PDL unveils biomass boiler

PDL Cigarette Papers has inaugurated a new biomass boiler at its Papeteries des Vosges (PDV) site in Laval-sur-Vologne, France.

With 6.5 MW of power, the boiler can produce up to 10 tons of steam per hour and will supply enough steam to meet more than 50 percent of the PDV’s demands. The rest will be provided by two gas boilers which have been operating since December 2013.

The new boiler comprises a wood storage facility that can hold up to 1,000 cubic meters of wood, allowing it to run on its own for 3.7 days. Each year it will be supplied with 20,000 tons of untreated and unfinished wood, wood chips and residue from sawmills, including bark. All wood will be sourced from local industries.

Using this renewable energy will reduce the firm’s carbon dioxide output by 8,000 tons per year. The project cost €8 million ($10.9 million), € 2.3 million of which was provided by the French Agency for Environment and Energy Management.

The construction of this new wood-fueled boiler is in keeping with PDL Cigarette Papers’ sustainable development approach and energy conservation efforts, which have been in place for several years now.

“Our new biomass boiler means that we can honor our sustainable-development commitments while monitoring the changes in energy prices, therefore reducing costs as well as our carbon footprint,” says Bruno Delesque, PDL Cigarette Papers’ sales and marketing director. “Prior to this, Papeteries des Vosges sourced its steam from the neighboring industrial site, which operated on natural gas. Using wood seemed to be an optimal solution as a source of renewable energy.”

In January 2013, PDL Cigarette Papers started a biomass boiler at its Papeteries du Léman facility. The investment has decreased greenhouse gas emissions by 32 percent over the year in comparison with 2012.