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Bioenergy no 5 September 2015

48 Bioenergy Internat ional No 81, 5-2015 China Pellets Industry Facing Transition compared to last year’s edition there were more pellet machine manufacturers, biomass boiler and burner producers, as well as biomass gasification technology providers exhibiting at the show. Judging from booth size, marketing blurb and show of strength it would seem that some of the companies have grown rapidly in the last 2-3 years to become ”industry leaders” in China within 2-3 years. However, the pellets market goes up and down and the Chinese pellets industry is certainly facing a transition period. Race for raw materials In a bid to curb air pollution the Chinese government has set a goal of decreasing coal consumption in major densely populated regions. Many companies have switched to fossil gas though biomass pellets is also increasing its share. However, most pellets producers are caught in a double knot of higher costs and lower revenue. As more pellet plants are being set up this year they are competing on the existing raw materials; feedstock costs and labour costs are both increasing. At the same time the price for pellets in some regions is dropping due to local oversupply, from over CNY 1000 (≈ US$156) per tonne in 2014 down to a more recent CNY 800 (≈ US$125) per tonne. Disappointing demand – Our two main markets, Russia and Southeast Asia, are very bad this year. Due to devaluation of the Ruble, the owners cannot afford to invest. The pellets demand from Korea and Japan are remaining low. It cracks down the faith of pellets producers in Southeast Asia countries, said Jun Guan, Managing Director of Liyang Rongda Feed & New Energy Equipment. Similar sentiments were being suggested from other Asian pellet producers. According to the Malaysia Biomass Industries Confederation (MBIC), Malaysian pellet producers are currently facing market difficulties again as demand in Korea and Japan hasn’t taken off as expected. The FOB price has almost halved from US$150 to US$80 per tonne with many producers idleing plants to curtail production. – We are looking for opportunity to export pellets to China. So far Chinese customs classify palm and wood pellets as ”waste”, and as such import is not allowed. So we are making efforts to change this situation, explained Dato’ Leong, MBIC. At the event MBIC also launched its Malaysia Biomass Industries Review 2015 (MBIR) which highlights the Malaysian biomass industry including current data and statistics on the generation, utilisation and production of biomass and its downstream products. It also features a dedicated section on prominent biomass stakeholders currently active in Malaysia. Text & photos: Xinyi Shen BI81/4997/AS Event Urging companies to invest in Malaysia, Malaysia Biomass Industries Confederation (MBIC) trio, Micheal Sew (left), Dato’ Leong Kim Mun and Jackson Tan. MBIC has just released its Malaysia Biomass Industries Review 2015. Yong Liang and Linqiang Tang, both with Andritz Feed Technologies reported a busy event. Pellets a shuffling market according to Jiyu Zhou, Five Continents Machinery. Global pelleting equipment majors Muyang biomass launched its new geardriving pellets mill during the show. Designed for big installations it was developed by engineers at Muyang European R&D Centre and is designed for big installations. The primary investment is higher than a belt-driving model but maintenance and power consumption is estimated to be lower. – Muyang has set the goal to be a international leading company, said Hailiang Wang, Vice-President of Muyang Holdings. Held in Guangzhou mid-August this year’s edition of the three-day China (Guangzhou) International Biomass Energy Exhibition had over 140 exhibitors and 10 000 visitors from the Chinese and Southeast Asian pellet industry.


Bioenergy no 5 September 2015
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