Biomass Feasibility Project Final Report - Xcel Energy
Biomass Feasibility Project Final Report - Xcel Energy
Biomass Feasibility Project Final Report - Xcel Energy
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of plants that make profits in other ways, co-generation plants don’t have to carry the full<br />
financial load of their enterprises.<br />
Capital costs are lower, too, because co-generation takes advantage of existing infrastructures,<br />
like:<br />
• An existing site.<br />
• Management and workforce.<br />
• Electrical substations and transmission lines.<br />
• Roads and transportation.<br />
• Supply chains, like loggers or farmers.<br />
• Ability to buy additional biomass fuels, like timber slash, thinnings, wheat straw, or corn<br />
stover, from those same suppliers.<br />
• Water and sewer connections and back-up or start-up fuels.<br />
• A large internal power customer.<br />
Sources of Renewable <strong>Energy</strong> and Fuels for <strong>Biomass</strong><br />
Because so many U.S. timber and crop processors co-generate power from organic wastes,<br />
biomass ranks second only to hydro among renewable fuels for power.<br />
Table VI-2: United States Renewable <strong>Energy</strong> Generating Capacity<br />
Renewable<br />
Resources<br />
Hydro<br />
<strong>Biomass</strong><br />
Wind<br />
Geothermal<br />
Solar thermal<br />
Photovoltaic<br />
Total, 2002<br />
(NREL, 2006)<br />
Generating Capacity<br />
(MW)<br />
93,445 MW<br />
11,869 MW<br />
5,078 MW<br />
2,079 MW<br />
354 MW<br />
58 MW<br />
112,883 MW<br />
Among biomass fuels, timber residues predominate.<br />
Table VI-3: MW of Generating Capacity from U.S. <strong>Biomass</strong> Resources<br />
<strong>Biomass</strong><br />
Resources<br />
Timber residues<br />
Municipal solid waste<br />
Biogas<br />
Agricultural residues<br />
Landfill gas<br />
Total 2002 U.S. biomass capacity<br />
(NREL, 2006)<br />
Generating<br />
Capacity (MW)<br />
7,497 MW<br />
2,970 MW<br />
880 MW<br />
373 MW<br />
150 MW<br />
11,870 MW<br />
Underlying the figures above are several important points. The first is that existing biomass power<br />
generation is overwhelmingly a byproduct of manufacturing. Of those 7,497 MWs of capacity<br />
for timber residues, only 245 belong to utilities owned by the federal government, cooperatives,<br />
municipalities, or investors or public authorities. The remaining 7,252 MWs are tied to<br />
manufacturing plants, mostly pulp and paper mills. Since virtually all plants burning timber<br />
Page 72<br />
Identifying Effective <strong>Biomass</strong> Strategies:<br />
Quantifying Minnesota’s Resources and Evaluating Future Opportunities
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