Biomass Energy Cogeneration Project DEGS of St. Paul, LLC

Project Highlights

  • Built one of the largest wood-fired (biomass) combined heat and power plants in the United States to produce 35 megawatts of electric generation
  • Reduced sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions by approximately 600 tons per year
  • Reduced carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by approximately 283,000 tons per year

Overview

Duke Energy Generation Services and Market Street Energy Company, a District Energy St. Paul affiliate, entered into an agreement with Northern States power to construct one of the largest biomass combined heat and power plants in the country. The facility provides 35 megawatts of electricity to the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. District Energy St. Paul is a customer-owned utility.

The project helped solve an ongoing environmental challenge since a substantial portion of the wood waste comes from downed trees, trimmings and branches from the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. Much of the debris was previously shipped to landfills or burned in open fires.