The Avedore CHP plant in Copenhagen, Denmark, once the country’s largest coal-fired station is now completely fuelled by biomass.
Coal has been replaced entirely by wood pellets and straw as two energy companies, Vestegnens Kraftvarmeselskab (VEKS) and Dong Energy combined to contribute to the city’s district heating initiative.
"Following the conversion of unit 1 at Avedore, we can produce heat for more than 215,000 Danish households in the Greater Copenhagen area without using coal or gas. The conversion is a major contribution to achieving a green district heating system in the Greater Copenhagen area, as well as a green electricity system, supplementing solar and wind power," Thomas Dalsgaard, executive vice president at Dong Energy told Biomass magazine.
The conversion, part of a heat agreement between the two Danish energy companies, aims to provide green district heating to VEKS' customers in the Greater Copenhagen area. The change from coal to sustainable wood pellets means CO2 emissions are reduced by about 500,000 metric tonnes per year, equivalent to the annual emissions from 255,000 cars.
Another of Dong Energy’s plants – Studstrup in Aaarhus, was already transitioned to biomass from coal in October.
Avedore's electric energy production corresponds to the annual consumption of more than 600,000 Danish households annually.