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Woodies are a lignocellulosic-based biomass made from organic waste materials. Woodies serve as a low-carbon, high-thermal substitute for the use of A- and B- graded coal.
About
Woodies are made from several waste materials from the agri-sector to promote sustainable and responsible consumption. Physical properties of Woodies Calorific range: 30 - 32 MJ/kg Volatile matter: 95% Ash content: less than 0.1% Moisture content: less than 2% Fixed carbon: less than 3% The reduction of 20 kt CO2eq- annually by means of substituting the use of coal in industrial boilers in the domestic food manufacturing subsector is in line with the UN SDG targets 9.4 and 13.2.2. By substituting the use of 4 Mt of coal in industrial boilers for the use of Woodies, there will be a reduction of between 37 - 47 MT CO2eq-
Key Benefits
Our customers in the food manufacturing sub-sector purchase A- and B-graded coal from local suppliers at competitive pricing although our customers experience a substantial lack of consistency in the quality of coal delivered. The production inefficiencies caused by the price sensitivity, low calorific value, or the high ash or moisture content results in increased input costs and increased labour requirements. Additionally, coal consumers in the domestic food manufacturing sub-sector are preparing mitigation plans to be implemented as of 2025. These mitigation plans include the conversion of current coal-fired boiler infrastructure with gas. This conversion will require a capital investment of approximately R20 million per coal-fired boiler, which is viewed as a substantial investment to replace operationally functional boilers. It is interesting to note that our consumers have multiple boilers on-site, an average of approximately 6 boilers, which will cost approximately R120 million in total. The requirement of this conversion is due to Phase 2 of the Carbon Tax Bill that will come into effect from the beginning of 2026 - which holds GHG emitters financially liable for their annual emissions at a rate of $20t/ CO2eq-. Prior to considering gas, consumers in the domestic food manufacturing sub-sector explored biomass as an alternative fuel but soon rejected the idea as quality of the biomass did not meet the minimum standards for a coal service provider. “Quality”, in this regard, is considered as the Calorific Value (CV) of the fuel. CV is the heat produced by the complete combustion of a specified fuel. Biomass would not exceed a CV of 19MJ/kg. Coal is graded based on CV. The CV of A-graded coal has a threshold of >27.5MJ/Kg and B-graded coal a range of 26.5 - 27.5MJ/Kg. Consumers in the food manufacturing sub-sector will not accept anything lower than B grade coal. Woodies will be introduced to the food manufacturing sub-sector as a low-carbon, high-thermal alternative for A- and B-graded coal. Woodies have been designed to produce thermal energy with a CV range of 30 – 32MJ/Kg. To mitigate carbon tax liability, the domestic food manufacturing sub-sector can substitute their coal use with Woodies. Through a unique combination of lignocellulosic materials, Woodies are engineered to facilitate the reduction of approximately –10.5 tons of CO2-eq per ton of A- or B-graded coal replaced, thus greatly reducing the GHG emissions of end users and directly minimizing carbon tax liability.
Applications
Our customers are identified as the domestic food manufacturing sub-sector that employs the use of coal-fired boilers for the production of thermal energy. The identified coal consumers typically procure A- or B-graded coal as the fuel source to satisfy their minimum thermal requirements of 26.5MJ/kg. Woodies will be distributed to the above coal consumers in industrial nodes within Gauteng.