2013 Conference & AGM | Marriott Pinnacle – Vancouver – November 18-20
WOOD PELLET
ASSOCIATION OF CANADA
PROGRAM
November 17, 2013
4:00 pm to 6:00 pm – Registration
November 18, 2013
7:30 am to 9:30 am – Registration
8:00 am to 5:30 pm
• University of British Columbia Pellet Workshop
– Marriott Pinnacle
8:30 am to 12:00 pm
• Visit to Fibreco Export wood pellet terminal
– bus departs from Marriott Pinnacle at 8:30 am
12:00 pm to 1:00 pm
• Buffet lunch
– Marriott Pinnacle (UBC workshop, Fibreco tour, AGM)
1:00 pm to 5:00 pm
• WPAC board meeting/annual general meeting – Marriott
Pinnacle (board members and invited guests only)
5:00 pm to 6:00 pm – Registration
6:00 pm to 8:30 pm
• Cocktail reception – Marriott Pinnacle
November 19, 2013: Conference Day 1
7:30 am – Networking breakfast and registration
Session 1 – 8:00 am to 10:00 am
Canadian Wood Pellet Industry from Coast to Coast
Chair: Robert Tarcon, General Manager, Premium Pellet and
President, Wood Pellet Association of Canada
• WPAC – year in review – Gordon Murray,
Wood Pellet Association of Canada
• Integrating pellets with forestry, lumber, and
energy – Robert Tarcon, Premium Pellet
• Experiences of a Quebec pellet operator
– André Bédard, Granules LG Wood Products • The Resurrection of Scotia Atlantic Biomass
– Michele Rebiere, Viridis Energy
• What is Necessary for a Successful Industrial Wood
Pellet Export Project – William Strauss, Future Metrics
10:00 am to 10:30 am – Coffee
Session 2 – 10:30 am to 12:00 pm
Sustainability in a Canadian Context
Chair: Scott Jamieson, Editorial Director/Group Publisher,
Canadian Biomass Magazine
• European biomass sustainability and advocacy issues
– Seth Ginther, United States Industrial Pellet Association
• Carbon accounting for wood pellets
– Gordon Murray, Wood Pellet Association of Canada
• The importance of sustainability to a UK generator
– Richard Peberdy, Drax Power • Perspectives on the new European solid biomass
sustainability requirements – Dave Patterson, Forestry
Innovation Investment/Canadian Council of Forest
Ministers
12:00 pm to 1:00 pm – Lunch
Session 3 – 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm
Fibre Sourcing
Chair: Brad Bennett, Vice President, Operations, Pacific BioEnergy
• BC wood pellet fibre issues – Don Steele, Pacific BioEnergy
• Government perspectives on fibre sourcing for BC pellet
operators – Dave Peterson, BC Ministry of Forest, Lands,
and Resource Operations
• Canadian wood pellet fibre sourcing – a regional
review of volumes, methods, and costs
– Dominik Roser, FP Innovations
• Update on North America’s first coal to wood pellet
power plant conversion – Brent Boyko, Ontario Power
Generation, Atikokan Generating Station
2:30 pm to 3:00 pm – Coffee
Session 4 – 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm
Transportation and Logistics
Chair: Michele Rebiere, CFO, Viridis Energy
• Review of the Eastern Canadian Logistics Study
– Michele Rebiere, Viridis Energy • A railway perspective on improving Canadian
wood pellet export – Uri Szyk, CN
• Exporting from Northern BC – Pinnacle and the new
Westview Wood Pellet Terminal – Vaughan Bassett,
Pinnacle Renewable Energy
• Ocean shipping challenges and opportunities
– Ben Vandenberghe, CTL Westrans Shipbrokers
• Rotterdam: A European biomass hub
– Nicole Van Klaveren, Port of Rotterdam
5:00 pm to 6:30 pm – Cocktail Reception
November 20, 2013: Conference Day 2
7:30 am Networking breakfast & registration
Session 5 – 8:00 am to 10:00am
Markets – Part 1
Chair: Jenna MacDonald, Director of Marketing, Belledune Port
Authority
• Global situation report
– Ruth Sharpe, Argus Biomass Markets
• European utility perspective
– Jorrit Hachmer, RWE Supply and Trading
• Trader’s perspective on the pellet trade in Russia,
Asia and Europe – Arnold Dale, Ekman • Review of the Canadian biomass cofiring study
– David Butler, Canadian Clean Power Coalition
• Development of emission factors for combustion
of biomass as a coal replacement in Canada:
A progress report – Sebnem Madrali, Natural
Resources Canada 10:00 am to 10:30 am – Coffee
Session 6 – 10:30 am to 12:00 pm
Markets – Part 2
Chair: Pierre-­Olivier Morency, Rentech Inc.
