PALERMO, Italy, Oct. 1 (UPI) -- The first biomass cogeneration power plant in Sicily is a step toward the expansion of green power production through Europe, German energy company RWE said.
A renewables division of German energy company RWE, RWE Innogy Italia, announced Friday that it signed an agreement for the construction of the first biomass power plant in Sicily.
The plant is designed to put out 128,000 megawatt-hours of energy, enough power to meet the electricity demands of 30,000 residents each year.
Fritz Vahrenholt, the chief executive officer at RWE Innogy, said Europe won't be able to meet its climate objectives without facilities like the one in Sicily.
"In Germany we are already among the leaders in this sector," he said in a statement. "Our first plant in Italy is an important step for the continued internationalization of our biomass business."
Biomass for the facility will come primarily from a eucalyptus tree plantation that covers more than 20,000 hectares.
Italy gets 6.7 percent of its energy from renewable resources, though the figure should rise to 17 percent by 2020, the company said.
Work on the $83 million facility begins in late 2012.
