Under the contract, GE will provide overall design, engineering and construction of the greenfield plant, which will use wood chips and agro residues as fuel to generate clean energy for the industry and nearby households.
GE will also integrate the in-house critical parts of the power block including the circulating fluidized bed boiler, steam turbine, generator and air quality control systems, as part of the contract.
Belgian Eco Energy CEO Michael Corten said: "We are pleased to work with GE on this project and with their approach to focus on optimizing the technical solution for this plant.
"GE’s technology will help us reach the highest net efficiency, reduce operational costs."
Claimed to be the largest of its kind in the world, the $358m power plant is expected to have over 60% efficiency when operating in cogeneration mode.
The power plant will feature circulated fluidized bed technology to transform biomass into high pressure steam, which subsequently passes through a steam turbine to produce electricity.
Additionally, the biomass power plant will feature a district heating system of approximately 110MW thermal energy.
Scheduled to enter service in 2019, the plant is expected to create up to 1,100 jobs during construction phase.
The power plant is expected to contribute to the country’s effort to reduce 20% in greenhouse gas emissions by 2020 compared with 1990 levels, as set by the European Union.
Image: Illustration of the proposed biomass-fired power plant in Belgium. Photo: courtesy of General Electric.