• Growing North American pellet heating markets
– Dutch Dresser, Maine Energy Systems
• European pellet heat markets – Christian Rakos,
European Pellet Council
• Successful domestic commercial and institutional pellet
projects – Michael Albright, University of New Brunswick,
Canadian Bioenergy Centre
• Implementing ENplus/CANplus pellet quality certification
in Canada – Tamaki Kano, Control Union Canada
End of Conference
1:30 pm to 4:30 pm
• Tour of UBC Biomass and Bioenergy Research Group
laboratory – depart from Marriott Pinnacle by bus at
1:00 pm and return to hotel by 5:00 pm
ABOUT OUR PRESENTERS
MICHAEL ALBRIGHT began his career with UNB’s Wood Science and Technology
Centre (WSTC). While working at the Centre he developed expertise in engineered
wood products, quality control systems, plant auditing and more recently biofuel
development and certification. In 2010, Michael was part of the team that
established the Canadian BioEnergy Centre at UNB. CBEC operates with a mandate
to provide technological support to the bioenergy sector in Canada and beyond.
VAUGHN BASSETT is the Vice President of Sales and Logistics for the Pinnacle
Renewable Energy Group. He is responsible for their pellet marketing, sales,
logistics, quality assurance and third party trading activities and he is based at the
Pinnacle head office in Vancouver, British Columbia. In addition, Mr. Bassett is a
Director of the Wood Pellet Association of Canada. Mr. Bassett has an extensive
international career in the forest products industry, spending almost 20 years with
Sappi in Hong Kong.
ANDRÉ BÉDARD is the Sales and Marketing Manager for Granules LG in St-Félicien,
Quebec André is currently working with staff to secure and expand operations at
their two pellet plants in Quebec by securing larger raw material sources and by
reaching out to new domestic and international customers. André is also involved
in the promotion of pellet heating to communities throughout Quebec.
BRAD BENNETT joined Pacific BioEnergy in 2009 and currently acts
as the company’s Vice President of Operations. He has over 20 years of
experience in the forest industry and, until 2008, was General Manager
(Specialty Plywood & B.C. Timberlands) at Ainsworth Lumber Co. Ltd. Brad
is experienced in developing and managing First Nations relationships
and was Director of five First Nations joint venture organizations. He
holds a BSc from the University of British Columbia and is a Registered
Professional Forester.
BRENT BOYKO is Director, Biomass Business Development at Ontario
Power Generation. He joined OPG in 2011 as Station Manager at Atikokan
GS, bringing over 20 years of operational management and engineering
experience in the pulp & paper and construction materials industries.
Raised in Northwestern Ontario, Brent holds a B.Eng (Chem.Lakehead)
and MBA (Athabasca). The Atikokan Biomass Conversion (ABC) will be
the largest 100% biomass fired electricity generating station in North
America, redeveloping a publicly owned asset and starting a local supply
chain with commercial contracts for two new pellet plants.
DAVID BUTLER is the Executive Director for the Canadian Clean Power
Coalition (CCPC). He is responsible for helping five power companies
and several government agencies find economic ways to reduce CO2
emissions from coal plants. He completed the technical and economic
analysis of the CCPC’s latest studies on carbon capture and biomass cofiring. David has 23 years’ experience working in the power industry
primarily in the areas of economic analysis and business development.
He is also the Economic Lead for the CO2 Capture Project and evaluates
projects for the Climate Change and Emissions Management Corporation.
ARNOLD DALE is Vice President Bioenergy with Ekman & Co in
Gothenburg Sweden. Ekman is one of the world’s leading sales and
marketing organizations, focusing on the global forestry industry with
an annual turnover of $2.5 billion. He is responsible for the sales and
marketing of wood pellets including the 900,000 tons of wood pellets
produced by Vyborgskaya in Russia. Arnold is the Chairman of EIPS the
European Industrial Pellet Suppliers group and is a board member of EPC
the European Pellet Council. EPC is best known as the organization which
administers the EN Plus trade mark.
HARRY “DUTCH” DRESSER has been instrumental in the creation of
Maine Energy Systems with partners Les Otten and Bill Strauss. Maine
Energy Systems has led the growth in residential and light commercial/
institutional wood pellet central heating in the northeastern United
States, and, recently in the Northwest Territories of Canada, and Alaska.
Dutch is the immediate Past-President of the Maine Pellet Fuels
Association and serves on several committees working on standards for
bulk pellet fuel distribution and storage.
