Constellation, a subsidiary of Exelon Corp, will develop a biomass plant with up to 50-megawatts of capacity using wood scraps with Procter & Gamble Co.
Constellation will build, own and operate the US$200 million cogeneration plant, which will supply steam to P&G’s Albany, Georgia, paper manufacturing facility and generate electricity for the local utility, Georgia Power.
The Albany facility has been using a smaller onsite biomass boiler to convert wood scraps into renewable steam, providing about 30% of the total energy. The new facility will replace P&G’s aging boiler with a highly efficient combined heat and power biomass unit. Incoming biomass will provide 100% of the steam, and up to 70% of the total energy used to manufacture paper towels and toilet tissue.
The plant will increase P&G’s use of renewable energy, helping move the company closer to its 2020 goal of obtaining 30 percent of its total energy from renewable sources. It is Constellation’s newest project in its distributed energy business, which has more than 300MW of assets in operation or under development.
Constellation has a contract to sell 42MW of capacity and energy from the facility to Georgia Power. Construction activities have already begun on the site with the plant scheduled to begin commercial operation in June 2017