Wood pellet is a kind of new clean fuel which can be burnt directly. It takes sawdust, straw and other agricultural and forestry residue as raw material through crushing, mixing, extrusion and drying process by wood pellet plant https://www.zenopelletmachine.com/product/wood-pellet-production-line/. Biomass pellet has been widely used as auxiliary fuel in power plant boiler and household energy supply and heating system in Europe and America. The widespread use of the biomass pellet around the world promote the development of global pellet plant directly.

In recent years, with the continuous increasing of fossil fuels price and the continuous improvement of people's environmental protection awareness, more and more people began to turn their attention to renewable energy. Among them, biomass energy as the fourth major energy, with its renewable, zero carbon emissions and other characteristics, becomes a new energy with large potential of development. As one of the most effective forms of biomass energy use, the biomass pellet is characterized by its simple production process, suitable for industrial production, and the characteristics of the high calorific value, burning rate and the thermal efficiency that receives people’s attention. The extensive use of biomass pellet around the world promote the development of the global pellet plant directly.

After half a year’s stagnation, pellet exports from North America began to increase in the third quarter of 2014. Exportation of wood pellets from North America to Europe and Asia reached an all-time high rising 22 percent in 2014 from the previous year. The total pellet output to Europe only increased slightly, while the increase to Asia was more noticeable. Up until 2014, more than 95 percent of wood pellets leaving US and Canadian ports were destined for Europe. In 2014, Shipments from the US were up 40 percent year-over-year, while Canada exported 6 percent less than in 2013.

The U..S overseas pellet exports rose to over 1 million tons in the third quarter of 2014. U.S. exports to Europe increased for the 12th consecutive quarter, reaching a new high of just over 1.1 million tons. While for pellets to Asia, shipped by containers from the U.S. West Coast, fell as manufacturers concentrated on seasonal local demand. By far the largest consumer of U.S. pellets that past year has been the United Kingdom, which in the 4Q/14 was the destination of 73 percent of U.S. export volumes. However, the U.K. market has not always been in such a dominant position. In 2013, the share was 55 percent and in 2012 only a modest 31 percent.

Since its founding in 2004, the Enviva family of companies has grown into one of the leading manufacturers of wood pellets in the U.S. Its first pellet plant began operations in 2007, and over the past few years, the company has expanded its production and distribution capabilities to provide increasing amounts of pellets for use at coal-fired power stations. This year alone, Enviva will provide approximately 2 million metric tons of wood pellets to the United Kingdom, Europe and Asia. Enviva primarily sells to customers in the U.K. and Europe. European demand is expected to reach 38 million metric tons by 2020, up from 9.9 million in 2013. Several recent announcements and actions in key markets highlight the growth potential in the wood pellet industry. The worldwide demand for wood pellets is projected to grow at an annual rate of more than 20 percent for the next five years, with the largest increases likely to occur in Northern Europe, South Korea and Japan.

Portucel is an integrated forest, pulp, paper and energy company, with its activities based at three large-scale production mills in Portugal. Last month, Portucel Sporcel Group broke ground on its Colombo Energy pellet plant in Greenwood County, South Carolina. This estimated $110 million global investment represents an important development in the company’s expanding bioenergy business. According to a Portucel spokesperson, the opportunity to expand the company’s biomass business in the U.S. was presented on special conditions for pellet manufacturing, including raw material availability, energy costs and good infrastructure. The spokesperson added that the plant will be equipped with advanced abatement equipment for environmental emission control, and its environmental performance will rival similar plants in the U.S. The company’s first U.S. pellet plant will be located in Greenwood County’s Emerald Road Industrial Corridor. The location in Greenwood allows the facility access to the surrounding forested area. In return, the facility is expected to create 70 new, local jobs. Once fully operational, the facility will have the manufacturing capacity to produce 460,000 tons of pellets annually. Scheduled completion is in the third quarter of 2016.

According to related study, China has the potential to become the largest wood pellet market in Asia. As a country with high economic growth, China has an increasing demand for energy. What’s more, because of the sustainable development policy China adopts, its wood pellet market will be developed with priority. Even though China imports limited wood pellets from North America at present, Chinese wood pellets will be developed sustainably.The related wood pellet machine https://www.zenopelletmachine.com/product/wood-pellet-machine/ also with goods market trends.
South Korea has taken aggressive steps to increase the amount of its renewable energy and aimed to increase renewable energy from 2.4 percent in 2007 to 11 percent by 2030. In 2009, about 30 000 tons of wood pellets was imported and 20,000 tons of wood pellets was produced domestically. In November 2013, South Korea wood pellet imports grew by almost 300% and in the first quarter of 2014 , the estimated imported volume of wood pellet is 280,000 tons and wood pellet demand will be increased to 5 million tons by 2020.

Because of the scarcity of natural resources, Japan largely relies on importing pellets from other countries, mainly from Canada, and also its domestic production is developing steadily. In 2009, Japan imported about 49,000 tons of wood pellets , which were mainly from Canada. Now, Japan is exploring opportunities to imports pellets from Australia, Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines, Canada and U.S. In Japan, wood pellets are mainly used for home heating as well as for power generation. Even though the wood pellet market in Japan is at its starting stage, it is developing, which is the right time for pellet exporters to explore the market and develop business relationships.