Accompanying program enjoys positive visitor response
The Consultation Forum on Biomass Heating Systems was very popular, with biomass experts providing unbiased advice on biomass heating to municipalities, businesses, the housing industry as well as the general public – over 60 consultation sessions were held. This year, visitors and exhibitors were particularly impressed with the HVAC Forum “Getting started in the pellet business”, which gave tradesmen comprehensive practical tips and information. The pellet barbeque event with three-star Michelin chef Harald Wohlfahrt also drew large crowds, bringing the program to a close last Friday. During the barbeque, Wohlfahrt let his audience in on a few of his cooking secrets and afterwards took questions on cooking and sustainability amidst a relaxed atmosphere.  The high-point of the event was the moment when a pellet barbeque from Solarfocus GmbH, St. Ulrich/Steyr (Austria) was raffled off among the audience.

1,000 “Specialist Pellet and Biomass Facilities” certificates awarded
On October 6, MergenthalerZerweck GmbH from Fellbach was certified as the 1000th Specialist Pellet and Biomass Facility in Germany during Interpellets. CEO Gernot Walter accepted the accolade during a training session run by the German Pellet Institute (DEPI) and the Association of the German Plumbing, Heating and Air-Conditioning Industry (ZVSHK, Sankt Augustin). At the event, companies were able to qualify as “Specialist Pellet and Biomass Facilities”. “We have been offering these specialized training sessions since April 2011. Reaching the four-figure mark after only six months is a clear sign that the German pellet industry is setting itself up for a dynamic future,” says Martin Bentele, DEPI CEO.

Current trends in combustion technology at the 11th Pellets Industry Forum
From October 4–5, a total of 449 experts from 39 countries came together at the 11th Pellets Industry Forum, at the International Congress Center, Stuttgart (ICS), with the aim of discussing market developments across the globe, innovations in production as well as international standards and regulations. The forum was opened with a presentation entitled “The way to a future-oriented and sustainable energy supply” by Prof. Dr. Klaus Töpfer, former Federal Minister of the Environment and current Chairman of the German government’s Ethics Commission for Secure Energy Supply.

The conference focused on the topic of innovations and their implementation in both combustion technology and pellet production. In the field of combustion technology, for example, the industry is working to increase the efficiency of its boilers and to adapt them to a broader range of fuels. With this in mind, Andreas Buchegger, CEO of LIGNO Heizsysteme GmbH based in Zöbern, Austria presented a new concept for a pellet burner that can also burn fuel with a high ash content, such as pellets made from straw or rapeseed, while keeping emissions low. This is made possible by a burner with a screw conveyor, which differs from conventional burners in that the pellets do not fall into the burn pot from the top of the device, nor are they pushed onto the burner plate from below. Instead, a screw conveyor transports the pellets along under the combustion chamber to prevent the pellets from sticking and forming slag. LIGNO have already filed a patent for the burner.

Fuel sustainability was another hot topic occupying the industry at the Pellets Industry Forum in Stuttgart, particularly with regard to the ever increasing co-firing of pellets in coal-fired power plants. There are now various steps being taken to promote fuel sustainability. For example, Yves Ryckmans from Laborelec, the Belgian technical competence center in energy processes and energy use based in Linkebeck, presented the Wood Pellets Buyers initiative, a task force comprised of major European electricity companies that use wood pellets and want to develop joint principles to ensure fuel sustainability.

Positive development in the European market – excellent prospects for Germany
In past years, the European market for pellets and pellet heating systems has undergone dynamic development. The EPC anticipates that over 20 million metric tons of the fuel will be used in Europe by 2015. The figure already hit 10 million in 2010. With a production quantity of 1.75 million metric tons, Germany was the 2010 European market leader. “It is clear that everything is in place for us to see positive development in Germany: 88% of all German heating systems are over 10 years old, and will therefore need replacing in the near future owing to their low efficiency. Pellets offer the perfect alternative to the fossil fuels oil and gas. They are CO2-neutral and, in comparison, are consistently 40% cheaper than fuel oil, and noticeably cheaper than gas,” says Martin Bentele, CEO of the German Wood Fuel and Pellet Association (DEPV). As Germany has large stocks of wood at its disposal, supply is also secure in the long term.

Sustainable use of wood
The rapid increase in international trading goes hand in hand with concerns about pellet production sustainability, and international measures for ensuring checks on sustainable production. Deforestation of native forests, illegal wood cutting and the competition from short rotation coppice for arable land for food production must be prevented. The “PellCert” project supported by the EU Commission focuses on the development of sustainability criteria for inclusion in the new quality seal for pellets, the ENplus certification system. The project draws together numerous pellet associations, Aebiom (the European Biomass Association) and representatives from the electricity industry. There will be a debate on “Wood as a resource – competition for utilization and sustainability” on October 4, at which representatives of opposing interest groups will be able to voice their views.

