Industry Tours
BBI International is pleased to be able to offer two compelling industry tours this year featuring three biomass-to-energy facilities with a combined electrical output of nearly 100 MW. Koda Energy, Elk River Energy, and District Energy of St. Paul operate on various types of biomass and employ different technologies to create heat and power. Each facility will offer attendees firsthand insight into how distinctly different biomass-to-energy facilities operate successfully within their respective margins. From the confines of a city to utilizing waste for energy, attendees to this year’s industry tours will gain an excellent perspective on how the constraints that these plants operate under are used to their advantage.
Industry Tour #2 – Thursday, April 11
7:45 am - 1:00 pm
Depart from Convention Center, Second Avenue South Main Entrance
District Energy of St. Paul Biomass
Power Plant and Fuel Yard
District Energy of St. Paul is recognized throughout North America as a leader in community energy. Through the combustion of 280,000 tons of wood residue each year the CHP plant provides reliable, cost-effective heating to the commercial, residential and industrial buildings in downtown St. Paul and adjacent areas and 25 MW of electricity to the local grid. Tours of the facility include visits to the CHP turbine/generator room, control room, and outdoor area with views of the wood trucks unloading, wood silos, and thermal storage. Attendees will gain an inside view of how Ever-Green Energy (power plant operator) navigates the congestion
of a bustling urban area to produce reliable, clean bioenergy for the
City of St. Paul and surrounding areas.
Target Field- Home of the Minnesota Twins
It's not just the grass that is green at Target Field. The home of the Minnesota Twins exemplifies sustainability and environmental stewardship among ballparks in the majors. Target Field achieved Silver certification from the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environment Design (LEED) program, and it is the highest-ranked LEED-certified ballpark in the majors. Target Field also leads the way in transit, water use, and recycling. Tour attendees will learn how Target Field meets the many environmental challenges of a sports facility all while enjoying the ambiance of a building that sees roughly three million people pass through its doors.
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Sold Out Industry Tour #1 – Monday, April 8
8:00 am - 3:30 pm
Depart from Convention Center, Second Avenue South Main Entrance
Koda Energy
Koda Energy is a state of the art 23.4 MW biomass heat and power plant that not only produces electricity for the grid but also heat for Rahr Malting and the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community. Using a suspension boiler for maximum efficiency to burn only renewable products, heat conversion efficiencies can be as high as 87%. Having become fully operational in May 2009, tour attendees will see this modern biomass combined heat and power (CHP) facility in full operation.
Great River Energy
Great River Energy employs a two-step process that removes valued metals and converts the refused derived fuel (RDF) into electricity. The Resource Processing Plant first separates valued metal from the municipal refuse, sending the RDF to the Resource Processing Plant where it is fed into boilers that offer a combined generating capacity of 48 MW. By using waste to generate electricity, Elk River Energy provides an efficient method of disposal for garbage while also delivering reliable electricity to the grid. Tour attendees will see the intricate process of how 1,500 tons of municipal waste a day from the Minneapolis area are sorted, processed and turned into renewable power.
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