Larson attends Biomass '10

Lindsey Larson, Marketing/Business Development Specialist for the Jamestown/Stutsman Development Corporation recently attended Biomass '10: Renewable Power, Fuels, and Chemicals Workshop in Grand Forks.

The event was sponsored by the Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) at the University of North Dakota.

This year's workshop attracted over 300 registrants from 25 states, the District of Columbia, and four Canadian provinces. Other countries represented include Austria, Brazil, China, Italy, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom.  Attendees represented 175 organizations, over 60% of them from private industry. This is the eighth annual biomass workshop of its kind, focused on the production of renewable energy, fuels, and chemicals from biomass feedstocks.

 “This is a great forum to find out the latest developments in biomass and make the connections with people and companies throughout the supply chain.” Larson commented.

The 2-day technical program included comprehensive educational sessions on topics including trends and opportunities in utilizing biomass; biomass feedstocks; biofuels; and using biomass for creating chemicals, heat, and power. The program included a panel discussion on the use of algae as a feedstock. North Dakota Governor John Hoeven delivered the keynote address and U.S. Senators Byron Dorgan and Kent Conrad also provided video comments.

Featured speaker Sandra Broekema of Great River Energy presented the progress of the proposed Dakota Spirit AgEnergy biorefinery project at the Spiritwood Energy Park. This will be a commercial scale cellulosic biomass refinery that will have three end products; ethanol, lignin, and C5 molasses. They are planning for the use of wheat straw and corn stover as their feedstock to the biorefinery. The goal for this biorefinery will be part of a solution for energy independence and domestic security, and lower carbon intensity for fuel and power. Great River Energy has proposed that the biorefinery will be operational by 2014.

Larson added. “This was great exposure for Spiritwood Energy Park and this conference provided a wealth of networking opportunities to further advanced growth in the park.”

The workshop is in its eighth year and continues to grow in depth and reach of topics, reputation, and attendance and is a natural extension of the biomass research and development conducted by the EERC since the mid-1970s.

For more information about the Energy & Environmental Research Center, please visit www.undeerc.org.