Natural Resources, to look at ways of harvesting the Armstrong forest in a more economical and sustainable manner.” Tibishkogi-jig says they proposed a cogen facility, but the project was turned down. They updated that proposal to meet competition require-ments and based some of their argument for gaining a wood sup-ply on the fact it was a revamped proposal. Plans for the projects are moving quickly. Whitesand has initiated a tendering process for the environmental assessment. Site selection for the cogen facility is in progress, but they must demonstrate that the projects are environmentally and financially sound. The cogen facility will run 24/7 all year, with the existing diesel generating site in Armstrong as a backup power source. Whitesand is also investigating further commercial and indus-trial markets for its pellets, including Europe. Up to 25% of its pel-lets are allocated to industrial use, slated for Ontario Power Genera-tion’s Atikokan generating station, which is being converted from coal. The additional production volume could be industrial or com-mercial wood pellets, depending on the end-users’ needs. Construction on the facilities will begin in 2012, with an ex-pected completion date of March 2013. With its offer of 149,000 cubic-metres/year of merchantable and unmerchantable white birch, poplar, spruce, pine, and fir in hand, the First Nation is now seeking additional fibre. “We are in the midst of negotiating additional volumes over and above what was allocated,” says Tibishkogijig. They have put in a letter of interest for remaining volumes in the Armstrong forest and have initiated an additional market study on some of the softwood spe-cies in the Armstrong forest. pellets to supply there and are bidding on many European and North American supply contracts as a large-volume supply chain.” Also in the Atikokan vicinity, Wagner Ontario Forest Manage-ment Limited, in partnership with Lac Des Mille Lacs First Na-tion, accepted an offer of 133,500 cubic-metres/year of merchant-able and unmerchantable wood fibre. Wagner plans to build an 80,000-tonne/year pellet plant in Ignace to supply industrial cus-tomers. Expected to be operating by October 2013, general man-ager Rob Edmonds says the company decided to build the plant in response to growing demand for wood pellets. The project is in the early stages, but Edmonds says that grinding and chipping will be contracted out. Far away, on the eastern side of the province, logging contrac-tor KD Quality Pellets has accepted 90,000 cubic-metres/year of merchantable and unmerchantable timber, also to produce pel-lets. Targeting both residential and commercial markets, the plan is to produce 75,000 tonnes/year of pellets, bagged for residential customers and bulk for utilities and the European market. “With the recent decline in the forestry industry, we were look-ing for something new to do,” says Marc Hamelin, operations supervisor. “In 2008, nobody really knew what a pellet was. It’s changed a lot since then.” The company started to research wood pellets in earnest in 2009 and found them a viable option. KD Quality Pellets is still negotiating contracts with equipment suppliers for the plant, which will be built from scratch. Although some transportation is in place, the logging fleet will need up-grading to handle the volume. The company will do some of the In addition to producing pulp and paper and electricity, Abitibi-Bowater is now planning to enter the pellet arena. It has 329,800 cubic metres of its awards earmarked for a wood pellet facility, to be built in the Fort William First Nation Industrial Park, near Thunder Bay. The pellet plant is under development and expected to be operational in late 2013, producing approximately 150,000 tonnes/year. In nearby Atikokan, another company is also planning to pro-duce wood pellets, about 140,000 tonnes/year worth. Atikokan Renewable Fuels will use 179,400 cubic-metres/year of poplar and birch roundwood, producing pellets for domestic and inter-national customers for heating and electricity. The company is in the process of converting a former fibre-board plant into a pellet plant. “We hope to be in production in late November or early December,” says Ed Fukushima, presi-dent. Construction is underway, with the conversion being done by Great North Bio Energy and Thunder Bay Automation Now. Combined, Atikokan Renewable Fuels, Whitesand First Nation, and Sandpoint/Nipigon First Nation form the Great North Bio En-ergy supply chain. They are going after larger projects with their combined volume, says Fukushima. Rainy Lake Tribal Contracting, the company’s aboriginal partner on forest operations, will do some in-woods chipping of the unmerchantable roundwood. Promising export markets through the St. Lawrence Seaway and the opportunity to supply Ontario Power Generation’s station right in Atikokan are among the reasons behind the conversion project. “The Atikokan Generating Station is being converted to 100% biomass fuel,” says Fukushima. “We’ve submitted an offer Canadian BIOMASS 35
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