Dieffenbacher has received an order from Quito-based particleboard manufacturer Novopan del Ecuador for a 30 MW energy plant that uses reciprocating grate technology to combust waste wood. The order also includes a Maier Big Crusher and Maier Rechipper to process waste wood and eucalyptus bark.Delivery of the components is planned for December 2024, with installation starting in January 2025 and commissioning expected in May 2025.

The new order continues the relationship between Novopan and Dieffenbacher, which began in 2008 when Dieffenbacher took over the wood-based panels business from Metso, the original supplier of Novopan’s first continuous particleboard line. Other milestones in the cooperation between the two companies were the expansion of the forming station, the addition of a second cooling wheel, replacement of the prepress and retrofitting of an EVOjet P glue-saving system for the first line. The most significant achievement, however, was the delivery, installation and commissioning of Novopan’s second continuous particleboard line in 2019.