Production, quality assurance and safety
Quality and safety standards in pellet production will be another subject under the spotlight at the Pellets Industry Forum. The section on “The production of pellets – certification and safety” will provide an insight into current quality and safety standards. Peter Rechberger, General Manager of the European Pellet Council (EPC), Brussels, Belgium, reports on October 5 on the market launch of the ENplus label and progress to date.
 
In “Pellets production – technology, design and operation of large pellets plants” speakers will examine the latest technological developments such as torrefaction of biomass. Pre-treatment by torrefaction can help solve co-combustion problems in coal-fired power plants. It also makes biomass easier to store by rendering it water-repellent. Additionally, weight is reduced while energy values remain virtually the same. Dr. Hans Dieter Hermes, Head of Biomass Development at Vattenfall, Berlin, Germany, will talk about initial experiences gained from large-scale testing with processed wood pellets in coal-fired power plants.

Communes and industry convert to pellet heating
Many municipalities and commercial enterprises already invested in renewable energy some time ago by installing a pellets heating system. This trend is on the up because as well as wanting to help the environment and lower their CO2 emissions, pellet plant operators can also make huge saving on fuel costs. The German Pellet Institute (DEPI) in Berlin has calculated that a business with an annual energy demand of 2.2 gigawatt hours (GWh) can save approximately € 58,000 on heating costs by using wood pellets instead of oil. A series of lectures grouped under the heading “Commercial and municipal use” on October 5 will provide a comprehensive insight into this topic. Innovation in boiler and stove technologies will also be examined in a separate series of lectures.

Financing of bioenergy projects
A workshop on “Financing of big bio energy projects” will round off the 11th Pellets Industry Forum. This interactive workshop will look at ways of obtaining funding for biomass projects such as the construction of a pellet production plant or the installation of a combined heat and power plant. The workshop will be led by Michael Ware of BDO LLP, London, UK. Mr. Ware will outline the steps involved in a successful project, possible financers and typical financing terms.

Industry meeting point: Interpellets 2011
The 11th Pellets Industry Forum will take place one day before, and on the first day of Interpellets, the central platform for the international pellet and wood-fired heating industry. Interpellets 2011 opens its gates on October 5-7, 2011 in the grounds of the Stuttgart Trade Fair Centre. An expected over 100 exhibitors from Germany and abroad have an area spanning 7,000 square meters to showcase their latest products, services and technical solutions in the field of pellets technology and wood-fired heating. The show is expected to attract some 6,000 visitors, of which around 25 percent from outside Germany.

Many German municipalities and commercial enterprises already invested in renewable energy some time ago by installing a pellets heating system. This trend is on the up because as well as wanting to help the environment and lower their CO2 emissions, pellets plant operators can also make huge saving on fuel costs. The German Pellet Institute (DEPI) in Berlin calculated that a school with an annual energy demand of 200 megawatt hours (MWh) can for example save up to 7,000 euros on heating costs by using wood pellets as opposed to oil. For a commercial enterprise with an energy demand of 2.2 gigawatt hours (GWh) this figure rises to an amazing 58,000 euros per year. "A pellets heating system combines effective climate protection with cost savings and is therefore worthwhile on two counts. We expect a further increase in demand particular from energy-intensive industries," explains Martin Bentele, CEO of the German Wood Fuel and Pellet Association (DEPV) in Berlin. The pharmaceutical firm Pfizer is a shining example for companies in the energy-intensive sector. It began operating a 3.8 megawatt (MW) plant in Freiburg less than two years ago and can now save up to 650,000 euros in heating costs each year.

In any event, large pellet plants exhibit greater economies of scale in investment costs than small pellets boilers. Typical investment costs per installed kilowatt of nominal thermal power significantly decline as the pellets heating system increases in size. Large pellets heating systems therefore pay for themselves faster than smaller systems. Energy service contractors have also recognized how cost effective these systems are and now rank among the top consumers of large pellets boilers alongside municipalities. By using contractors, poorer municipalities do not have to come up with the large amount of money needed for the initial investment. The contractor installs and operates the pellets heating system and the municipalities pay for the heating provided.

