Proposed ‘green methanol’ plant in Pineville would cut local trees for wood biomass

Photo courtesy SunGas Renewables’ website.

A Houston energy company is considering building a $1.8 billion methanol production facility in Rapides Parish that would harvest local trees to create biomass energy.

SunGas Renewables wants to manufacture 400,000 tons of methanol each year through biomass gasification at Beaver Lake Renewable Energy, the site of the former International Paper facility in Pineville, according to a press release from Gov. John Bel Edwards.

The proposed Beaver Lake plant would use timber cut from local forests for the biomass and use carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) technology to burn the trees in a cleaner process to make what the company calls “green methanol.”

Controversy surrounds both biomass energy and CCS. Although many regulators currently designate biomass energy as “renewable” because trees can regrow, some environmental scientists question that designation because biomass relies on deforestation and often produces high levels of carbon dioxide and particulate matter. Some scientists even argue biomass energy produces more carbon dioxide than coal, according to an article in Physics World. 

As for CCS, the technology is still relatively new and has had a spotty track record of reducing carbon emissions in a cost-effective manner. Advocates for cleaner renewable energy, such as solar and wind, say CCS has struggled to prove effective at a large industrial scale and diverts funding away from solutions that do work. Other carbon capture projects have drawn immense pushback from Louisiana residents.

According to the governor’s press release, a front-end engineering and design study on the site is planned in October. The company expects to make a final investment decision in August 2024, and to begin construction beginning by the end of that year. It anticipates commercial operations to commence in 2027.

The company said it expects to create 109 direct jobs with an average annual salary of $78,000. Beaver Lake’s construction would create 1,150 jobs, according to the Louisiana Economic Development agency.

To attract the project, the state is offering SunGas Renewables a $6 million  performance-based grant for infrastructure improvements upon meeting investment and employment targets. Also, if the project moves forward, the company will likely receive incentives through the Quality Jobs tax credit program and the Industrial Tax Exemption Program.

SunGas Renewables plans an engineering and design study of the Pineville site in October, the governor’s office said. The company plans to make its final decision on investing in the Beaver Lake project by 2024 and would begin construction later in the year. The plant would begin operations in 2027.

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