PPCS - Meat Processing / Silver Fern Farms

The 8.5MW bio-fuel boiler at Silver Fern Farm’s largest meat processing plant, Finegand, near Balclutha supplies one third of the plant’s steam requirements (12t/h of base-load steam). It replaces an old coal-fired boiler and reduces at least 2000 tonnes of CO2 emissions each year, while also reducing fine ash particulate and sulphur dioxide emissions.

EFI identified a bubbling fluidised bed boiler could utilise the dewatered sludge, from the meat processing effluent plant as fuel co-fired with some wood waste. The boiler design used technology that was new to New Zealand, in this configuration, although it was proven overseas and is now the preferred method of burning ‘low grade fuels’.

The bubbling fluidised bed boiler technology was sourced from Babcock and Wilcox and was supplied under licence by contractors (RCR Energy). The plant also includes a wood residue fuel reception and feed system, a sludge handling and feed system along with a flue gas baghouse for the boiler. The boiler burns some 3000 tonnes of sludge (dry base) each year from the site’s waste water treatment plant. As the plant owner, EFI is responsible for the overall management of the boiler operation.