Regardless of who installs a plant, however, it is essential to consider professional planning in terms of the required boiler output and storage size, for example. Interpellets 2011 provides support in this area for visitors from municipalities, commercial enterprises, building services planners and experts from the plumbing and HVAC sectors. The exhibition taking place from October 5–7 in Stuttgart is for the first time hosting a "Biomass Heating Advisory Forum" to offer independent, neutral and free advice on actual projects. This advice can relate to design enquiries, problems arising from planned projects or general information on high-output biomass heating systems. If you are interested, you can book a consultation session in advance with a qualified planer or energy consultant. Throughout the exhibition, there will be many experienced experts and professionals from the field of biomass energy on hand for individual appointments. Each consultation session lasts around an hour and appointments can be made online from the end of August at www.interpellets.de.

On Wednesday, October 5, the 11th Pellets Industry Forum is offering a series of presentations on commercial and municipal use of pellets that deal for example with storage room safety and the use of pellets to generate electricity and steam. You can download the entire program at www.pelletsforum.de.

The detailed program can be found at here

Global trade expands
The global pellets trade is mainly driven by co-firing in coal-fired power stations. According to the survey carried out by Hawkins Wright, the major market for wood pellets is Europe, with the Netherlands accounting for 900,000 tons in 2010, followed by the United Kingdom with over 500,000 tons. Currently, the European power plant market is mainly supplied by producers from the USA and Canada. According to the North American Wood Fiber Review, around 1.6 million tons of pellets were shipped from the USA and Canada to Europe in 2010. Between 2008 and 2010, the number of pellets transports from North America doubled – and the trend continues. The first freighter from the new RWE Innogy mega factory in Georgia, United States, which has an annual production capacity of 750,000 tons, reached the Dutch harbor of Dordrecht at the end of June, after 14 days at high sea. It had around 23,000 tons of wood pellets on board. It is possible, however, that other regions will outperform North America in the coming years. The world’s largest pellets factory with an annual capacity of 900,000 tons in Vyborg, Russia, which is mainly geared towards exports, took up production this year. Brazil also has major plans. The Brazilian paper and cellulose producer Suzano is planning to take into operation three pellets factories with a combined annual capacity of 3 million tons by 2015. The pellets production outside Albany, West Australia, is somewhat smaller than that, but also geared towards exports. The targets here are 250,000 tons of pellets exports to Europe and Japan.

Focus on sustainability
The more international trade increases, the more sustainability becomes a much-discussed subject in Europe and beyond. Deforestation of native forests, illegal wood cutting and the competition from short rotation coppice for arable land for food production must be prevented. The Renewable Energies Directive already lays down rules for liquid biomass, and the EU Commission is currently working on similar criteria for solid biomass. The EU also supports the “PellCert” project. “The project brings together a large number of pellets associations, the European Umbrella Organization Aebiom and representatives from the electricity industry to prepare sustainability criteria to be integrated into the ENplus System. The objective is to establish sustainability certification as an integral part of the ENplus certification,” explains Christian Rakos, President of the European Pellet Council (EPC). “I think that we should have an agreement on how to implement the sustainability certification by the end of 2012 at the latest“. It is particularly important to find a solution which applies all over Europe, not individual regulations in each Member State.

Sustainability and raw material competition are also going to be the topics of the panel discussion on the first day of the 11th Pellets Industry Forum. Participants from opposing interest groups such as the pellets industry, the forestry industry and the wood materials sector will make for an interesting discussion. From October 4−5, the 11th Pellets Industry Forum at the , International Congress Center of the Trade Fair Center Stuttgart provides an overview of European and global key markets along with developments and outlooks in global pellet markets as seen by various market players. The simultaneous trade exhibition, Interpellets 2011, takes place from October 5 to 7. An expected 150 exhibitors from Germany and abroad have an area spanning 7,000 square meters to showcase their latest products, services and technical solutions in the field of pellets technology and wood-fired heating. Around 6,000 visitors are expected to attend, with 25% coming from outside Germany.

According to the Federal Industrial Association of Germany House, Energy and Environmental Technology (BDH), only 13% of heating systems in Germany are currently considered state of the art – despite the fact that 85% of energy consumption is used for heating and domestic water heating in residential buildings. By changing to a new, more efficient heating system, energy consumption – and thus heating costs – could be cut by around 30% or more, according to the BDH. However, each year only 3% of all Germans upgrade their heating system, despite oil and gas prices continually rising. For example, the North Rhine-Westphalia Energy Agency estimates heating costs for winter 2010/2011 alone to be an average of 20% higher than the long-term average. According to a survey by a real estate portal, most people seek short-term alternative solutions instead of reducing their long-term heating costs by upgrading their heating system. 43% of the population just heat individual rooms, and 20% turn the heating down and dress more warmly to counter this.

