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LONDON (Alliance News) - Active Energy Group PLC shares rose on Monday after the company started to demonstrate the benefits of its newly launched biomass fuel, publishing test results that show the fuel is equally, or even more, effective as coal.
Active Energy shares were trading up 12% to 6.15 pence per share on Monday morning.
The company, which is primarily a timber company, recently launched a new renewable energy division called AEG CoalSwitch to offer biomass fuel to power plants that currently use coal to generate power.
Active Energy has called the technology used to convert any fibrous or wood-based biomass material into high-energy feedstock "game-changing", and the biomass fuel can be used either alongside coal or to replace coal.
The division has been launched at a time when the use of coal is coming under increased scrutiny due to its environmental effects and as power producers begin to move away from coal in favour of cleaner fuels.
On Monday, Active Energy's claims about the biomass fuel received a boost after the results from the burn testing of the biomass fuel showed it burned at near-identical temperatures but also burned more efficiently than coal, and produced considerably less ash than coal does.
The tests were carried out at the University of Utah, and conducted at the university's Clean & Secure Energy Institute. The tests evaluated the biomass fuel in a 100.0 kilowatt pulverised coal combustor, which "closely replicates the full-scale facilities utilised in industrial coal-fired power plants around the world," Active Energy said.
The specific type of coal used to compare and evaluate the performance of the biomass fuel was Illinois Number 6, which Active Energy said was a "typical feedstock used for industrial power generation" in the US.
The results found the company's biomass fuel burned at "near-identical" temperatures as does coal, but revealed the biomass fuel burns more efficiently and produces less ash.
The biomass fuel, unsurprisingly, burned cleaner than coal, and when it was fired in tandem with coal it reduced the levels of sulphur dioxide being emitted and reduced the amount of unwanted ultrafine particles in the blended fuel.
The biomass fuel was "essentially free" from containing potassium and sodium, which usually causes "fouling issues" when combusted, a common barrier that has prevented biomass fuels being burnt alongside coal in the past.
In addition, when burning the biomass fuel and coal, there was a lower loss on ignition than the pure coal, leaving far less unburned carbon in the ash, demonstrating far better combustion of coal when mixed with the biomass fuel.
"The results of the CoalSwitch testing prove that the group's faith in the technology and our investment in it over the past twelve months were fully justified; and demonstrate that, for the first time to our knowledge, the glass wall between coal and Biomass usage within existing power generation plants has been shattered," said Chief Executive Richard Spinks.
"They confirm that CoalSwitch fuel represents a game-changer for the power generation industry, and delivers significant financial and environmental benefits over current Biomass fuel solutions," he added.
The news will be welcomed by shareholders as it confirms the company has a significant product that comes at a time when governments and companies are looking to move away from coal.
The US is aiming to have reduced carbon dioxide levels by 32% in 2030 compared to 2005 levels whilst increasing the amount of renewable power generation by 30%, whilst the UK aims to have most if not all of its coal plants shut by the middle of the next decade.
Big name companies such as Drax Group PLC have also spent hundreds of millions of pounds to convert three out of its six coal powered units in the UK to burn biomass.
The ease of converting an existing coal plant to biomass without the need for investment or a temporary shut-down makes it appealing, as it boosts renewable energy power generation whilst reducing emissions - potentially a big selling point for Active Energy.
By Joshua Warner; joshuawarner@alliancenews.com; @JoshAlliance
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