When the Biomass Crop Assistance Program’s qualified facility list was last updated on October 19, a trend became clear. Over two dozen pulp and paper mills showed up on the list. The fact that pulp and paper companies have qualified as biomass conversion facilities may come as a surprise to those who thought the program was intended to benefit bioenergy companies and their suppliers and build a stable biomass market. The terms of the program make it clear, though, that a facility using biomass to create heat and electricity for its own operations qualifies.
Some of these companies don't burn a single wood chip in their boilers. Instead, they burn the black liquor that is produced as part of the paper making process. Right now, they are trying to determine what percentage of their feedstock goes to making the black liquor they feed into their boilers.
In areas like the Pacific Northwest, where much of the forest is federally owned, this may prove an obstacle. The BCAP eligible material list specifically precludes matching payments for black liquor created from biomass harvested on Federal land. The same black liquor exclusion does not appear to apply to biomass from privately held lands, however. Because chips are often mixed in a wood yard when a large percentage of the forests in the area are public, proving the chain of custody may be difficult.
While we can’t say for certain whether applying for matching payments for the material used to create black liquor is acceptable under the program, it appears so at this time. If this is the case, the program’s funding could be consumed very quickly by pulp and paper companies, before the program has a substantial impact on bioenergy capacity.
Suz-Anne Kinney
Forest2Market: July 14, 2023
