Japanese firms to build Fukushima biomass power plant

  • : Biofuels, Biomass
  • 22/03/08

Four Japanese companies are planning to jointly build a 7.1MW biomass power plant at Aizu in the country's northeast Fukushima prefecture, taking advantage of the country's feed-in-tariff (FiT) scheme.

The Aizu Komorebi power plant is scheduled to start commercial operations in December 2024. The project is 40pc owned by Japanese trading firm Tokyo Sangyo, 40pc by engineering firm Tokyo Energy & Systems, 15pc by renewable power developer Shichijo and 5pc by pulp and paper manufacturing firm Hokuetsu.

The plant is designed to burn around 80,000 t/yr of wood chips made from local unused woody biomass and construction wastes. It will pay ¥24/kWh for unused woody biomass and ¥13/kWh for construction wastes under the FIT scheme, according to Shichijo.

Electricity produced at the site will be sold to regional power grid firm Tohoku Electric Power Network at an unknown fixed pricefor 20 years under the FiT scheme.


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24/05/06

Neste inks deal to supply SAF to Singapore's SIA, Scoot

Neste inks deal to supply SAF to Singapore's SIA, Scoot

Singapore, 6 May (Argus) — Finnish biofuels producer Neste has signed an agreement to supply 1,000t of neat sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from its Singapore refinery to Singapore Airlines (SIA) and Scoot. The blended jet fuel will be delivered from Neste's Singapore refinery to Changi Airport's fuel hydrant system in two batches, once in this year's second quarter and the next in the fourth quarter. The delivered fuel will be a blend of neat SAF, which is made from renewable waste and residue raw materials, and conventional jet fuel. But the exact ratio of the two remains undisclosed. Neste's Singapore facility has a production capacity of 1mn t/yr of SAF, making it the world's largest SAF plant, according to Neste. The firm completed an expansion of its refinery in May 2023 . Neste is also the only company in Singapore producing SAF after Shell scrapped plans to set up a biofuel refinery in the city-state . The delivery from Neste's Singapore refinery to Changi Airport's fuel hydrant system cements the firm's end-to-end SAF supply chain capabilities in the country. Neste is also a minority shareholder at Changi Airport's fuel storage and infrastructure joint venture Changi Airport Fuel Hydrant Installation, to offer blended SAF directly to airlines at the airport. The SIA group aims to use a minimum of 5pc of SAF in its total fuel uplift by 2030, according to the group's chief sustainability officer Lee Wen Fen. This comes as Singapore mandates a 1pc SAF use for flights departing from Singapore from 2026, alongside a SAF levy, in their sustainable airhub blueprint on 19 February. The mandate is projected to rise to 3-5pc by 2030, subject to global developments and wider SAF availability and adoption, according to the blueprint. SIA to offer BCUs SIA will also offer 1,000 SAF book and claim units (BCUs) for purchase by its corporate customers starting from May, with each BCU representing 1t of neat SAF with its associated CO2 reduction benefit. This allows corporate travellers, shippers, and freight forwarders to claim the associated environmental benefits for flights related to their business travel and operations under the Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials (RSB) book and claim system, to ensure traceability and credibility of the transactions. By Deborah Sun Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Fire hits Vance Bioenergy's Pasir Gudang facility


24/05/06
24/05/06

Fire hits Vance Bioenergy's Pasir Gudang facility

Singapore, 6 May (Argus) — A fire broke out at Malaysian biodiesel producer Vance Bioenergy's Pasir Gudang facility in southern Johor today, but did not affect biodiesel production, said sources close to the company. Some auxiliary products were affected, a source said but declined to name them because of commercial sensitivity. The cause of the fire is still under investigation. Vance Bioenergy produces biodiesel for the Malaysian and European markets, but there has been limited market reaction to the news so far. The company has a total biodiesel production capacity of 450,000 t/yr, with 300,000 t/yr at Tanjung Langsat and 150,000 t/yr at Pasir Gudang. By Sarah Giam Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Dutch FincoEnergies supplies B100 biodiesel to HAL


