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White Rose Forest Wood Energy Co-ordinator

As part of the CO2Sense Woodfuel Programme, the White Rose Forest has employed a full time Wood Energy Co-ordinator for West Yorkshire; Claire Hoyles. Claire will be promoting the take up of wood fuel boilers and helping to establish a viable wood energy supply chain across the sub-region.

The CO2Sense Woodfuel Programme

The Woodfuel Programme can help you to supply woodfuel or switch to woodfuel heating through a suite of funding initiatives:

Woodfuel infrastructure grants

Capital support is available for the investment in equipment for:

• Fuel production (chip, pellet)
• Storage
• On site fuel handling
• Extractions systems

Examples: forwarder, timber trailer, forestry tractor, wood chipper, access roads, articulated lorries, shredders (this list is not exhaustive).

Funding is available for both the public (up to 50%) and private sectors (up to 40%).

Loans for woodfuel suppliers

CO2Sense offers loans for the purchase of woodfuel in advance of market demands. This enables the supplier to give the stock time to dry, ensuring it is available for new projects.

Funding to develop a woodfuel ESCO

CO2Sense offers funding to assist woodfuel projects in overcoming the capital cost of purchasing a biomass boiler by using an Energy Service Company (ESCO) model.

Funding for boiler conversion

This activity offers 50% funding to convert your coal or oil boiler to wood pellets.  A number of manufacturers can supply conversion kits for coal fired boilers, whilst oil fired boilers can be retrofitted with pellet burners.

Get in touch!

If you are interested in any of the above initiatives and would like further information please contact Claire Hoyles on:

Office: 01484 234 079
Mobile: 07528 252 404
Email: claire.hoyles@kirklees.gov.uk

Or visit

CO2Sense 

Why the Woodfuel Programme was established?

 “The need to decarbonise energy production is recognised as a priority across all political parties and is embodied in the Renewable Energy Strategy, published in 2009. A key low carbon energy resource we have in the Yorkshire and Humber region is wood in the form of woodland and also waste wood from business activities; woodfuel chip and pellet are particularly well suited to heat production in modern high efficiency woodfuel boilers. As a region we already have a growing woodfuel supply chain, and an increasing number of woodfuel installations, including plans for a number of wood fuelled combined heat and power plants.
 
However currently only approximately 50% of the region’s woodland is currently in management, and over 200,000 tonnes of clean waste wood is still sent to landfill. We also see some reticence to adopt woodfuel boilers due to lack of familiarity  with the technology, combined with the initial capital cost of plant.
 
The CO2Sense Woodfuel Programme was launched in early 2009 to address these and other issues, to stimulate faster growth of woodfuel sector businesses in the region, and also to increase the uptake of woodfuel heating plant. We offer a comprehensive and flexible support package for supply chain business and potential woodfuel users including  expert advice, events, information and targeted funding. We have already supported a number of successful projects which include improved infrastructure for woodfuel supply businesses in North Yorkshire, and the commissioning of a large scale woodpellet boiler, available for lease to allow companies to get hands on experience of the technology before committing to capital spend. The programme is delivered in partnership with the Forestry Commission and subregional partners in the south, west and north of the region. Local expertise, such as the White Rose Forest in West Yorkshire allows us to quickly respond to local market needs, and address area specific issues. Organisations wishing to know more about what the Woodfuel Programme can offer should either contact Claire Hoyles at the White Rose Forest or the CO2Sense team on 0113 2378400 / woodfuel@CO2Sense.org.uk / www.co2sense.org.uk.”

Gordon Watts, the CO2Sense Woodfuel Programme Manager