Doubling demand What will the new year bring? he word ‘unprecedented’ has been used so many times to describe 2020, I’m starting to wonder what actually is considered ‘precedented.’ It is true that 2020 was a year unlike any other, thanks to COVID-19. But, as we start out the new year, I’m optimistic that we will start to see a return to ‘precedented’ times. Even so, we will continue to feel the impact of the pandemic for years to come. That’s partic-ularly true for our industry as governments and busi-nesses focus on promoting a green economic recovery. As William Strauss, pres-ident of FutureMetrics, ex-plains in his annual pellet markets outlook on page 14, “The increasing negative impacts of climate change are likely to motivate poli-cies that will support using industrial wood pellets for power genera-tion.” Assuming such policies are imple-mented by governments around the world, FutureMetrics forecasts that pellet demand will essentially double from 2020 to 2027. That’s good news for our industry, es-pecially as more players get involved. One such player is Skeena Sawmills, which built their own pellet plant, Skeena Bioen-ergy, in 2019 to better utilize waste fibre from their sawmill. Despite encountering some initial challenges with rail transpor-tation and dryer safety, the company is now looking towards the future, with an eye on developing the domestic market. “I think that there’s a real opportunity in Canada to use wood pellets as a renew-able resource for our own domestic use,” Roger Keery, CEO of Skeena Bioenergy, says on page 10. “Canadians aren’t doing that at any scale, and I really think that’s a missed opportunity.” Volume 21 No. 1 Print and digital subscription inquires or changes, please contact Jay Doshi, Audience Development Manager Tel: (416) 510-5124 Fax: (416) 510-6875 Email: [email protected] Mail: 111 Gordon Baker Rd., Suite 400, Toronto, ON M2H 3R1 Editor -Ellen Cools (416) 510-6766 [email protected] Reader Service T Developing the domestic market for wood pellets and other bioproducts, such as biofuel, is critical for fostering Canada’s green economy. Fortunately, since I joined Canadian Biomass in 2018, government support and public awareness of these renewable energy sources has increased dramatically. It always makes me happy to share news about government investments in new biomass heating projects, for example, or the work being done by new start-ups in the industry. One start-up that has me especially excited is Prairie Clean Energy. The company has come up with a plan to turn flax straw (which is normally burned) into biofuel. “We realized the demand for sustainable, renewable, stable fuel sources from bio-mass around the world is pretty significant, and our supply of the same around here [in Saskatchewan] was abundant,” Mark Coo-per, president and CEO of the company, ex-plains on page 16. “We thought that maybe the time had come to capitalize on all of the agricultural waste.” Agricultural biomass is a part of the bioeconomy that is currently underdevel-oped, but presents a big opportunity for Canada, especially in the Prairie. Conse-quently, Cooper and his colleagues have founded the Prairie Biomass Association to increase research into this field and raise awareness. It’s a terrific idea and one that I believe will help bring much-needed at-tention to ag-biomass. • Contributors -Gordon Murray, William Strauss, Susan Yurkovich, Sarah Hammond Group Publisher -Todd Humber 416-510-5248 [email protected] Account Coordinator -Brooklyn Van Dyk Ph: (416) 510-5229 [email protected] National Sales Manager -Rebecca Lewis Ph: (519) 400-0332 [email protected] Quebec Sales -Josée Crevier Ph: (514) 425-0025 Fax: (514) 425-0068 [email protected] Western Sales Manager -Tim Shaddick [email protected] Ph: (604) 264-1158 Fax: (604) 264-1367 Media Designer -Curtis Martin COO Scott Jamieson [email protected] Canadian Biomass is published four times a year: Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall. Published and printed by Annex Business Media. Publication Mail Agreement # 40065710 Printed in Canada ISSN 2290-3097 Subscription Rates: Canada -1 Yr $57.00; 2 Yr $102.00 Single Copy -$9.00 (Canadian prices do not include applicable taxes) USA – 1 Yr $121.50 CDN; Foreign – 1 Yr $138.00 CDN Annex Privacy Officer [email protected] Tel: 800-668-2374 Occasionally, Canadian Biomass magazine will mail information on behalf of industry-related groups whose products and services we believe may be of interest to you. If you prefer not to receive this information, please contact our circulation department in any of the four ways listed above. No part of the editorial content of this publication may be reprinted without the publisher’ s written permission ©2021 Annex Business Media, All rights reserved. Opinions expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the editor or publisher. No liability is assumed for errors or omissions. All advertising is subject to the publisher’ s approval. Such approval does not imply any endorsement of the products or services advertised. Publisher reserves the right to refuse advertising that does not meet the standards of the publication. www.canadianbiomassmagazine.ca 4 Canadian BIOMASS WINTER 2021
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