Community Power Initiative (CPI)

What Is the Community Power Initiative?

CPI is a plan for distributed generation using community scale biomass-powered baseload facilities that incorporate combined heat and power for greater efficiency, profit, and savings.

Why CPI?

Meeting Energy Needs While Growing Our Energy Future.
There's a better way to generate energy than burning coal. Biomass technologies are highly developed and commercially proven across the US and Europe, and Virginia has a great and varied supply of biomass feedstocks which could be used to create bioenergy to end our dependence on fossil fuels while stimulating our economy. By 2007 figures, there is ample Virginia acreage to produce 11,455,352 dry tons of herbaceous material. This would provide reliable fuel for thirty-five 50 MW biomass plants (using a conservative estimate of 8 tons/acre; 330,000 tons/50 MW plant). In addition, by 2007 numbers, the Commonwealth had 5.6 million dry tons of woody residues from logging and mills, enough fuel for another seventeen 50 MW plants (using an estimate of 400,000 air-dry tons/55MW plant).

To find out more about CPI, click one of the links below:

• CPI Benefits
• CPI Definitions
• CPI Powerpoint Presentation (PDF)
• The Municipal Biomass Business Plan (PDF)