Engie closes Belgian Les Awirs biomass plant

French utility Engie permanently closed its 80MW biomass-fired Les Awirs power plant in Belgium earlier this week, on 31 August.

The plant was scheduled to close midway through this year.

Les Awirs started up in 1951 as a coal-fired plant, and its unit 4 was converted to 100pc biomass-firing in 2005. Its units 1, 2 and 3 were shut down in 1998 and unit 5 in 2013.

Les Awirs' unit 4 had 35pc efficiency and consumed about 400,000 t/yr of wood pellets when running at full capacity.

"Engie does not have any plans for a new biomass-fired power plant in the future, but is analysing the possibility of a new gas-fired power plant on the site of Les Awirs," the firm told Argus.

The utility still operates the 205MW biomass-fired Rodenhuize (Max Green) facility in Belgium.

By Georgia Gratton