They will be responsible for leading ReEnergy’s engineering team to increase power generation capabilities across the portfolio through improvements to plant reliability, capacity and efficiency.

In December, ReEnergy acquired a portfolio of five U.S. biomass energy-production facilities in Maine and New York from Quebec-based Boralex Inc., growing to approximately 260 employees in four states and a total energy portfolio of 240 megawatts.

“A.J. and John come to us with strong expertise in optimizing the performance of power-generating facilities,” said James White, Director of Energy Operations. “In order for us to effectively meet the needs of our communities for renewable energy, it will be critical for us to maximize facility performance.”

Both men have more than 20 years’ experience in power plant operations, maintenance, planning, engineering and supervision.

Mr. James began his career with the U.S. Naval Service, and then worked for 10 years at American Ref-Fuel in increasingly senior positions. He also worked for AarhusKarlshamn USA and InnovativEnergy. He has a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the New Jersey Institute of Technology, and also attended Drexel University and the Naval Nuclear Power School.

Mr. Sawyer most recently for Bluewater Energy Solutions as a project manager. Prior to that, he worked for Calpine Corporation for eight years in increasingly senior positions. He has a bachelor’s degree in Marine Engineering from the Maine Maritime Academy.

About ReEnergy Holdings LLC

ReEnergy Holdings LLC, a portfolio company of Riverstone Holdings LLC, owns and operates facilities that use biomass and waste residues to produce renewable thermal and electric energy. ReEnergy was formed in 2008 by affiliates of Riverstone Holdings LLC and senior management/co-investor team comprised of experienced industry professionals. ReEnergy employs 260 and generates 240 megawatts of energy.

The ReEnergy energy facilities include: a 40-megawatt biomass facility in Ashland, ME (ReEnergy Ashland); a 36-megawatt biomass facility in Fort Fairfield, ME (ReEnergy Fort Fairfield); a 40-megawatt biomass facility in Livermore Falls, ME (ReEnergy Livermore Falls); a 50-megawatt biomass facility in Stratton, ME (ReEnergy Stratton); a 22-megawatt biomass facility in Lyons Falls, NY (ReEnergy Lyonsdale); a 20-megawatt biomass facility in Chateaugay, NY (ReEnergy Chateaugay); and a 31-megawatt tire-to-energy facility in Sterling (ReEnergy Sterling).

ReEnergy also owns two construction and demolition waste and waste wood processing facilities that service the eastern New England/Boston metropolitan area marketplace (ReEnergy Gateway/LL&S in Salem, NH and ReEnergy Gateway/ERRCO in Epping, NH).

Mr. Dumond has more than 30 years of experience in the forest products industry. In his new post, he will be responsible for the coordination of fuel purchasing activities to ensure the proper implementation of the fuel plan and management of wood fuel inventory at the company’s biomass-to-energy facilities.

Mr. Dumond worked for 10 years at Boralex, procuring wood fuels for its biomass facilities in Maine. Four of those facilities were acquired by ReEnergy last month. He has also has worked for Great Northern Paper, Georgia Pacific, Irving Woodlands and Richard Carrier Group.

“Eric comes to ReEnergy with an extremely strong background in establishing and administering contracts with fuel suppliers, and strong relationships with the forest products industry participants. Additionally, we are pleased to be able to build off of Eric’s outstanding experience in implementing innovative lease-to-own programs to assist harvesters with purchases of equipment,” said Tom Beck, Chief Commercial Officer of ReEnergy. “A robust harvesting industry is critical to our success as a business.”

About ReEnergy Holdings LLC

ReEnergy Holdings LLC, a portfolio company of Riverstone Holdings LLC, owns and operates facilities that use biomass and waste residues to produce renewable thermal and electric energy. ReEnergy was formed in 2008 by Riverstone Holdings LLC and senior management/co-investor team comprised of experienced industry professionals. ReEnergy employs 260 and generates 240 megawatts of energy.

The ReEnergy energy facilities include: a 40-megawatt biomass facility in Ashland, ME (ReEnergy Ashland); a 36-megawatt biomass facility in Fort Fairfield, ME (ReEnergy Fort Fairfield); a 40-megawatt biomass facility in Livermore Falls, ME (ReEnergy Livermore Falls); a 50-megawatt biomass facility in Stratton, ME (ReEnergy Stratton); a 22-megawatt biomass facility in Lyons Falls, NY (ReEnergy Lyonsdale); a 20-megawatt biomass facility in Chateaugay, NY (ReEnergy Chateaugay); a 60-megawatt Black River Generating Facility at Fort Drum near Watertown, NY that will be converted in 2012 to utilize biomass as a fuel; and a 31-megawatt tire-to-energy facility in Sterling (ReEnergy Sterling).

ReEnergy also owns two construction and demolition waste and waste wood processing facilities that service the eastern New England/Boston metropolitan area marketplace (ReEnergy Gateway/LL&S in Salem, NH and ReEnergy Gateway/ERRCO in Epping, NH).

Biomass power generation capacity is predicted to grow by more than 86GW by 2021, a rise from the current 58GW, and representing a total investment of more than $100 billion (€78 billion), according to Pike Research.

If a more aggressive implementation campaign is put in place to build on the bioenergy resources, capacity could hit 115GW, which is an investment of more than $135 billion.

