Shanxi Province Plans 14 Biomass-Fueled Power Plants

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--China's coal-rich Shanxi province has drafted a plan to build 14 biomass-fueled power plants before 2012 and to expand afterward. According to the plan, the province will set up the plants in Datong, Suzhou, Linfen, Yuncheng, Changzhi, Xinzhou, Jincheng, Jinzhong cities, which are rich in biomass resources. Statistics show that in 2006, Shanxi had more than 5 million tons of straw and 250,000 tons of wood trimmings available for biomass-fueled power plants.

The total installed capacity of the plants will be 168 megawatts, and they will produce 924 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) per year using 1.05 million tons of agricultural waste and wood trimmings.

In 2020, 13 of the plants are planned to be expanded to increase the total capacity to 1.78 billion kWh a year, or about 0.6% of what Shanxi's power consumption is expected to be. By then, the plants will consume 2 million tons of agricultural and forest waste and wood trimmings a year, or 1 million tons of standard coal.

If the plan is fully implemented, it will help the province to reduce its carbon-dioxide (CO2) emissions by 1.25 million in 2012 and sulfur-dioxide (SO2) emissions by 2.5 million tons. By 2020, CO2 emissions are expected to decrease 2.5 million tons, and SO2 emissions are expected to decrease 10,800 tons.

Coal-fired power plants and other industrial activities have long polluted Shanxi province, and some of its cities have been listed as the most polluted in China and the world. Traditionally, straw and wood trimmings are burned to fertilize soil, but this method has been known to create major pollution. The biomass projects can reduce the use of coal and take better advantage of the wastes.

In September, China issued the "Recyclable Energy Mid-Term and Long-Term Development Plan" to increase renewable energy in China's energy mix by turning organic waste into energy and developing the necessary technology.

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