Black Hills Energy’s biomass and biodiesel projects are just a small portion of Black Hills Energy’s renewable energy program. They have shown that there are ways to generate electricity that can be environmentally friendly and beneficial to all parties. Black Hills Energy’s Colorado Generation Staff continuously searches for ways to improve efficiency and be a leader in new ways to produce green energy.

In Colorado, Black Hills Energy now is on the leading edge in using biodiesel to produce electricity. The bio-diesel program was implemented in March of 2007, starting with the Pueblo (Colo.) Station. Black Hills Energy not only is able to produce Renewable Energy Credits, but also the engine breakdown rate at both our Pueblo and Rocky Ford (Colo.) stations has dropped dramatically. These results weren’t achieved by accident.

These units were designed to operate on regular #2 diesel fuel oil. Over the years, government regulations reduced the allowable sulfur content of #2 diesel fuel. Sulfur is a key ingredient to diesel fuel, as it is the lubricating component of the fuel.

In 2006, the sulfur standard was further limited to exceed not more than 15 parts per million (ppm), and an increasing number of mechanical problems, including fuel injector failures, developed. The problem was thought to be linked to the ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel. At this time Black Hills Energy began looking for a solution via the addition of fuel additives; however, the problems continued.

The Black Hills Energy Generation team tackled the problem, seeking a remedy that would have a positive effect on our environment and possibly help us to satisfy the Renewable Portfolio Standards of Colorado Energy Credit requirements. The answer was to use B20 biodiesel.

B20 bio-diesel is a 20 percent biomass product, such as seed oil, or oil derived from tallow. It was initially determined that using an unstable fuel such as tallow was too risky. Thus, a producer of bio-diesel that used high-quality seed oil as the biomass in combination with a good mixing practice was searched for. Three such providers of biodiesel meeting Black Hills Energy’s specifications were located. Success followed.