Plant Mitchell Biomass Conversion

Developing One of the Nation's Largest Biomass Projects
Georgia Power will develop one of the largest biomass power plants in the nation at Plant Mitchell near Albany. The company plans to retrofit the single coal-fired unit at Mitchell to burn wood chips starting in 2012. The project would convert a 155-megawatt unit that has been operating since 1964 into a 96-megawatt, biomass-fired boiler.

The project will take advantage of currently unused waste from logging operations. That includes tree tops, limbs, forest residue and "low-value timber," which consists of trees that are thinned out. Burning wood instead of coal will reduce emissions of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides.

Woody biomass is considered to be "carbon neutral," since it simply returns to the atmosphere the carbon dioxide that was absorbed as plants grew and that would be released anyway at some point - meaning there is no net release of CO2 if the cycle of growth and harvest is sustained.

• Georgia is rich with forestry resources and has a plentiful supply of surplus woody biomass and wood fuel to support Plant Mitchell.
• Within a 100-mile radius of Plant Mitchell, there are 8 million acres of forest and timberlands, and 12 million tons/year of surplus supply wood fuel.
• At 96 megawatts, Plant Mitchell would be one of the largest biomass projects of its kind in the country.
• The wood fuel used in the plant would come from suppliers operating within an approximately 100-mile radius of Plant Mitchell.
• Most of the wood fuel that would be used in the plant is considered unusable by timber companies and therefore would not compete with their needed wood supply.
• Approximately 1 million tons of the 12 million ton wood fuel supply per year would be needed to operate the plant.
• Woody biomass-fueled electricity results in less sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions than coal-fueled electricity.
• Because the converted unit will be considered a "carbon-neutral" source (one that relies on a fuel source that absorbed CO2 from the atmosphere), the conversion will result in a net reduction in CO2 emissions.
• Woody biomass is a renewable form of energy.
• The biomass conversion would have lower fuel and operating costs when compared to continued operation using coal, thereby making the plant more cost-effective for ratepayers.
• Adding wood fuel to Georgia Power's fuel supply mix would improve the company's fuel diversity and lessen its dependence on fossil fuel sources.
• The project would bring wood fuel suppliers to the local community and create 50-75 new jobs in southwest Georgia.
• Georgia Power plans to seek procurement certification from the Sustainable Forest Initiative (SFI) organization.