Good Practice: Implementation of Biomass-coal Co-firing System in ZVTP a.s. Zvolen, Slovak Republic

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Setting

SETatWork Contact: Peter Luby, ECB, Slovakia
Partner Organisation: Zvolenská Teplárenská s.r.o., ZVTP, Zvolen
Date of identification: March 2009
Country: Slovak Republic
Location: Zvolen
Project start date: January 2007
Project end date: July 2008
Technology keywords: Advanced technologies, High temperature technologies, Agricultural waste, Coal combustion, Forestry and energy crops
Host sector: Independent Energy Producer
Ref: SETatWork Good Practice #3

Objective of the Project

Partly replacement of brown coal fuel combustion with biomass.

Technical Summary

The said Project is intended to be presented as one having considerable contribution to Energy Efficiency benefit because thermal efficiency of this arrangement has been increase compared to previous state.

Two coal-fired boilers in Zvolenská Teplárenská s.r.o. ("ZVTP"), Slovak Republic were retrofitted with a new cofiring system adopted to simultaneous burning of mix of coal with wood chips. Compliance with stringent emission standards was fulfilled. Process economy and reliability were improved dramatically as well. Project was partly supported by EU and partly from Government sources.

Before retrofit: The content of sulphur in emitted flue gas was as high as 3.500 - 4.000 mg SO₂/m³. This was causing serious environmental problems in the region. New national limits for greenhouse gases emissions are 1.700 mg SO₂/m³ and 600 mg NO_x/m³ with the effect from 1 January 2007. CHP has not been able to achieve these without substantial improvement of technology. Shift from lignite to low-sulphur content brown coal with co-firing of biomass has been identified economically the most feasible and environmentally acceptable solution. Two boilers, each of them with the output of 108 MWt, were therefore retrofitted to co-firing of pulverized low sulphur content brown coal with biomass (wood chips). Biomass fuel share is up to 30% of the combusted fuel.

See the Good Practice Case Study PDF file for further information

Environmental and Social Benefits

(Estimate of) Greenhouse Gases abated (in metric tons of CO₂-equivalent):
Annual:
Up to and including 2012: 100,000 tCO₂-equivalent
Up to a period of 10 years: 100,000 tCO₂-equivalent
Up to a period of 15 years: 100,000 tCO₂-equivalent

Other environmental benefits: After retrofit: Emissions of greenhouse gases after the reconstruction of boilers have complied the limits set in force after 1 January 2008, i.e.

• 1.400 mg SO₂/m³
• 600 mg NO_x/m³
• 250 mg CO/m³
• 50 mg fly ash/m³

Number of reduction units: Outlook for trading period 2008-2012 is 500,000 tCO₂ total

Socio-economic aspects: Zvolen belongs to those cities in which there is long-term development of a system of central supply of heat (SCSH). The heat supply from SCSH brings reliability, safety, certainty of deliveries, comfort, regular maintenance, service and renewal of facilities in the price of heat and also lower loading of environment. In the last decade doubts were raised whether this way of central heating and preparation of hot service water was favourable for households, as well as deliveries of technological heat to industrial consumers. These challenges were met with the Municipal Energy Concept of Zvolen. The concept evaluated heat from SCSH as the most effective and as the most favourable for the final consumer. The experience from past years has proven these claims right. Zvolen belongs to cities with the lowest price of heat and the lowest heat consumption per equivalent residential unit.

Methodology used: Approved baseline methodology

Economic Data

Capital Costs: 16.4 MEUR

Financing scheme: Non-recourse financial grant (NFG). In 2005 Government approved grant of 470 mil. Sk (15.6 MEUR) from the sources of the EU and the state budget as NFG, which originally represented 95% of capital costs of the Project.

To find similar reports, click on a keyword below:
SETatWork: Sustainable Energy Technology at Work (2008-2010) : Ceramics, Glass and Brick Industries : Co-firing : Coal Combustion : Combustion Technology : EU ETS : Energy Efficient Technologies : Forestry and Energy Crops : Fuel Switching : Heat Generation, Recovery and Use : Information and Communications Technologies : Renewable Energy Technologies : Wastes and Residues

ECB - Energy Centre Bratislava

SES - Slovenské energetické strojárne Inc. Tlmače

ZVTP - Zvolenská Teplárenská s.r.o.