6T/H Wood Chip Pellet Making Machine in Indonesia

The client: not a pellet plant, but close to becoming one

The customer behind this wood chip pellet making machine in Indonesia is a wood processing operator located in Kalimantan.

Their core business is supplying chips to pulp and paper mills. Over time, they accumulated a secondary stream of material—oversized chips, irregular fragments, and lower-grade residues that didn’t meet pulp specifications.

This material had limited buyers. Sometimes it was sold cheaply, sometimes just stored.

Instead of building a full pellet factory, the client decided to add pelletizing capacity as an extension of their existing operation. That’s why they focused on purchasing pellet machines rather than a complete wood pellet production line.

Why two MZLH678 pellet machines?

For this project, the target output was around 6 tons per hour.

Based on that, the final configuration was:

2 sets of MZLH678 wood chip pellet machines in Indonesia Each unit has a capacity of about 2.5–3.0 t/h, which fits well with the client’s raw material flow. But capacity wasn’t the only factor.

During discussions, the client raised a concern that often comes up in Indonesia: Power supply can fluctuate. What happens if one machine trips Running two wood chip pellet mills in Indonesia gives them flexibility.

They can operate both machines during peak hours or run one unit when raw material supply is lower or when maintenance is needed. This kind of setup is quite common in practical factory planning, even if it looks less clean on paper.

Raw materials: more variation than expected

Even though the project is called a wood chip pellet making machine in Indonesia, the actual material mix is not uniform.

The input includes:

• 60% standard wood chips (mixed tropical hardwood)
• 25% oversized chips that have been re-crushed
• 15% fine residues collected from screening

One issue that showed up early was size inconsistency. Chips that are too large don’t compress well in a wood pellet mill in Indonesia, while too much fine powder can cause feeding instability. So a simple pre-processing step—re-crushing oversized chips—became part of the solution.

Moisture content also varied. Fresh chips from storage yards could reach 35%, especially during rainy periods. The client already had a drying system, which made things easier.

Equipment configuration and working details

Each MZLH678 wood chip pellet machine in Indonesia was configured with:

• Main motor: 185 kW
• Ring die inner diameter: 673 mm
• Pellet size: 8 mm (industrial fuel standard)
• Anti-arching feeder: 3 kW
• Forced feeder: 1.5 kW

The choice of 8 mm pellets again relates to the target users. Industrial boilers and biomass power plants prefer slightly larger pellets for stable combustion. One adjustment made during commissioning was related to feed rate control.

Wood chips behave differently from sawdust. They don’t flow as smoothly, and sometimes they jump in the feeder. Balancing the anti-arching feeder and forced feeder speeds helped stabilize the load on the wood chip pellet press in Indonesia.

What the pellets are used for

The output from this wood chip pellet machine in Indonesia is mainly sold as biomass fuel.

Typical buyers include:

• Palm oil processing plants
• Medium-scale industrial boilers
• Local energy traders

Interestingly, the client didn’t initially plan to sell pellets directly. They thought about using them internally or selling through intermediaries.

But after a few months, they started getting direct inquiries. The reason is simple—pellets are easier to handle than loose chips. Transport cost per ton is lower, and storage is more efficient.

Shipment and delivery

Both pellet machines were shipped from Qingdao Port.

The destination for this wood chip pellet line in Indonesia was Balikpapan Port. This port is commonly used for industrial equipment imports in that region.

Special care was taken with packaging due to the long sea route and humid climate. Electrical components, especially control cabinets, were protected against moisture during transit.

Installation inside an operating yard

The installation of this wood chip pellet making machine in Indonesia didn’t happen in an empty workshop. It was integrated into an active chip processing yard.

That created some real-world constraints:

• Uneven ground conditions
• Limited covered space for equipment
• Existing conveyors that didn’t match new layouts

Instead of rebuilding everything, the layout was adapted. The two wood chip pellet mills in Indonesia were installed in parallel, sharing upstream feeding but operating independently. Not perfect on paper, but efficient in practice.

What changed after commissioning

Before installing the wood chip pelletizer in Indonesia, lower-grade chips were a problem.

After installation, they became a product. The client reported that storage pressure decreased significantly. Instead of piling up material, they could process it continuously.

Another change was pricing. Pellets brought more stable returns compared to raw chips, especially during periods when chip demand dropped.

A few practical observations from operation

Rather than listing generic advantages, here are some real points that came out of this project:

• Chip size uniformity directly affects pellet quality
• Feeding stability matters more than maximum throughput
• Running two machines provides operational flexibility
• Moisture control is critical during rainy seasons

These are not things you fully understand until the machines are running day and night.

Why the client chose this solution

The client had considered exporting raw chips, expanding storage, and even selling to new markets. Pelletizing wasn’t the first idea, but it turned out to be the most practical.

The wood chip pellet machine in Indonesia allowed them to:

• Upgrade low-value material
• Reduce storage issues
• Enter a different market segment

From a business perspective, it wasn’t just about equipment. It was about changing how their material is positioned.

Feedback from the client

After several months of operation, the feedback was quite straightforward. They said the wood chip pellet making machine in Indonesia runs steadily, and operators adapted quickly after initial adjustments.

One comment stood out:

We used to think chips were already a finished product. Now we see they are just a starting point. They are now considering whether to expand capacity or add downstream packaging.

If you’re working with wood chips

Projects like this 6t/h wood chip pellet making machine in Indonesia often start with a simple situation—material that doesn’t fully meet market demand. If you’re dealing with wood chips, especially mixed or lower-grade ones, it’s worth thinking about:

• How consistent is your chip size
• Do you have drying capacity already
• Is there local demand for biomass pellets
• Would one machine or multiple units fit your operation better

At RICHI Machinery, many of these biomass pellet projects don’t begin with equipment selection. They start with raw material discussions, sometimes even arguments about moisture and particle size. That’s usually where the real solution takes shape.