Forest2Fuel E-Newsletter

March/April 2010

In This Issue
Version 1 of BCAP
BCAP: Q & A
UK Demand for Wood Fiber
Adage Halts Gretna, FL Project
Dixie Pellets Sale Notice
Quick Links

 
 
Top 3 Stories from Jan/Feb Issue
 
 
 
VERSION 1 OF BCAP:
The Final TallyUS Capitol Building
 
The final matching payments have been made to biomass suppliers under the initial rules for the Biomass Crop Assistance Program, and the 60-day comment period on the proposed rules has expired. On April 8, the FSA released the final tally for the Collection, Harvest, Storage and Transportation Matching Payments Program.

The FSA:
 - Approved 5,479 agreements; 94 percent (5,145) for forest-generated material
 - Made payments of $170,112,607 through April 8, 2010; 92 percent ($156,254,515) for forest-generated material
 
BCAP: Q & A
Wood Chips and Conveyor
 
Q: Which states received the highest total matching payments?  Answer
 
Q: Which regions received the most funding?  Answer
 
Q: Why were payments so heavily weighted toward forest materials?  Answer
 
Q: When will the USDA release the final rules and restart the BCAP program?  Answer
 
Q: The $170 million question: What did the American taxpayer get for the $170,112,607 in BCAP matching payments?  Answer
 
Q: How can the goals of the BCAP Matching Payment Program be met?  Answer
UK DEMAND FOR WOOD FIBER
Wood Pellets
 
While domestic demand from bioenergy facilities remains weak, European demand continues to expand. A recent report estimates that Britain will need to import 30 million tons of wood chips and pellets annually by 2017.

Several announcements for 400 MW biopower plants, each planning to consume approximately 4 million tons of wood fiber annually apparently raised red flags for some. As a result, twenty leading companies in wood utilization and woodland management in Britain funded the study in order to understand the demands being placed on the supply chain from a forest products industry that continues to develop and an increasing number of announcements for wood-fueled energy plants.
 
ADAGE HALTS GRETNA, FLORIDA PROJECT
Contributes Study of the Economic Effect of New Biomass Power Plant on the Local EconomyPower Plant
 
In March, ADAGE LLC, a joint venture between Duke Energy and AREVA, suspended work on its 55 MW biomass power plant in Gretna, Florida and withdrew its air permit application for the facility. The announcement comes on the tail of the city's decision to defer a decision approving the project for six months.

Before ADAGE halted the project, Dr. Julie Harrington, the Director of the Florida State University Center for Economic Forecasting and Analysis, quantified the contribution the project would make to the local economy.
 
DIXIE PELLETS SALE NOTICE
 
The deadline for submission of initial bids for Dixie Pellets' pellet manufacturing plant in Selma, Alabama is Wednesday, May 5, 2010 at noon. A final hearing approving the sale to the highest bidder will be held on May 12, 2010 at 9:30 a.m. in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Birmingham. For additional details, see the Notice of Proposed Sale.
Forest2Market�
14045 Ballantyne Corporate Place, Suite 150
Charlotte, NC 28277-2845
 Phone: (704) 540-1440
Fax: (704) 540-6301