...So we’re hanging out at a Christmas party and we strike up a conversation with an investor-type and suddenly he’s talking about a new wood pellet plant that’s starting up in South Carolina, and that the owner already has plans to expand production at the plant.
“Starting up, as in actually in operation?” we ask, figuring that the man really means the project has simply been announced or maybe held a groundbreaking.
“Commissioning stage,” he says, dipping his spoon into his spiked eggnog. “Y’all didn’t know about this project?”
We mumble that the project rings a bell and we dip our spoon in our spiked eggnog and look around for more “spike.”
Such is the nature of the new generation wood energy industry. One second you’re talking about the movie “A Christmas Story” and the next you’re being informed about a new wood pellet plant startup.
From Left: Dan Shell, Western Editor; David Abbott, Associate Editor; David (DK) Knight, Co-Publisher/Editor-in-Chief; Jennifer McCary, Senior Associate Editor; Rich Donnell, Editor
Certainly we’re experiencing project mania in the wood energy. If you don’t believe me, read through this issue’s In The News section. Yep, there’s that new pellet plant in South Carolina—Low Country BioMass; and Ameresco’s startup of its new biomass power plant at Savannah River; Point Bio Energy getting closer to building a pellet plant in Louisiana; Sonoco’s planned investment in biomass power; Enviva not only announcing another pellet plant (which it pretty much does every month), but now getting into torrefaction; a Native American biomass power facility in Washington; Mascoma’s enthanol plant project in Michigan picking up momentum now with partner Valero; Sundrop Fuels finding land for its biofuels plant in Louisiana; sawmiller Varn Wood Products planning a pellet plant in Georgia; Westervelt breaking ground on its partner pellet plant in Alabama; German Pellets planning to build a pellet plant in Texas, the first of many; EcoGen announcing a biomass power project in Florida.
Of course there are a couple of casualties mentioned in this issue: the Range Fuels ethanol plant comes to mind, and Rentech decides its new strategy doesn’t include biomass power ventures like the one at Port St. Joe, Fla.
This bioenergy project frenzy has been going on for three years and a lot of it is sticking. That’s one reason why we at Wood Bioenergy are hosting a new event—the Bioenergy Fuels & Products Conference & Expo, February 28-29, at the Omni Hotel at CNN Center in downtown Atlanta, Georgia. What better place to host such an event? The state of Georgia has been one of the hubs of the wood energy movement.
On pages 18-22 you can get the gist of what this event is about, and then you can go to www.bioenergyshow.com to register for it.
Don’t miss it, or you’ll be learning stuff you should have already known from people drinking eggnog in the middle of a Christmas party.