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8.Useofpalminenergy
8.1 Electricitygeneration
ElectricityGeneration
Typesofproducts: Electricity
EstimatedUKvolumes:
Electricity:1000mtPFAD,111,000mtPKM.22,000mtPKM
wasreportedasRSPO.
Palmcomponent: Electricity:PFAD,PKM.
Keyplayers:
RWEnPower,ScottishandSouthernEnergy,Trostrey
GeneratingStation,W4B.
Implicationsforpolicydevelopment:
Thereiscurrentlylimiteduseofpalmoilusedforelectricity
generation, and while a signifcant portion of the UK's import
ofPKMisused,thereareonlythreeoperatorsinvolved.
However,thereisthepotentialformanymoretousepalm
products,dependingonthemarketconditionsandprice
ofalternatefeedstocks.Theenergysectorisalreadywell
coveredbytwopiecesoflegislation,bothrelatedtotheEU
RenewableEnergyDirective(Directive2009/28/EC),which
includestheRenewablesObligation(electricityandheat).This
includesreportingrequirementsandmandatorysustainability
requirements.Developmentofpolicyoptionsneedstoensure
thattheseexistingapproachesaretakenintoaccount.Itis
possible that PFAD may be classifed as a residue, which would
meanthesustainabilityprovisionswouldnotapply.
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8.1.1Background
Electricity can be generated through a number of means, including fring plants, steam stations,
nuclearpowerplants,windturbines,andhydroelectricdams,forexample.Allthesemethodsinvolve
thesamemechanisms,namelytheactivationofaturbineandalternatortogenerateelectricity.
n fring plants, the combustion of materials (coal, fuel oil, nuclear, gas, solid biomass and liquid
biomass)isusedtoheatupaboiler.Thesteamproducedspinstheturbine,whichinturnengages
withthealternator.ThealternatorproduceselectricitywhichisthentransferredthenontotheNational
Grid.
n the UK, renewable fuels such as palm products can be used in fring plants in three different ways:
Used in existing power plants and co-fred with coal. Co-fring can be direct or indirect
313
.Direct
co-fring involves mixing of combustible fuels in the main boiler, whereas indirect co-fring involves
injectingbiomassandcoalseparatelyintotheboiler.Coalpowerplantscanmixupto1015%of
biomass with the main fuel without signifcantly affecting effciency of energy production and with
littleornoequipmentchangesrequired.
Used in fred power plants which have been converted to use renewable fuels (solid or liquid
biomass). To convert oil-fred or coal-fred plants to operate using solid or liquid biomass only
wouldrequiresupgradingtheboilers
314
.
Usedinpurposebuilt,dedicatedsolidorliquidbiomasspowerstations.Anumberofprojectsto
buildsuchpowerstationshavebeenproposedintheUK,totalling200MWofcapacityinplanned
andacceptedprojects,butnonearecurrentlyoperational.
InCHP(combinedheatandpower)plants,heatisproducedalongsideelectricity.Theheatiscreated
usingthesameburningtechniquesasforelectricity.Someheatedwaterisusedforelectricity
generation(steam)whereastherestisusedforheating(hotwater).Largescaleheatingsystems,as
opposedtoindividualheatingsystems,areonlyusedatadistrictscale,astransportingheatedwater
over long distances results in signifcant energy losses.
Fuelforenergyproductioncanbesolid(biomass)andliquid(bioliquids).Biomass
315
usedforelectricity
generationcanincludewoodchips,pellets,agriculturalresidues,PalmKernelMeal(PKMalsocalled
PalmKernelExpellerorPKE),sawmillresidues,driedsewagesludge,tallow,meatandbonemeal,
animalmanure,residuesfromthepaperandfoodindustries,greenwaste,coppice,grassessuchas
Miscanthus,sugarcropsorstarchcrops.
Bioliquidsusedforelectricitygenerationincludeenergycropssuchasoilseedrape,soy,palmoil,
jatropha, sunfower oil, sugarcane ethanol, tall oil (a product of wood pulping), olive residues and
wasteoils(usedcookingoilcollectedfromfoodserviceoutlets).
