Biomass Secure Power Inc. (BMSPF)

[Richard2]

I know about fiber, I'm a biomass broker, and in many cases we've gone as far as to become a market maker for biomass. You're right there is no exchange to set the price of biomass fiber so it varies from procurement area to procurement area, however production costs don't, so that acts as the pricing base. Enviva is very active along the gulf cost and Dixie pellets is restarting -at one time the largest mill in the us - which is in AL on the Mississippi. Of course IP is in the process of shuttering a pulper in Courtland Al so that's a positive, although there has been a strong rebound in manufactured board which affects fiber upwardly, but it doesn't matter if the market is depressed. If you slap a two million ton mill in an area, it will bid fiber up on itself. The only way it would work is a premium to expand the procurement area, which even then may not work.

As for the torrification, I'm only familiar with one commercially available system - the weissmont turbo dryer - but it doesn't give a consistent product. I'll have to do some research on that mill you mentioned. Since there haven't been any patents mentioned by the company, I don't take their torrification plans seriously, but that doesn't mean the pellet parts of the model are any less viable. However, if Drax has announced in or near Jim's target areas in Louisiana, I will say that plans for BMSPF plant is dead. Now if BMSPF has financing lined up, a partnership with Drax may be possible, but I don't believe he does.