With over 40 years of experience, our team of industry professionals have received worldwide recognition and have been commissioned to manufacture, test, deliver and commission a prototype unit, including primary condensate separation and filtration technology. 

Across Sub-Saharan Africa it is estimated that over six hundred thousand lives are cut short, mainly women and children, as they use firewood to cook and heat indoors. In addition, large areas across Southern Africa are degraded by encroaching bush and invasive woody plant species. The land degraded cannot grow crops or provide food for the wildlife

South African Journal of Science concluded the following statement from their research and analysis of fires in South Africa – “Fire has always been a natural occurrence on the African continent and has led to the continent being nicknamed ‘the fire continent’. Fires do provide an environmental service and are an integral part of the maintenance of the environment; but, increased fire activity, brought about by anthropogenic activity, has led to adverse effects on the environment. Fires can be classified as South Africa’s most common hazard and have often led to disasters which result in both loss of human and animal life, and loss of property.”

In the SteamBioAfrica project we will transform this bush and invasive woody plant species into a clean burning fuel that can be used by both industry and households without life threatening pollution. A safe, clean, and secure energy source, with land restored. We will create a life changing demonstration that can then be replicated and create large scale sustainable socio-environmental benefit. 

Working alongside fourteen other renowned institutions such as worldwide designers, universities and specialists, CE Bennett’s are the largest beneficiary in the consortium. Our role is to manufacture the SteamBio Technology that will achieve a sustainable fuel source for Southern Africa. Following vigorous testing, our team will accompany the prototype to Namibia to commission the assembly and train the relevant parties on how the unit should be operated. If successful, the design has the potential to be used as a prototype across the world to demonstrate the capabilities of safe, clean-burning of hazardous biomass. 

On the 1st of September, we were given the go-ahead to begin working on this prestigious project, instantly demonstrating the business growth and expansion achieved since opening our doors in 1974. We are still a close-knit team at C E Bennetts and have achieved nationwide success over the years, but this latest, major achievement allows us to prove our expertise and capability to manufacture and install mechanical service solutions worldwide.

To keep up to date with our exciting journey on this project, follow our social media profiles on Facebook and Linkedin. Our engineers can’t wait to share this amazing experience and opportunity with everyone passionate about STEM, engineering and fabrication, as we’ll aim to share updates along our journey working on this innovative project.

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 101036401