M. SETH GINTHER is Executive Director of the U.S. Industrial Pellet
Association (USIPA) and Co-Managing Partner of Hirschler Fleischer’s
Renewable Energy Group. As Executive Director of USIPA, Seth represents
the interests of the U.S.-based industrial pellet industry with a focus on
issues such as specifications, certifications, sustainability, uniformity of
spot trading contracts, shipping and other exporting issues such as safety,
port infrastructure and transportation. In the energy area, Seth routinely
represents renewable energy businesses in project finance, negotiating
and drafting power purchase agreements, recapitalizations, mergers
and acquisitions and multi-state and federal legislative and regulatory
matters as they relate to renewable energy.
JORRIT HACHMER is the Head of Biofuels Trading at RWE Supply & Trading.
The biomass team is in charge of all international biomass sourcing and
trading for the RWE Group. Jorrit has been with Essent/RWE since 2001 and
has held various positions in power, gas and coal trading and origination
before taking on the responsibility of the biomass activities in 2008.
SCOTT JAMIESON is Editorial Director and Group Publisher with Annex
Business Media, publisher of almost 40 trade magazines including
Canadian Biomass and Canadian Forest Industries. He has covered the
forestry and bioenergy sectors for almost 25 years, starting with Canadian
Forest Industries in 1991. Scott launched Canadian Biomass in 2008
following a trip to Sweden. Today the brand reaches well over 10,000 in
print, through www.canadianbiomassmagazine.ca, via a weekly enews,
and through its popular Twitter feed. Canadian Biomass also publishes an
annual Canadian Pellet Mill Map as well as an annual Pellet Gear Guide.
TAMAKI KANO joined Control Union’s Certifications group in the forestry,
biomass, and biofuels programs in 2011 with a background in forest
health and ecosystem succession. In 2013 she played a role in WPAC’s
launch of the ENplus and CANplus programs in Canada.
JENNA MACDONALD joined the Belledune Port Authority in May of
2007 where she was appointed to the position of Director of Marketing.
Her primary responsibilities are to develop and implement strategic
marketing initiatives while overseeing all related marketing and business
development activities at the Port of Belledune. Jenna is a member of the
Board of Directors for Enterprise Chaleur and the Wood Pellet Association
of Canada and plays a key role in the Atlantic Canada Chapter of Supply
Chain Logistics Canada.
DR. SEBNEM MADRALI is a research scientist at Natural Resources
Canada and representative of Canada in Task 32. Dr. Madrali has also
served as acting manager for biomass combustion at CanmetENERGY,
the science and technology arm of the Innovation in Energy Technology
Sector of Natural Resources Canada.
PIERRE-OLIVIER MORENCY has a Bachelor degree in Forest
Management and a Master in Forest Sciences both from Université Laval.
He is a Registered Professional Forester (RPF) in the Province of Quebec
and the director of the Pellet Group at the Quebec Wood Export Bureau.
He works on behalf of the Quebec’s pellets producers to implement
measures that will promote the growth of the wood pellets’ markets in
and outside Quebec.
GORDON MURRAY is the Executive Director of the Wood Pellet Association
of Canada, where he works on behalf of Canada’s pellet producers, traders,
ports, terminals, equipment manufacturers, consultants, universities and
others engaged in Canada’s pellet industry. Before joining WPAC, Gordon
spent 30 years in the forest industry – operating mills, forest operations
and in finance. Most recently he has worked as an independent advisor
assisting with forestry mergers, acquisitions and in raising capital. His
passion for the wood pellet business began while working on a deal to
sell timber assets to one of Canada’s largest pellet producers.
DAVE PATTERSON is a Registered Professional Forester (RPF) in
British Columbia with over 30 years of forestry experience. At Forestry
Innovation Investment (FII) he fills a key role in providing technical
advice, monitoring trends and developments related to sustainable forest
management, certification and illegal logging, green building and green
public procurement policies, international trade policy, and assessing their
implications for the B.C. forestry sector. FII is the B.C. government’s market
development agency for forest products that promotes B.C. forest products
and sustainable forest practices around the world.
RICHARD PEBERDY joined Drax last year after 30 years in the UK forest
industry, 10 years as a contractor, and 20 years with the largest forest
management company in the UK. He has experience of establishing and
managing a large group certification scheme to help UK forests supply
FSC & PEFC certified material, and also managing chain of custody for the
company’s harvesting operations. For Drax, Richard is based in Boston, Mass.
and helps North American suppliers understand and comply with UK and
Drax’s sustainability requirements, and is establishing systems for Drax’s
pelleting operations in the US South.
