Biomass co-op to produce fuel pellets
Go Show Me Energy Cooperative hopes to hold a grand opening ceremony in July at its Centerview, Mo., plant that will produce fuel pellets. Under construction since the fall of 2006, it is the nation's first farmer-owned biomass facility, said board President Steve Flick. Organizers hope the cooperative will become a model for other groups producing homegrown energy that would be utilized by nearby urban centers.
Phase one, to be completed this summer, is the pelleting plant with a capacity of 100,000 tons per year. The plant will use a mix of biomass sources: corn stover, annual rye grass, wheat straw and native grass-seed hulls. It will also use industrial biomass, Flick said, including ground coffee. The fuel pellets will be used by a local utility and packaged for pellet stoves.
Modeled after farmer-owned ethanol plants, the cooperative began selling equity shares in January and completed 90 percent of the $7 million drive within five weeks, Flick said. The members, from 22 counties in western Missouri and eastern Kansas, have biomass delivery rights dependent on the number of shares purchased in the cooperative.
Additional equity will be raised for the project's second phase—an adjacent 8 MMgy to 10 MMgy plant that will convert biomass to fuel. The choices at press time were diesel, butanol or ethanol, according to Flick. Construction is slated to begin in the spring of 2008 with start-up to begin the following year.
Phase one, to be completed this summer, is the pelleting plant with a capacity of 100,000 tons per year. The plant will use a mix of biomass sources: corn stover, annual rye grass, wheat straw and native grass-seed hulls. It will also use industrial biomass, Flick said, including ground coffee. The fuel pellets will be used by a local utility and packaged for pellet stoves.
Modeled after farmer-owned ethanol plants, the cooperative began selling equity shares in January and completed 90 percent of the $7 million drive within five weeks, Flick said. The members, from 22 counties in western Missouri and eastern Kansas, have biomass delivery rights dependent on the number of shares purchased in the cooperative.
Additional equity will be raised for the project's second phase—an adjacent 8 MMgy to 10 MMgy plant that will convert biomass to fuel. The choices at press time were diesel, butanol or ethanol, according to Flick. Construction is slated to begin in the spring of 2008 with start-up to begin the following year.
Flick said the fuel production plant will aim to supply local markets. "We want to do this so it's replicable, economical and at economies of scale that producers can manage with their energy partners," he said. "Our cooperative doesn't extend beyond 100 miles because of transportation issues."
In the future, Go Show Me Energy Cooperative also hopes to generate electricity from biomass at its Centerview facility.
In the future, Go Show Me Energy Cooperative also hopes to generate electricity from biomass at its Centerview facility.
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