PalmproductsusedforenergygenerationareprimarilyresidualssuchasPalmKernelandPalm
KernelExpeller(PKE)andEmptyFruitBunches(EFB).About45%ofthepalmfruitisresidual
material, consisting of shells, kernels, fruit bunches and fbrous materials
316
.
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Typeofpalm Applications Tradeaspects
PalmKernel
Expeller(PKE)
Used for energy generation and co-fring with coal.
Importedmainlyforanimal
feed.
CrudePalmOil
(CPO)
CrudePalmOilisbeingusedforenergygeneration.
Tradedincommodity
markets.
Palmstearin
PalmStearincanbeusedforenergygeneration(high
meltingpoint).
LessexpensivethanCPO.
CIFandFOBmarkets.
ImportDuties
Palmfattyacid
distillate(PFAD)
PFADisthecheapestvegetableoilperGJ.High
acidity causing corrosion. Potential for co-fring.
LessexpensivethanCPO.
Availableinthecommodity
market.
Palmshells
Normallyusedforlocalenergygenerationatthemill.
Insomecasesshellsarebeingtraded.
Byproduct.Availableinthe
commoditymarket.
PaIm bers Usedforlocalenergygeneration(atthemill)
Byproduct.Notavailablein
thecommoditymarket.
EmptyFruit
Bunches(EFB)
Normallynotused.Potentialforlocalenergy
generation(subjecttoconnectiontothegrid)
Wasteproductavailableat
themills.
Table 8.1: Uses of palm products for electricity generation (Source: IEA Bioenergy Task 40 Seminar
317
)
Figure 8.1: Boiler in a palm oil mill, using processing residues
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Theseresidualsareoftenusedatthepalmplantationitselfforheatandpowergeneration,aswellas
inthedomesticmarketandforexport.InIndonesiaandMalaysiacombined,anestimated20million
mtofpalmresidualswereproducedin2005
xxx
.Thisrepresentsapotentialofapproximately340,000
MJ,oralmost100,000kWh(0.1gWh).
Toalesserextent,crudepalmoil(CPO),PFADanditsdirectfractions(stearinandolein)arealso
usedinenergygeneration,especiallyasignitionfuelsinPF(pulverisedfuel)plants.Itisreportedthat
palmoilstearin(theheavierfractionfromprocessingofcrudepalmoil)canresultingreenhousegas
emissions savings of around 25-50 % compared to the generation of electricity in a natural gas-fred
powerstation,andusingcrudepalmoilcanresultinemissionssavingsof035%
318
.
8.1.2Volumesofpalmusedforelectricitygeneration
In2009,371,978GWhwasgeneratedintheUKthemajorityofelectricitywhichwasproducedusing
gas(46%),coal(31%)andnuclear(13%)
319
.Around6.6%oftheelectricityfromlicensedsuppliers
wasgeneratedfromrenewableseligibleundertheRenewablesObligation(RO)
320
.Approximately
75%oftherenewablesusedforelectricitygenerationwasbiomass,ofwhicharound10%wasderived
fromplantbiomass
321
.
Atotalof111,000mtofPKMwasreportedlyusedbyUKelectricitygeneratorsin2009/10,includingat
RWE nPower's Aberthaw fred power station (reported 22,000 mt), RWE npower's Didcot fred power
station (reported 15,000 mt PKM) and Scottish and Southern Energy's Fiddler's Ferry fred power
station(reported74,000mtPKM)
322
.Thisisequivalenttoapproximately17%oftheUKimportof
PKM.OnlyAberthawreportedRSPOforthePKMused
323
.Afurther900mtofPFADwasreportedby
Trostreygeneratingstation
324
. This is down from 2005 fgures, where it was estimated that over 30%
(by mass) of the co-fring feedstock for UK coal-fred power stations was derived from palm products
(449, 657 mt out of 1,412,122 mt total biomass used for co-fring
325
).In2006itwasestimatedthat
palmproducts(includingCPO,PKMandPKS)werebeingusedintherangeof20,00050,000mt/
month(240,000600,000mtperyear)
326
.
