Doris Stiksl on the ENplus® certification of wood pellets
In her role as Managing Director of proPellets Austria, Doris Stiksl is committed to the use of high-quality wood pellets. We asked her about it.
RIKA: proPellets recommends ENplus® certified wood pellets. What exactly is ENplus®?
Doris Stiksl: ENplus® is an internationally recognised quality seal for wood pellets that guarantees the highest standards throughout the supply chain – from the manufacturer to the end customer. It stands for first-rate quality and reliability, which is particularly important for the efficient and sustainable use of pellet stoves and heating systems. This certificate ensures that the pellets fulfil strict technical specifications.
RIKA: What are its advantages?
Doris Stiksl: For owners of stoves and boilers, this verification provides assurance that the pellets are of the highest quality, ensuring efficient combustion and a long heating life. This means less maintenance and lower operating costs. Retailers benefit as it means there aren't any malfunctions due to faulty fuel, which strengthens both trust and customer loyalty. In addition, ENplus® certified pellets are generally produced regionally, which ensures short delivery routes and high availability.
RIKA: What specific aspects does the certification cover and how does it differ from other standards and certificates?
Doris Stiksl: The certification encompasses the entire inspection and sampling in regular audits by independent experts. The production, storage, loading and proper delivery to the customer are all inspected. This is the unique selling point of ENplus® – and the logistics, as the greatest risk factor for a possible loss of quality, is also taken into account in the quality assurance. The specific criteria include technical parameters such as calorific value, water and ash content, mechanical strength and fines content. Compared to other certificates, ENplus® offers a more detailed and stricter control that goes beyond the standardised norms and guarantees consistently high quality.
RIKA: Where exactly and in which countries are ENplus® certified wood pellets available?
Doris Stiksl: Austria is a pioneer in the production of quality pellets and also in their certification. These high-quality pellets are produced in 54 plants and this high standard is also highly valued in neighbouring countries. Certification is becoming increasingly widespread and there are now numerous suppliers producing and selling ENplus® pellets in all European countries as well as in North America and other parts of the world.
RIKA: How can ENplus® certified pellets be recognised and what classifications are there?
Doris Stiksl: ENplus® certified pellets can be recognised by the ENplus® seal and a unique identification number on the packaging. There are three main classifications: ENplus® A1, ENplus® A2 and ENplus® B. ENplus® A1 stands for the highest quality level with the strictest limits for ash and water content as well as mechanical strength. ENplus® A2 is also high quality, but with slightly higher limit values, while ENplus® B is primarily suitable for industrial applications. My recommendation to oweners of stoves is: use ENplus® A1 pellets!
RIKA: Thank you very much!
About ENplus®
The German pellet institute DEPI developed ENplus® in 2010 in consultation with proPellets Austria. In 2011, seven countries started certification; the quality seal now dominates the European heating market and has established itself as a global standard. Almost 1200 companies in 46 countries are currently certified. In 2024, certified production is expected to exceed 14.5 million tonnes of pellets. Since May 2024, Poland has been the country with the most ENplus®-certified pellet producers. Most certified pellets are produced in Germany – specifically 3.7 million tonnes in 2023 – followed by Austria, France, Spain and Belgium. Unfortunately, cases of fraud are also increasing every year, with the result that a blacklist of all untrustworthy companies is now published and regularly updated.
All informationen about ENplus®: enplus-pellets.eu
