Ence’s 50 MW biomass power generation plant in Puertollano has received the ISO 14001 environmental management certificate from the Spanish Association for Certification and Standardization (AENOR).
Obtaining this recognition by the Castilian facility has taken place in a record time of six months, since the plant’s official entry into operation took place in the second half of 2020.
The ISO 14001 certification assesses the incorporation of an efficient and environmentally-friendly environmental management system by companies, obtaining it guarantees that the different facilities meet certain sustainable criteria such as energy efficiency, waste recovery, continuous improvement of its techniques and processes and the optimization of its environmental impact.
Ence thus completes the certification of another of its independent renewable energy generation plants, a recognition that its biomass facilities in Huelva and its cellulose biofactories in Navia (Asturias) and Pontevedra already have. The company has drawn up a certification plan for this year 2021 that seeks to obtain this same recognition in its facilities in Mérida before 2022 and progressively in the rest of the plants.
Ence’s biomass plant in Puertollano involved an investment of € 100 million by the company, which contributed to guaranteeing that it has the Best Available Techniques, which ensure permanent respect for the environment and the highest levels of energy efficiency for such an installation.
Biollano, as this 50 MW plant is called, is also a clear example of a just energy transition, by contributing in a very positive way to the environment, and being built on the former site of a coal-fired power plant, in a clear commitment to decarbonisation and the promotion of clean energy. It stands out mainly for its high generation of direct, indirect and induced employment (about 27 jobs for each MW installed), and because it produces around 325,000 MWh of renewable electricity per year, equivalent to the energy needs of more than 60,000 people.
For this, the plant consumes around 238,000 tons / year of biomass, among which is the olive pomace, the vine shoot, the grapevine, the olive leaf, and woody forest and agricultural remains. This results in a strong reduction in the uncontrolled burning of stubble in the field, providing a sustainable alternative to the serious environmental problem that this entails.
