 The project is a biomass integrated gasification combined cycle facility. It is a 42 MW net electric generating plant requiring 735 bone dry tons of woody biomass per day. The Northwest Florida Renewable Energy Center will be developed, owned and operated by BG&E of Florida, LLC (BG&E) to transmit power to Progress Energy of Florida. The project was originally sited and permitted in the City of Tallahassee. After much evaluation and discussion with the City, the project has been moved to its present location. BG&E FL has a PPA with Progress Energy of Florida. The PPA is a live document approved by the Florida Public Service Commission (FL PSC).
The project consists of a biomass fuel “wood chips” delivery/ handling system, a biomass gasification system, a biomass dryer, a gas cleanup system, two gas combustion turbines, two heat recovery steam generators (HRSG) with duct burner firing, condensing steam turbine generator, an auxiliary natural gas fired package boiler for start-up use only, an emergency flare system, cooling towers, and auxiliary support equipment such as air systems. The biomass fuel “wood chips” will be chipped to size and screened at a remote location. The fuel preparation process will be owned and operated by others.
The project has four main subsystems; (1) wood storage, handling and feed system; (2) pyrolytic gasification system, the SilvaGas® system licensed to BG&E by the SilvaGas Corporation; (3) gas clean-up system provided by the Dahlman Filtration Company; and (4) 2x1 combined cycle turbine island supplied by Solar Turbines, a division of the Caterpillar Corporation. At the power plant, fuel will be unloaded and conveyed, via a covered belt conveyor, to the fuel storage building. The fuel storage building will contain 10 to 14 days of fuel storage. The storage building will be under roof with the sides of the storage being open. From the fuel storage building, the fuel will be conveyed to a dryer where the moisture is reduced from as high as 37 percent to approximately 23 percent. Leaving the dryer, the fuel will be conveyed via a covered conveyor system to the gasification process area where it is stored in a metering/storage bin. Approximately 730 tons per day (dry basis) of biomass will be fed to the gasifier.
In the gasifier, product gas is formed from the introduction of biomass fuel, which is rapidly pyrolyzed in an oxygen-free environment by hot sand (olivine). During this process, the olivine temperature diminishes, while the breakdown of the fuel results in the production of char particles (carbon), product gas and a small amount of condensable organic compounds (tars). The resultant char and olivine are separated from the gas stream exiting the gasifier in dual, two-stage gasifier cyclones. The olivine and char are recirculated to the combustor where the char is burned and serves as a fuel source to reheat the circulating olivine. The reheated olivine is then transported back to the gasifier to supply the energy necessary for the gasification of the incoming wood feedstock.
Flue gas from the combustor flows through an additional cyclone, heat recovery exchangers and a baghouse before exhausting to the atmosphere. Product gas from the gasifier is directed to the gas clean-up system for removal of impurities prior to utilization in the two Solar Model T-130 combustion turbines (CTs). The CTs will produce 29.0 MW at an average atmospheric temperature of 59° F. Exhaust gases from the CTs will pass thru two heat recovery steam generators (HRSG’s) equipped with duct burners (DBs) to generate high-pressure steam. Product gas is also used to fire the two DBs. The high-pressure steam generated using the HRSG’s will be piped to a steam turbine generator to produce 20.7 MW at an average atmospheric temperature of 59° F. The parasitic electrical loads are estimated to be 8.3 MW. Therefore, the net electrical power available at an average atmospheric temperature of 59° F is 41.4 MW.
The NWFREC will be the most efficient biomass to electricity project in the country.
The project will provide for up to 200 jobs during construction, 25 permanent high paying jobs at Commercial Operation Date (COD) and additional 60 jobs in the biomass supply chain. However, should a BG&E choose to develop a vertically integrated, closed loop option, there will be 125 permanent jobs in the production of plantlets for a plantation. These 125 jobs do not include the necessary farm workers used for farm operations – the same number of jobs necessary in the forest supply chain.
 The NWFREC will serve as a demonstration to the power industry that electricity can be economically produced on various scales, in a variety of locations using renewable biomass feedstock fuels. This project will assist the utilities industry by producing and introducing the power to the grid necessary to achieve the required standards. By producing power for a cost equal to or below that of fossil fuels, this plant will act as a tipping point that provides leadership and a blueprint for the success while helping to attain the objectives of the National RES.
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