivity agreement and a letter of intent with Flogas Group of Leicestershire, England. The agreement grants Flogas the exclusive right to market and sell the company's proprietary methane-to-propane gas conversion technology in the UK, Ireland, France, Norway, Sweden, Netherlands and... [Read More]

The Sustainable Biomass Partnership (SBP) says it welcomes the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) initiative to develop a voluntary mechanism for the transfer of GHG emission-related data along the PEFC-certified supply chain. The SBP had identified this as an important opportunity for PEFC given that wood-for-energy producers need to collect... [Read More]

In the US, Greenleaf Power, an owner and operator of green energy power plants and a portfolio company of leading energy and resources-focused global private equity firm Denham Capital, has finalised the purchase of the Plainfield Renewable Energy Plant located in Plainfield, Connecticut. 'The acquisition of Plainfield Renewable Energy will mark Greenleaf Power's sixth... [Read More]

Local authorities have greenlighted an application to build an anaerobic digester and associated infrastructure at Deal Farm in Bressingham, UK. The plant will be constructed by Envitec, a Germany-based biogas constructor and solutions provider, who will also supply the necessary technology. The system will convert pig and chicken manure and locally grown maize silage... [Read More]

UPB Energy has begun the construction of a biomass cogeneration station at Cieceres parish, Kurzeme region, Latvia. The station, with a planned electric power output of 3.98MW and thermal power of 15.9MW, has been commissioned by 4 Energia, an independent electicity producer in the Baltic States, with UPB supplying and installing the plant’s technology. The biomass... [Read More]