Netherlands biomass plant opens

The French company Areva is celebrating the inauguration of the Bio Golden Raand biomass power plant, which was jointly built by Areva with the Dutch civil works company Ballast Nedam Industriebouw, and Finnish boiler supplier, Metso Power Oy. The installation, which started operations on Nov. 1, 2013, has been delivered to the Dutch utility firm Eneco.

Areva’s role in the project was to supply advanced technology solutions for power generation with less carbon. Metso’s role in the project was to supply a biomass-fired boiler plant, along with a flue gas cleaning plant and stack, a feedwater system and distributed control system.

The biomass facility, in Delfzijl, Netherlands, has an installed capacity of 49.9 megawatts and is fueled by waste wood from domestic and industry activities. The installation will supply electricity to more than 120,000 households and avoid nearly 250,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year.

Patrick Zwinkels, Eneco bio Golden Raand’s project manager, says, "We are very proud to introduce Bio Golden Raand in our asset portfolio. The power plant in Delfzijl marks a big step forward for Eneco."

Marc Laur, CEO of AREVA Bioenergy, notes, "The facility, which was delivered with full customer satisfaction, demonstrates Areva's commitment to safety, quality and the development of its renewable activities."