A South Korean company began operating the country's first combined heat and power plant using wood-based biomass on Monday, a measure that could pave the way for the country to improve the environment and cut down on fuel costs, the Commerce and Industry Ministry said.
The cogeneration plant in Daegu, launched by Kenertec Co., uses 145 tons of wood chips and pellets each day to generate 52 tons of steam and 50 kilowatts of electricity an hour. The steam and power generated by the cogeneration plant will be used to supply energy to eight textile and dyeing factories in the southeastern city of Daegu, 302 kilometers from Seoul.
The ministry, which loaned 28.8 billion won (US$30.2 million) of the total 35 billion won construction cost, said the new plant not only cuts costs and air pollution, but makes it easier to build power generators. This is because such generators pose fewer environmental concerns.
Wood-based biomass produces almost no sulfur dioxide and only a fraction of the nitrogen oxide churned out by conventional power generators that burn bunker-C oil.
Policymakers also said that the country has an estimated 4 million tons of leftover wood chips that can be collected, equivalent to 1.6 million tons of oil.
"The wood chips can be made from materials that are usually thrown away or forgotten, so making use of them will help cut energy costs," an official said, adding that wood-based biomass cogeneration plants in Finland, Sweden and Austria produce a sizeable part of the energy output in those nations. Seoul, May 22 (Yonhap News)
Biomass cogeneration plant to help environment, cut fuel costs |