IfthesixbioliquidprojectscurrentlyapprovedforconstructionintheUKusedonlypalmoil(which
inpracticetheyareunlikelyto,andchoiceofmaterialswilldependonpriceandavailability),itis
estimatedthatthetotaldemandwouldbe576,800L/dayor210,532,000L/year.Thismaximum
estimateisequivalentto210,000mtCPO/year
xxxi
.Furthermore,ifallexistingpowerplantswere
toincreasethepercentageofbiomassusedintheirinstallationsto15%(thethresholdafterwhich
modifcation to the plant would be required), it would create a demand for solid biomass of around
seven million mt, of which PKM could be a signifcant component.
8.1.3UKelectricitygenerationsector
SustainabilityofpalmbiomassintheUKelectricitygenerationsectorislinkedtocompanycorporate
socialresponsibilitypoliciesaswellastotheUKGovernmentsRenewablesObligation.Companies
interviewed stated that, to their knowledge, little RSPO certifed material was available for use in the
energysectorwithmostsegregatedvolumesbeingpurchasedbythefoodandpersonalcaresectors,
contrary to data which suggests that there is currently a surplus of supply for RSPO certifed palm oil.
Concerns were also raised that using certifed segregated RSPO palm oil for energy generation would
compromise the supplies to the food and personal care sectors and drive up prices of certifed RSPO
palmoil
327
.
xxxi
Thisisbasedonanoutputof28millionmetrictonnesofpalmoil(Woodsetal.,2006)
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IntheUnitedKingdom,thereareapproximately100electricitylicenseesforelectricitygeneration
nationally
328
.TheUKNationalGridisahighvoltagetransmissionnetworkintheUK,whichconnects
largeelectricityproducerstotheelectricitydistributionoperators
329

330331
.TheScottishgridisowned
byScottishPowerandScottishandSouthernEnergy.TheNationalGridisrunbythetransmission
system operator who monitors fuxes of energy and directly liaises with electricity producers to ensure
enoughenergyisproduced,onaregularbasis(hourly/daily/weekly/monthly/yearly).Electricity
producersneedtopayatransportfeetotheNationalGridtobeabletouseit.Theelectricityisthen
transportedtoelectricdistributionsubstationsandtheiroperatorsfordomesticdistribution.Thereare
currently10tendistributionnetworkoperatorsintheUK
332
.
The frst power plants to use co-fring with biomass (mainly wood products and residues) were Slough
Heat and Power, Longannet and Ferrybridge. Ferrybridge uses a variety of co-fring fuels, and have
usedPKMinthepast
333
.
Around 30 power plants currently co-fre with bioliquids, totalling more than 14,300 MW
334
.Threeof
companieshavedeclaredtheusingofpalmtoOfgem(around4,300MW).Therearenoknownplants
intheUKthathavebeenconvertedtorunon100%bioliquids.
RWE nPower have an extensive programme of biomass co-fring in its fossil-fuel power stations,
includingtheuseofpalmoil
335
.In2009,theyused123,477mtofbiomass,ofwhich37,000mtwas
PKM
336
.TheyareanRSPOmember
337
, and recently took the decision not to convert its oil-fred plant
in Littlebrook, Dartford to 100% palm oil on the basis that insuffcient volumes of sustainably sourced
palmoilwereavailabletomaketheconversioneconomicallyviable
338
.
E.ONUKhasstatedthattheywillalwaysseektoensurethatallbiomassispurchasedfroma
sustainableandsociallyresponsiblesource
339
.However,theyhaveindicatedtheyarenotcurrently
using palm oil for co-fring
340
.
