Posted September 28, 2010, at 3:17 p.m. CST

The Gainesville Renewable Energy Center signed a long-term biomass supply contract last week with Wood Resource Recovery, a local wood waste recycler, to supply almost half of the biomass fuel needed for its proposed 100-megawatt biomass plant.

All of the fuel supplied by Wood Resource Recovery will come from clean, urban wood waste, which includes biomass materials such as tree trimmings from right-of-way clearings as well as clean, woody debris from land clearing contractors and tree surgeons. Urban wood waste, which does not include construction and demolition debris or any other treated wood, is an advantageous biomass fuel for GREC as it is significantly drier than other biomass materials and will therefore increase the efficiency of the facility.

"In the absence of GREC, much of this material would be burned in the open with no emissions controls, end up in landfills or possibly be dumped surreptitiously in the woods, where it would decay, releasing greenhouse gases. We are excited to help provide a waste disposal solution for these materials while at the same time using them to generate renewable, baseload power for 70,000 homes in the Gainesville region," said Josh Levine, Project Manager for the GREC project.

American Renewables will build, own and operate the GREC facility and will sell all electricity and environmental attributes generated from the facility to
Gainesville Regional Utilities, the municipally owned utility that serves the Gainesville community, under a 30-year power purchase agreement.

Wood Resource Recovery has been supplying clean biomass fuel to plants throughout Florida and the Southeast since 1986. The urban wood waste will
be processed at WRR's existing Gainesville wood yard and at other off-site locations and delivered to the GREC site, adjacent to GRU's Deerhaven power plant.

"This contract clearly demonstrates the readily available supply of fuel for the new plant," said Richard Schroeder, president and founder of Gainesville-based BioResource Management, whose company is assisting GREC in securing fuel contracts. "We look forward to completing our permitting activities and beginning construction by the end of this year, allowing the community to benefit from nearly $200 million in federal tax credits that are available if the facility can move forward without delay," Levine added. It is anticipated that the GREC facility will be operational in late 2013.

In addition to the clean, urban wood waste supplied by WRR, the biomass plant will be fueled by biomass material sourced from the local area, such as logging residues and thinning material harvested in compliance with the facility's strict guidelines for forest sustainability and protection. By producing energy from local sources, GREC will create local jobs, keep energy dollars in the area's economy, and reduce reliance on imported coal.

SOURCE: GAINSEVILLE RENEWABLE ENERGY CENTER