Drax Gets Satellite Pellet Plant Going

Drax Group is ramping up to full production at Leola—the first of three new satellite pellet plants it plans for Arkansas. Leola, in Grant County, is part of a $40 million investment by Drax in the state, creating approximately 30 new jobs across all the three sites planned for Arkansas as well as many more indirect jobs.

Including Leola, Drax operates six pellet plants in the U.S., which use biomass sourced from sustainably managed working forests in Louisiana, Arkansas and Mississippi. The three satellite plants in Arkansas are expected to produce a total of 120,000 tonnes of wood pellets per year from sawmill residues. This supports Drax’s plans to double its pellet production capacity to 8 million tonnes by 2030 to meet its own requirements, as well as its customers’ needs in Europe and Asia, amid an expected increase in global demand for the low-carbon fuel.

The satellite plants are located near sawmills, so they can use the sawdust and other byproducts. Construction of the second Arkansas satellite plant in Russellville, Pope County, is underway with commissioning expected this year. Drax is continuing to develop plans for a third plant.

The pellets produced at the new satellite plants will be transported to Bruce Oakley terminal in Little Rock, Ark. before being shipped south to Louisiana to oceangoing vessels. Each pellet plant is expected to produce 40kt per year.

Latest news

Late 2022 Purchases Put Enviva In A Bind

“Our future profitability and liquidity are expected to be negatively impacted by the following matters which have resulted in substantial doubt about the company’s ability to continue as a growing concern,” states Enviva in its 10-Q filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission upon releasing its third quarter earnings report, which noted that Enviva incurred net losses of $258 million for the nine…

Morbark Unveils BVR, TW Series Brush Chippers

Morbark has unveiled the all NEW “BVR” line of hand-fed brush chippers at this year’s TCI Expo, in St. Louis, Mo. Alongside the BVR lineup, visitors found 6- and 8-in. brush chippers from Timberwolf. Timberwolf, an Alamo Group company, is headquartered in Suffolk, UK, and will be marketed in the U.S. as the Morbark TW series, beginning the first quarter of 2024…

Machine Innovator Neil Peterson Dies

A memorial service was held October 29 in Pleasant Hill, Ore. for forest machinery pioneer and innovator Neil Peterson, the driving force behind Peterson Pacific Corp. that revolutionized in-woods and mobile delimbing, debarking and chipping. Peterson was not just a pioneer in his field but also a generous philanthropist, a guiding force for his team, and a beacon of opportunities for his employees…

Find Us On Social

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Wood Bioenergy News Online hits the inboxes of subscribers in the wood-to-energy sectors.

Subscribe/Renew

Wood Bioenergy is published and delivered worldwide 6 times per year. Free to qualified readers in the U.S. Subscribers outside the U.S. are asked to pay a small fee.

Advertise

Complete the online form so we can direct you to the appropriate Sales Representative.