The frst dedicated biomass power plant in the UK to be given planning permission was a BlueNG
xxxii

19.5MWplantinBeckton,EastLondon,which,onceoperational,woulduse56,000Lofvegetable
oil a day. t is planned as a dedicated vegetable oil CHP plant in and is the frst of 8 eight such
plantsplannedfortheUKbyBlueNG.Theplanningapplicationwassubjecttonumerousprotests,
particularlywithrespecttothepotentialuseofpalmoilasafeedstock,aswellasothervegetableoils.
AlthoughBlueNGhavestatedtheydonotintendtousepalmoilasafeedstock
341
,somegrassroots
organisations are not satisfed that they have not ruled out palm oil
342343.
(thoughGreenpeacehas
endorsedtheproject
344xxxiii
).
TheenergycompanyW4Bhasbeengivenpermissiontobuilda17.8MWplantatPortlandinDorset
toburnpalmstearinaswellasjatropha
345
.AsecondW4Bhasalsobeengivenplanningpermission
inBristolonthebasisthatallthefuelwillbesubjecttotheRenewableOrdersustainabilitycritertia
xxxiv

WB4isanRSPOmember.Theyhavestatedtheyarecurrentlyidentifyingsuppliesofsustainable
palmstearinfortheirplannedplantinDorset
346
.
xxxii
BlueNGisajointventurebetweentheNationalGridand2OC,however,inSeptember2010itwasannouncedunderEUrulesthatNGcouldnotowna
generating business. 2OC is continuing to seek fnancing for the plant.
xxxiii
JohnSauven,DirectorofGreenpeaceUKsaid:BlueNGhasmadeaclearcommitmenttosustainablepracticeandcouncillorsdeservepraisefor
includinganagreementwhichholdsthemtothat.Thisisabeaconprojectforotherdecentralisedrenewablegeneratorswhichwillhelptomeetelectricity
demandsinademonstrablysustainableway.
xxxiv
The initial application was rejected, in part because of concerns about the wider impacts of the biofuels and specifcally the use of palm oil. t was later
approvedonappeal.
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Solent Sustainable Energy Ltd. was a not-for-proft company that was set up by Millbrook council in
2005todevelopaCHPdistrictheatingprojectwithacapacityof50MWefromcombustingpalmoil.
Theplantwasdesignedtosupplyheatingandhotwaterto3,440councilhousesaswellasother
publicandprivatepropertiesinthearea
347,348,349,350.
Theprojectneverwentaheadasitwasconsidered
too costly and very likely to have diffculties with the supply of palm oil.
BEITeessidehasaplannedcapacityof49.3MW.ItwasgrantedplanningpermissioninMarch
2010
351
.TheyhavestatedthatPalmKernelShellswillbeusedastheprimaryfeedstock
352
.
Drax, the UK's biggest power station, is to convert one of its coal-fred boilers to use biomass. This
would be the frst time that any leading power station had taken an existing coal-fred turbine and
convertedittobebiomassonly.However,theyhavestatedthattheirsustainabilitypolicywouldrule
outusingpalmoil
353
.
8.1.4UKlegislationforsustainabilityofelectricitygeneration
DECC(DepartmentofEnergyandClimateChange)wascreatedin2008tobringtogetherenergy
policyandclimatechangemitigationpolicy.TheUKsRenewableEnergyStrategysetsouthowUK
useofrenewableenergycanbeincreasedtohelptackleclimatechangeandhelpsecurefuture
energysupplies.TheUKtargetistosource15%ofitsenergy(electricity,heatandtransport)from
renewablesourcesby2020
354
.
The Offce for Renewable Energy Deployment (ORED)'s role is to ensure renewable energy targets
aremet
355
. Currently, the main fnancial incentive is the Renewables Obligation (RO). There is also
theFeedinTariff
356
andtheRenewableHeatIncentive
318
,bothdesignedtoincentivisesmallscale
generationofelectricityfromrenewables,forexamplebyhouseholdsandbusinesses.
