Sumitomo Corporation has acquired 47.6% of the shares of the wood pellet manufacturer Pacific BioEnergy Corporation in British Columbia, Canada, and made its entry into the wood pellet manufacturing business in Canada.
PBEC, through its own and affiliated manufacturing facilities, currently markets in excess of 550,000 tonnes of industrial grade wood pellets per annum and is Canada’s second largest wood pellet manufacturer.
Sumitomo Corporation began importing biomass fuel into Japan for power generation in 2008. Biomass fuel is seen as a promising energy source for encouraging wider use of renewable energies in Japan, and Sumitomo Corporation has been developing reliable sources overseas to complement domestically-produced biomass fuel. In acquiring a stake in PBEC, Sumitomo Corporation is seeking to establish a steady wood pellet supply for the long term and thereby help spread and promote renewable energy.