DAVE PETERSON was appointed the role of Acting Deputy Minister, for
the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations in April 2013
to October 2013. He was appointed Chief Forester in May 2012 after the
retirement of Jim Snetsinger earlier this year. This role was added to Dave’s
present role as Assistant Deputy Minister for the Tenures, Competitiveness
and Innovation Division of the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural
Resource Operations which was originally appointed in March 2011. Prior to
that, he served as Assistant Deputy Minister, Regional Operations South for
the Ministry of Natural Resource Operations beginning in November 2010.
CHRISTIAN RAKOS is the President of the European Pellet Council. The
European Pellet Council is the umbrella organization of the European wood
pellet industry. Its members are national pellet associations, biomass
associations and related sectoral organizations. Rakos was previously CEO
of proPellets Austria. He has experience with issues related to the market
introduction of biomass as source of renewable energy and has an extensive
network of contacts to the Austrian and global wood pellet industry.
RUTH SHARPE is the Editor of Argus Biomass Markets, the leading
weekly trade report for the global wood pellet and wood chip sector. Argus
publishes assessments of delivered prices for industrial grade wood pellets
delivered to ARA as well as export prices from North America, the Baltics and
Portugal. Prior to joining the biomass desk, Ruth worked on the thermal coal
desk for four years assessing the benchmark API international coal prices,
before developing and launching Argus’ coking coal daily news and pricing
service in September 2012.
DONALD STEELE, Chairman and CEO, has been actively involved in
directing and managing Pacific BioEnergy since 2002. With over 30
years of entrepreneurial investment and business building, he brings a
broad range of skills and experience to the organization. Don holds a BSc
(Biochemistry) from the University of British Columbia, an MBA (Honours)
from the University of Western Ontario and a BFA (Visual Arts) from Emily
Carr University.
WILLIAM STRAUSS is the President and Founder of FutureMetrics, LLC.
FutureMetrics is one of the leading consultants for project development in
the industrial wood pellet sector. He is also a founder and a Director of Maine
Energy Systems, a firm that provides state-of-the-art wood pellet boilers
and bulk pellet fuel delivery. Dr. Strauss is also the chief economist for the
Biomass Thermal Energy Council (Washington, DC) and the chief economist
for the Maine Pellet Fuels Association. He served as the chief economist on
the Maine Governor’s Wood-to-Energy Task force in 2008. Dr. Strauss is the
2012 recipient of the International Excellence in Bioenergy award.
URI SZYK is responsible for the development of the wood pellet market in
his current role at CN, and is actively helping wood pellet producers build
supply chains to enable them to reach new markets. Mr. Szyk was a key
member of the CN negotiation team that brought the Rentech/Drax wood
pellet contract to fruition. Mr. Szyk is a member of Council of Supply Chain
Management Professionals and the Wood Pellet Association of Canada.
ROB TARCON is the Chairman and President of the Wood Pellet Association
of Canada and General Manager of Premium Pellets. Premium Pellets Ltd.,
established in 1998, produces 140,000 tonnes of pellets per year at their
Vanderhoof, B.C. plant.
MICHELE REBIERE is the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial
Officer of Viridis Energy Inc. Viridis owns two Canadian wood pellet facilities,
Okanagan Pellet Company and Scotia Atlantic Biomass Company, with
combined production of almost 200,000 tons annually. Michele has been
in the wood pellet industry for almost five years, is on the executive of the
Wood Pellet Association of Canada and is active in a number of key initiatives
for the industry.
BEN VANDENBERGHE is a Broker and Chartering Agent with CTL Westrans
Shipbrokers. Acting as an intermediary between ship owners and charterers
he arranges for the ocean transport of goods and commodities. With 20
years of experience in logistics, transportation and marine based freight,
he has a hands-on understanding of vessel operations including proficiency
with forestry products, grains, minerals, break-bulk and machinery. Prior
to joining CTL Westrans, Ben had worked for commodity trading houses in
transportation based roles and negotiation of documentary credits.
DOMINIK ROSER, Ph.D. is the Research Leader for the Forest Feedstocks
research programme at FPInnovations. FPInnovations is among the
world’s largest private, not-for-profit forest research centres covering the
entire value chain from the forest to end products. Dr. Roser’s research
group is focused on improving the competitiveness of Canada’s emerging
bioeconomy. Research topics include; biomass availability and costing,
optimization of biomass procurement systems, improving feedstock quality
and the adaptation of smaller scale bioenergy systems.
NICOLE VAN KLAVEREN is a Business Manager at the Port of Rotterdam
authority, responsible for the market for electricity generation, including
renewable energy. In the past decade Nicole has been working in the field
of energy and sustainability for the Dutch government, the Rijnmond
environmental protection agency and the Port of Rotterdam Authority.
The Port of Rotterdam – with its Rotterdam Bioport - works on both the
transition from a fossil-based port to a port based on renewable feedstocks
and the development of the biomass hub for Europe.