24/05/03
24/05/03

Dutch FincoEnergies supplies B100 biodiesel to HAL

London, 3 May (Argus) — Dutch supplier FincoEnergies has supplied shipowner Holland America Line (HAL)with B100 marine biodiesel at the port of Rotterdam for a pilot test. This follows a collaboration between HAL, FincoEnergies' subsidiary GoodFuels, and engine manufacturer Wartsila to trial blends of B30 and B100 marine biodiesel . HAL's vessel the Rotterdam bunkered with B100 on 27 April before embarking on a journey through the Norwegian heritage fjords to test the use of the biofuel. The vessel will utilise one of its four engines to combust B100, which will reportedly cut greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 86pc on a well-to-wake basis compared with conventional fossil fuel marine gasoil (MGO), according to GoodFuels. There is no engine or fuel structure modification required for the combustion of B100, confirmed HAL. The B100 marine biodiesel blend comprised of sustainable feedstock such as waste fats and oils. The firms did not disclose how much B100 was supplied, or whether this is the beginning of a longer-term supply agreement. Argus assessed the price of B100 advanced fatty acid methyl ester (Fame) 0°C cold filter plugging point dob ARA — a calculated price which includes a deduction of the value of Dutch HBE-G renewable fuel tickets — at an average of $1,177.32/t in April. This is a premium of $410.20/t to MGO dob ARA prices for the same month, which narrows to $321.68/t with the inclusion of EU emissions trading system (ETS) costs for the same time period. By Hussein Al-Khalisy Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

US biofuel groups challenge EU SAF regulation


24/05/03
24/05/03

US biofuel groups challenge EU SAF regulation

London, 3 May (Argus) — US biofuel groups Renewable Fuels Association, Growth Energy and US Grains Council and ethanol-to-jet producer LanzaJet have joined European renewable ethanol producers in their challenge to the ReFuelEU aviation regulation. The legal challenge, launched by ePure and Pannonia Bio in February, demands an annulment of the sections that exclude crop-based biofuels from the definition of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). The regulation allows for SAF produced from biofuels, referring to point 33 in Article 2 of the bloc's recast Renewable Energy Directive (RED III) which includes "liquid fuel for transport produced from biomass". But it excludes biofuels produced from "food and feed crops". The US groups have filed an "application for leave to intervene" before the General Court of the EU, arguing that the regulation would "have a detrimental effect on the US ethanol industry". "The contested provisions give rise to a de facto ban on the supply of crop-based biofuels to the aviation sector in the EU" the associations said. Earlier this year ePure also challenged the bloc's FuelEU maritime regulation, which aims to boost the use of green bunker fuels, for excluding food and feed crop-based fuels from its certification process. By Evelina Lungu Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Beccs revenues 'dependent on sustainability'


24/05/03
24/05/03

Beccs revenues 'dependent on sustainability'

London, 3 May (Argus) — Danish state-controlled utility Orsted and UK utility Drax are increasingly dependent on sustainability criteria for their revenue streams from carbon removal (CDR) credit sales from bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (Beccs) projects, delegates heard at the Argus Biomass conference in London last week. "The key to be able to create such a project is to secure finance, which actually comes from the sale of carbon removal certificates," Orsted senior lead business developer for CCS David Fich said. Adding that the ability of companies to prove the sustainability of the biomass they source was now key to securing financing — including from CDR — for Beccs, and not only a matter of communicating that bioenergy and Beccs were environmentally friendly and carbon neutral businesses. Drax commercial director Angela Hepworth agreed: "Sustainability here is not a nice-to-have, this is the very foundation of our licence to upgrade and our ability to sell the credits and enable us to progress in these projects." Aligned standards within the industry and stronger incentives would encourage corporates to buy carbon credits against reputation backlashes, Hepworth added. Drax and Swedish utility Stockholm Exergi commissioned a methodology for measuring the net CO2 removal through Beccs published in October 2023, which was overall well-received by market participants. The utilities also presented it to the European Commission in the same month. A standardised approach to Beccs would encourage smaller buyers, which rely on certifications to identify the sustainable criteria of the carbon removal value chain when purchasing CDR credits, Fich said. While most larger corporates were doing their own due diligence. "The smaller buyers are those that are able to pay more," Fich said, adding that these companies were necessary to improve the liquidity of the market. Orsted signed a contract with Microsoft in May 2023 for the purchase of 2.76mn t of carbon removals over the next 10 years. Drax is also selling CDR certificates in the voluntary carbon market](https://direct.argusmedia.com/newsandanalysis/article/2441200) and is hoping to get the credits into the UK's trading scheme. Such deals "will help to make Beccs credits be seen in the more mainstream markets," Hepworth said. By Marta Imarisio Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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