Finland-headed combustion technology providers KPA Unicon Oy has announced that it has been awarded a contract by Dalkia Est, a subsidiary of the EDF Group for the delivery of a 45 MW biomass boiler to Pomacle in France. The delivery forms part of the COGECAB combined heat and power plant (CHP) which will supply energy for FICA HPCI, the Européenne de Biomasse 120 000 tonne-per-annum "black and white" wood pellet plant.
In July this year, Européenne de Biomasse together with its financial partners Meridiam and the Banque des Territoires announced that is investing over EUR 100 million in FICA-HPCI (Filière industrielle Champagne-Ardennes – Haut Pouvoir Calorifique Industriel) – a combined heat, power and black pellet production plant on the Pomacle-Bazancourt industrial estate in Marne, Champagne-Ardenne, France.
COGECAB is the combined heat and power (CHP) subsidiary of FICA-HPCI, a renewable energy company owned by the investment funds Meridiam and Caisse des Depots associated to Européenne de Biomasse.
The scope of supply for KPA Unicon, the value of which has not been disclosed, includes an Unicon Renefluid 45 MW bubbling fluidized bed (BFB) boiler with flue gas cleaning. According to the company, its Renefluid BFB is capable of burning fuels with a wide spectrum of moisture content and calorific value and has very high availability and efficiency.
The boiler plant will use biomass including woodchips and bark, recycled wood and cuttings from vines. The boiler plant will generate superheated steam for electricity production and supply hot water and process steam for the pellet production plant as well as to third-party industrial processes located in the vicinity.
In addition, the black pellet process which will be supplied by compatriot Valmet produces residual steam and this will be recirculated in the boiler furnace, thereby improving the efficiency of flue gas condensation and thus the overall efficiency of the power plant.
The delivery includes also KPA Unicon’s PlantSys digital platform that enables remote operation and monitoring of the energy production plant. Intelligent predictive maintenance for the long lifespan of the plant is achieved by gathering real-time information from devices.
Dalkia have a good experience with KPA Unicon (Renewa), who has supplied to Lens CHP plant in the north of France, a boiler with the same technology. That boiler is reliable and efficient. Moreover, the performances and the time delivery were in line with the contract, said Habib Diop, Project Manager, Dalkia Est.
The plant will be put into operation in 2020 and will be handed over for commercial use in June 2020.
The project is the result of long-term development and creates opportunities to increase the share of future green energy production by replacing fossil fuels. This is KPA Unicon’s second boiler plant delivery for Dalkia and it continues and consolidates our very successful cooperation, said Timo Aspelin, Key Account Manager at KPA Unicon.
