Producer in Vietnam employs Danish Technology

In a commendable example of technology transfer, Jutland-based C.F. Nielsen A/S has completed the first full briquetting plant in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam. The plant processes clean wood, bark and potentially other types of available biomass. The new factory opening took place in Can Tho on 26 January, this year. The inauguration ceremony was attended by many visitors, both national and from around the world, who witnessed the first briquettes emerging from the production lines.

The new plant is owned by Thuy-Son Group (Daviwood), which also possesses its own nursery and plantation. This means that there is full control of the biomass from seeds to harvesting, which provides customers of the briquettes with full transparency throughout the manufacturing process and ensures sustainability.

Initially, the briquetting plant will process acacia wood from the FSC and FSC-COC certified forest in the province of Ca Mao in the South of Vietnam.

Added value

The project began when Thuy- Son contacted C.F. Nielsen with the Group’s plans for setting up what would be its first briquetting factory. Thuy-Son had a long experience in supplying wood chips for power plants and wanted to bring added value to its product  for the benefit of its customers. The aim was also to have a fully automatic plant of very high quality capable of operating 24/7. This was to ensure a good long-term investment and because of that being able to provide customers with a uniform and high quality product. Thuy-Son and C.F. Nielsen approached the Danish Government (Danida) and asked for support in establishing the first plant with a combination of C.F. Nielsen’s primary equipment and preparation equipment engineered by C.F. Nielsen and manufactured by a Vietnamese company.

Danida approved and granted its support to the project, which was based on the obvious green energy initiative as an alternative to fossil fuel, as well as the generation of employment opportunities in Vietnam.

Initially, the briquetting plant will be able to produce four tons per hour or 20-25,000 tons per year of briquettes due to very high uptime of the equipment.Why briquettes?

Thuy Son wanted to add value to its products, so the choice then stood between making pellets or briquettes. The briquette was chosen for several reasons, but mainly because of the following:

• Easier to operate
• Significantly lower operation costs leading to lower energy prices for the Group's customers
• Higher uptime
• Ability to utilize many different raw materials and flexibility in the equipment, meaning that both the industrial market and domestic consumers could be served

Seeds from the acacia are grown in the Thuy-Son nursery and the small plants are transferred to the Group’s plantation. These will grow into trees with a diameter of approximately 30 cm at the base over the following four-five years and are then harvested. The lower part of the tree trunks can be used for timber (e.g. in the manufacture of furniture) and the remainder will be loaded on to barges and shipped to the factory where the logs will be chipped, dried and hammer-milled to achieve the perfect raw material for the briquetting process.

C.F. Nielsen has engineered the plant and has selected local and foreign suppliers to deliver the equipment. C.F. Nielsen tasks have included project management, engineering, selection of suppliers, installation and commissioning, as well as participation in technical management of the factory.

The end-product from the plant will be briquettes for power plants and industrial boilers, both for the export and home markets. The briquettes can also be packed for domestic use in open fireplaces and stoves.