A biomass power plant in Gardanne, southern France, has officially restarted operations more than a year after it was shut down. The facility is now running under new rules designed to make it more environmentally friendly and financially stable, reports Bioenergy Insight.
The plant will operate on a reduced schedule, aiming to meet updated environmental and financial goals. It will now run for a maximum of 4,000 hours each year, which is about half of its previous operating time.
To lessen the impact on local wood supplies and keep costs steady, the amount of plant material (biomass) used each year has been capped at 450,000 tonnes.
The way the plant gets its fuel has also been changed to ensure a better mix. It will now use leftover wood from sawmills in the nearby area, recycled wood, and wood chips brought in from other places through the port of Fos-sur-Mer. This new approach aims to reduce how much the plant relies on regional forests, using only a small portion of the available wood in the area that can be easily accessed and is cost-effective.
Currently, a public review is taking place across many towns to examine the environmental effects of the plant’s new biomass plan. This review is focusing on the health of local forests, carbon pollution, and whether the way the plant gets its biomass can be sustained over a long period.
The reopening of the plant is expected to create more than 90 direct jobs and several hundred additional jobs in related fields like forestry, shipping, and transportation. The Gardanne facility is once again providing renewable energy to France, now operating under stricter guidelines.
