In India, BioEnergy Times reported that a consortium led by Kansai Electric Power Company (Kansai EPCO) has announced plans to develop a 7.1 MW woody biomass power plant in Tochigi Prefecture, with the project’s environmental benefits to be supplied to Tokyo Metro through a virtual power purchase agreement.
The developers said the plant will be built on a 20,000 square meter site in Sano City and will be owned by a special purpose company named Sano Biomass Hatsuden LLC. Commercial operations are scheduled to begin in September 2028, with the facility expected to generate about 57 GWh of electricity annually, according to the report.
The report added that the plant will use wood fuel sourced locally from across the wider Kanto region. Under the virtual agreement, Tokyo Metro will buy around 51 GWh per year of non-fossil certificates linked to the power plant’s output for nearly 19 years. These certificates are expected to help offset roughly 6.5 per cent of the railway operator’s carbon dioxide emissions.
Apart from Kansai EPCO, the project includes equity participation from beABLE, which will hold a 19.9% stake, Biomass Fuel with 18%, and NAS Construction with 13.1%.