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Defining Biomass

When the American Council on Renewable Energy’s Biomass Definition Subcommittee pitched its unified biomass definition to members of Congress in early November, the consensus was clear: no one could remember ever seeing a biomass definition itself as a piece of legislation. So that’s the next step for the subcommittee.

“We’re going to have to find a way to get [our definition] in a piece of legislation to get introduced,” says Charles Brettell, subcommittee member and principal of Energy Asset Advisors. “So that’s sort of the blocking and tackling piece that needs to get done and that’s something we’ll be working on, trying to find the right entrée to get that in front of people legislatively.”

ACORE’s subcommittee developed the definition using aspects of the 2008 Farm Bill. The goal is to unify all 16 current definitions in federal legislation, thereby simplifying policy progress for the biomass industry.

[Read the full definition]

Biomass power developers eye renovated Vt. industrial site

A proposed biomass combined-heat-and-power (CHP) facility for Springfield, Vt., will not only provide cost effective energy to the community, but will also be an economic driver for Vermont, according to Dan Ingold, senior technical director for Weston Solutions.

Ingold and his team at Weston Solutions, an environmental consulting company, has partnered with Massachusetts-based Winstanley Enterprises, a real estate development and investment group, to convert a once shuttered industrial building on a 215-acre site into an industrial park powered by woody biomass. The facility is expected to produce between 25 MW and 35MW, and will create nearly 400 jobs during construction, with another 160 permanent jobs once operational.

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Biomass plant construction goes full steam ahead
Boldt leads construction of $255 million Rothschild facility

ROTHSCHILD — A $255 million biomass power plant under construction in Rothschild already has put more than 75 people to work full time, providing them with family-sustaining wages, officials said.

The workers — mostly general laborers, iron workers and carpenters — have spent recent months pouring concrete and erecting the 11-story steel frame for a building that ultimately will house the plant’s boiler, said Randy DeMeuse, vice president of operations for The Boldt Co., the Appleton-based firm overseeing construction.

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You can see the list of ReEnergy’s energy-production facilities here.

In November, ReEnergy announced it had reached an agreement with Boralex for the acquisition. The sale closed today.

“We are very excited to complete the acquisition of Boralex’s facilities and we welcome their loyal employees to our ReEnergy team. We are also pleased to become a corporate citizen of Maine, where the biomass industry is one of the backbones of the state’s economy,” said Larry Richardson, ReEnergy’s Chief Executive Officer.

The newly acquired facilities in Maine are ReEnergy Ashland (a 40-megawatt facility), ReEnergy Fort Fairfield (36 megawatts), ReEnergy Livermore Falls (40 megawatts) and ReEnergy Stratton (50 megawatts). The New York facility, ReEnergy Chateaugay, has a 20-megawatt generating capacity. The facilities rely principally on forest residue to produce renewable energy.

Tom Beck, ReEnergy’s Chief Commercial Officer, said, “We look forward to being an exemplary corporate citizen in these five communities. As we carry out our strategy of building an integrated renewable energy company in the U.S., we are creating economic opportunity, generating clean, reliable, cost-effective renewable energy, and providing it to the communities and businesses in these regions.”

Inclusive of this acquisition, ReEnergy will employ approximately 260 employees in four states, and operate a total energy portfolio of 240 megawatts.

About ReEnergy Holdings LLC

ReEnergy Holdings LLC, a portfolio company of Riverstone Holdings LLC, owns and operates facilities that use biomass and waste residues to produce renewable thermal and electric energy. ReEnergy was formed in 2008 by Riverstone Holdings LLC and a management/co-investor team comprised of experienced industry professionals. In addition to the facilities acquired today, ReEnergy owns and operates a 22-megawatt biomass facility in Lyons Falls, NY (ReEnergy Lyonsdale); a 31-megawatt tire-to-energy facility in Sterling, CT (ReEnergy Sterling); and two construction and demolition waste and waste wood processing facilities that service the eastern New England/Boston metropolitan area marketplace (ReEnergy Gateway/LL&S in Salem, NH, and ReEnergy Gateway/ERRCO in Epping, NH).

CONTACT: Sarah Boggess, Behan Communications Inc., (518) 792-3856

Policymakers look at biomass as attractive for generating electricity because it produces lower greenhouse gas emissions than coal does. But a new study suggests this isn’t the best use of biomass, an energy source made from plant matter. Researchers report that burning biomass instead of fuel oil to heat homes is a far cheaper way to cut greenhouse gas emissions (Environ. Sci. Technol., DOI: 10.1021/es202752b).

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A $70 million biomass plant that burns wood products and shredded tires to make electricity could bring about 25 jobs to Wadley, Ga. The company is working with Jefferson County officials to acquire 25 acres for the plant, which will require permits from Georgia’s Environmental Protection Division and has also raised questions among residents concerned about “tire derived fuels.”
According to the company, the plant would burn about 133,500 tons per year of forest products and about 38,500 tons per year of shredded tires to create about 24 megawatts of power.

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When Berlin, NH, set out on a course to rebuild itself, it turned to the forests that long ago defined the community. For the 10,000 residents of Berlin, the cornerstone of the revitalization is a 75-megawatt biomass power plant that will by 2013 sprout from the ashes of the city’s historic paper mill.

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