World’s Top 5 Biomass Power Plants
In terms of source of energy, biomass has been around for a very long time. It’s akin to turning biological material into heat or electricity by heating or cooling it. Biomass has a variety of uses and transformations depending on the fuel used, as we saw in the post Uses of biomass as renewable energy. In underdeveloped nations, biomass plants are prevalent because natural resources are used as fuel for them (chips, pellets, briquettes, leaves…), making them an affordable renewable energy source. However, where are the world’s largest biomass plants?
1- IRONBRIDGE (UNITED KINGDOM) 740MW
It’s the world’s largest plant entirely made of biomass. It is situated in SevernGorge, United Kingdom, and has a capacity of 740 megawatts. In 2013, a coal-fired power plant’s 1,000 MW of capacity was converted to generate biomass energy. Wood pellets are the fuel source for this biomass power plant.
2- ALHOLMENSKRAFT (FINLAND) 265MW
The UPM-Kymmene paper mill site at Alholmen, Jakobstad, Finland, has this 265 MW unit. It’s been up and running since the beginning of 2002. It also provides 100 MW of heat to the paper mill and 60 MW of district heating to Jakobstad residents. A circulating fluidized bed boiler is used in the facility.
3- TOPPILA (FINLAND) 210MW
Located in Oulu’s Toppila district, this biomass power plant generates electricity from waste. In terms of electrical and thermal output, it’s one of the world’s largest peat-fired plants, with a combined capacity of 210 megawatts (MW). It contains two generators, each with a capacity of 75 megawatts and 145 megawatts.
4- POLANIEC (POLAND) 205MW
It has a total capacity of 205 MW when fully operational. In terms of biomass capacity, it is the world’s fourth largest facility, located in Staszów. A year after it began commercial operation, the company is still running on agricultural by-products and wood waste. The facilities provide enough electricity to power 600,000 homes each year while avoiding the release of 1.2 million tonnes of CO2.
5- KYMIJARVI (FINLAND) 160MW
It has a capacity of 160 MW and is located about 100 kilometres north of Helsinki in the city of Lathi. They utilise reclaimed solid fuels like plastic, paper, cardboard, and wood in their gasification-based setups. A gasifier, which turns waste fuel into combustible gas, was integrated into the biomass facility in 2012, when it began commercial operation. A natural steam boiler, a Siemens SST 800 Tandem turbine, and a Siemens Gen5-100A-2P generator are all part of the system’s equipment. It has a combined capacity of generating 300 GWh of electricity and 600 GWh of district heating per year… The Kymijärvi substation serves as the transmission point for electricity from the wind farm to the national grid.
Source: https://bester.energy/en/the-worlds-largest-biomass-plants/
