GE to Build World's Biggest Biomass Power Plant

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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--General Electric Company (NYSE:GE) (Fairfield, Connecticut) has secured a contract to build the world's largest biomass power plant in Ghent, Belgium.

GE replaces the original contract winner, Spain's Abengoa (NASDAQ:ABGB) (Seville, Spain), after the company ran into financial difficulties last year. The plant, which is being developed Belgian Eco Energy (BEE) (Mechelen, Belgium), will cost $361 million to construct and will be capable of supplying approximately 215 -megawatts (MW) of electricity and 115 MW of thermal heat to industry and households in the city of Ghent.

The supercritical plant will be powered by wood chips and agricultural residues and, according to GE, will have a 60% efficiency rating when operating in cogeneration mode. GE will oversee the overall design, engineering and construction of the plant and the integration of the in-house components including the circulating fluidized bed boiler, steam turbine, generator and air quality control systems.

"We are pleased to work with GE on this project and with their approach to focus on optimising the technical solution for this [...] plant," said Michael Corten, chief executive officer of Belgian Eco Energy. "GE's technology will help us reach the highest net efficiency and reduce operational costs."

Speaking to Belgian online news site Knack.be, he added: "Every percentage point difference [in efficiency] means that you need a lot less for the same biomass yield. Including the heat, we arrive at an efficiency of over 60%, which is higher than the most modern combined cycle gas plants."

Steve Bolze, president and chief executive officer of GE Power added: "By leveraging technologies across different GE businesses--the GE Store--we are well positioned to provide complete, customized solutions to best meet our customers' needs. The project in Ghent demonstrates GE's capabilities to deliver a broad range of steam power technologies to help our customers deliver reliable power across a variety of fuels including biomass, coal and nuclear-based technologies."

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