Figure 8.2: Structure of the UK energy supply chain, with key players
EUrefineries
Cargill,IOI,SimeDarby
Unimlls,Wilmar
UKRefineries(3)
AAK,ADM,NBOils
(Britanniaisfoodonly)
Cofiring/convertedplants(3)
RWEnPower,Scottishand
SouthernEnergy,Trostrey
GeneratingStation
Dedicatedbiomass/bioliquid
i.e.BEITeeside(planned),
WB4(planned)
Page|65
Generationtype ROCs/mWh
Co-fring of biomass 0.5
Co-fring if energy crops 1
Co-fring of biomass with CHP 1
Co-fring of energy crops with CHP 1.5
Dedicatedbiomass 1.5
Dedicatedenergycrops 2
DedicatedbiomasswithCHP 2
DedicatedenergycropswithCHP 2
Table 8.2: ROC banding (2010)
358
Under the RO, Renewables Obligation Certifcates (ROCs) are issued to RO accredited generators for
eligiblerenewableelectricitygeneratedintheUKforUKcustomers.Thesecanbesoldtoelectricity
suppliersintheUK.UndertheRenewablesObligationOrder,electricitysuppliersneedtosource
anincreasingamountoftheirelectricityfromrenewablesources.In2010/2011,itshouldaccountof
11.1% of total electricity supplied. Failure to do so results in a fee-paying fne equivalent to the amount
ofROCsmissing.
ROCsavailableforbiomassandenergycropsusedinenergygenerationissummarisedinTable8.2.
TheweightingoftheROCsisdesignedtorewardenergysuppliersusinghigherlevelsofbiomass,
whichmayincreasethevolumesofpalmbiomassused.
AsofApril1,2011,mandatorysustainabilitystandardsforbiomassusedinelectricitygenerationapply.
ThereisatransitionperiodofmandatoryreportingagainstthecriteriafromApril2011,witheligibility
forROCsfromApril2013.TherequirementsareaspertheRenewableEnergyDirective(Directive
2009/28/EC),includingaminimum60%greenhousegasemissionsavingforelectricitygeneration
usingsolidbiomassorbiogasrelativetofossilfueland,secondly,generalrestrictionsonusing
materialssourcedfromlandwithhighbiodiversityvalueorhighcarbonstock
359
.However,ithasbeen
suggestedthatPFADwouldqualifyasawaste,whichwouldmeanthattheywouldnotbesubjectto
thesustainabilityprovisions
360
.
Aspartofthisupdate,biodieselwillnowbeeligibleforROCs,whichmaymeananincreasein
electricitygenerationfrombiodiesel
361
.
Page|110
AnnexA:UKimportersofpalmoil
Companyname Sector/Type
Aarhuskarlshamnuklimited Refning
Food&personalcareingredients
ADMErithLtd Refning
BaiFontiFofana Individual
Britanniafood Refning
Foodingredients
BritishBakelslimited Foodingredients
CeciliaAntwi Individual
CharlesKargbo Individual
ComfortAgyekum Individual
DosPalmOilProductionLimited Distributor
Fovitorinternationalltd Foodingredients
GlobalAfricaltd Cash&carry
JanetBrown Individual
JumboUKltd Wholesalers
KTC(edibles)Limited Oilsandfatsdistribution
KoreaFoodsCompanyLimited Wholesale/distribution
M&NCash&Carrylimited Cash&carry
Macphilipsfoodsltd Manufacturer
MamaCalabarRestaurant Restaurant
Maracinternational Unknown
NewDirectionsAustralia Personalcareingredients
NiiKwesiCompanylimited Unknown
OlubukolaAkinLawal Individual
PuraFoodslimited Refnery and food manufacture
StephensonGrouplimited Personalcareingredients(soap)
SwiftAfrofoods Wholesaler
T&NOilscompanyltd Distributor
TheBodyShop Manufacturer/retailer
TheKerfootGrouplimited Foodandcosmeticsingredients
Veronaimpexltd Unknown
Wanisltd Wholesaler
WhitmanLaboratories
(EsteeLauder)
Cosmetics
Yadlymarketingcompany Unknown
Yemyomventuresltd Wholesaler
(UKTradeInfodata,uptoJuly2010)