"Many households will once again have to reach deeper into their pockets because of greater oil and gas prices. It is therefore a good alternative to upgrade to a modern heating system that uses renewable fuel, such as wood pellets," says Simone Pabst, editor-in-chief of the specialist magazine 'Pellets – Markt und Trends'. Pellets are considerably cheaper than oil or gas, with a kilowatt-hour of oil costing 8.3 cents (source: Brennstoffspiegel magazine) in May 2011 against 4.7 cents for pellets (source: Pellets – Markt und Trends magazine). The implication for annual heating costs can be seen clearly in this example given by Simone Pabst: "The owner of an apartment in an old building with an outdated heating system can just about heat their house in winter from Monday to Thursday with 50 euros, but will then freeze as soon as they wake up on Friday. On the other hand, a pellets heating system will keep this same apartment warm right through to Sunday evening with 50 euros."

The Interpellets exhibition and the 11th Pellets Industry Forum provide an excellent overview of the broad spectrum of pellet- and wood-fired heating systems. From October 5−7, Interpellets 2011 presents the entire value-added chain as well as the latest wood and wood pellet fuel technology. 150 exhibitors from Germany and abroad have an area spanning 7,000 square meters to showcase their latest products, services and technical solutions in the field of pellets technology and wood-fired heating. Around 6,000 visitors are expected to attend, with 25% coming from outside Germany. From October 4−5, the 11th Pellets Industry Forum provides an overview of European and global key markets along with developments and outlooks in international pellet markets as seen by various market players.

The new EU norm for wood pellets which will come into force from 2010, the increased requirements on the quality of wood pellets and the upstream production chain – these all featured among the topics discussed by industry experts from all over the world at the two-day 9th Pellets Industry Forum.

“The production, trade and logistics of wood pellet fuel are becoming ever more significant. In turn, the demands on international collaboration
increase. The encouraging response from our trade participants reassures Satisfied exhibitors
at Interpellets 2009 Peter Hauk, Baden-Württemberg’s Minister for Food and Rural Development, visited Interpellets us that we have got the concept of the Pellets Industry Forum right,” states Martin Pfränger, project manager of the trade conference whose participant numbers hit a record level of 535. Wijnand Schonewille, a business developer at the Dutch Port of Rotterdam, reaffirmed this: “The Pellets Industry Forum is one of the few large conferences in this field. As a participant I am here for the first time, particularly to find out how the market is developing. Above all, questions regarding the role of the port in the logistics chain are of interest to us.” Michael Williams, Director of Strategy, Planning & Process Management at Westervelt Renewable Energy in the USA also underlined his view: „(...) I came here to learn more about the European pellet market and to get a better understanding of European Companies. On the one hand I get the information I'm interested in concerning demand, pricing, environmental and quality requirements. On the other hand I meet people from other countries. In my opinion the congress is the best networking event for the pellet industry.”

Interpellets 2009 also brought great satisfaction for the 138 exhibitors from 19 countries. “It is mainly the increased presence of mechanical and plant engineering which reflects the rising international demand for expertise in the growing pellet market ,” states organizer Markus Elsässer from Solar Promotion GmbH. Martin Bentele, Managing Director of the German Energy Wood and Pellets Association (DEPV) and the German Pellet Institute (DEPI), summed things up: “The industry demonstrated its capabilities at Interpellets in a comprehensive and convincing manner. It has been shown that heating with pellets can yield the CO2 reductions necessary for meeting climate protection targets in the heating market. From pellet production through trade to combustion technology and accessories, companies are well positioned.”

During a tour of Interpellets 2009, Baden-Württemberg’s Minister for Food and Rural Development, Peter Hauk, appeared impressed by the diversity of the pellet industry. When talking to pellet producers and manufacturers of boilers and stoves, Minister Hauk drew attention to the positive signs for further growth in the pellet industry. He highlighted the opportunities that arise for both the economy and the creation of jobs as a result of these modern, environmentally friendly heating systems.

A delighted Christian Müller, Managing Director of Salmatec Anlagenbau GmbH gave his report of exhibiting at Interpellets: “As a manufacturer of pelleting machines, Interpellets is the annual event for us. The caliber of trade visitors is the most important reason for our attendance: (...) We already had visitors to our booth from Korea, Russia, the Ukraine and Brazil, and will definitely be back again next year.” Robert Velemir, Area Manager for Germany at Piazzetta Deutschland GmbH, a subsidiary of the Italian pellet stove manufacturer, also appeared to be extremely pleased: “We were so impressed with last year’s Interpellets, at which we exhibited for the first time, that we are represented here again this year. We particularly like the clear concentration of the trade fair. (...) The internationalization of the industry and the trade fair is plainly noticeable. Last year 30 percent of our visitors were from outside Germany, this year it is at least 50 percent. One thing is certain as far as next year goes: We will be back at Interpellets!”