Jatropha Fuelled Plant in Belgium

The 9-megawatt plant costing €7 million would be built by Wartsila in the Belgian Merksplas farming region. It will be owned by a joint venture between sustainable energy developer Thenargo and local agricultural companies.

Jatropha curcas is a shrub producing oil-rich fruit that has been traditionally used as a heating and lighting fuel by communities in the developing world. But its value as a feedstock for large-scale biofuel production is largely untested. It is now the subject of research and development into its potential for use in the production of the green transport fuel, biodiesel.

One of its key advantages is that it can be grown in low-rainfall areas on land where other crops won’t grow. It is not a food crop nor a food source for animals. A rush has begun in recent years to produce biofuels as a substitute for fossil fuels in order reduce dependence on oil and cut greenhouse gas emissions in transport. But most biofuel production so far involves food grains and oils like corn, canola and palm oil, and so competes for land with food production.

A spike in world food prices this year, particularly wheat and rice, has been blamed in part on biofuels.

The use of Jatropha oil as a power generation and heating fuel is a step towards biofuels that do not compete with food crops, said Wartsila’s Ronald Westerdijk in a press release. "Jatropha oil is a liquid biofuel that has great potential since jatropha can also be harvested outside the world's rainforest areas, even near deserts," he said.

The electricity generated by the plant will be sold into the grid and be enough power up to 20,000 homes. The heat generated will be used by local farmers for warm greenhouses and drying material in a process to make fertiliser.

TheBioenergySite News Desk

Sign up for our
regular news updates

Latest Bioenergy Industry News

•   Cooperation Agreements for Brazil and Canada
•   NTR in Algae Joint Venture
•   Symposium on Future of Biodiesel
•   Consumers Energy Wind Farm Plan
•   Commissioner at International Conference on Biofuels
•   Daewoo Logistics Biofuel Project for Madagascar
•   Biodiesel from Urban Waste
•   Wind Farm Plan for Brazil
•   Egypt Wants Brazilian know-how in Biofuels
•   Inland Empire Oilseeds Starts Biodiesel Production