Positive result from feasibility study ”Flagship Biorefinery”

The report shows that the prerequisite for the project is good even if many important issues must be resolved before the project can be realised.

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The project "Flagship Biorefinery" has been carried out in order to investigate the prerequisites to realise a new, full scale biorefinery based on sustainable wood raw material from Swedish forests.

Processum has been in charge of the project which has been supported by 13 companies representing a complete value chain from forest owners, forest industry to chemical industry as well as other stakeholders.

The report shows that the prerequisite for the project is good even if many important issues must be resolved before the project can be realised.

The consultants Pöyry have performed the assignment to carry out a feasibility study which has been presented to the project steering group. The steering group has found the results of the feasibility study very interesting. The results show e.g. that an investment in the proposed biorefinery can be profitable and provide positive contributions to a future bioeconomy.

"The report shows that the prerequisite for the project is good, which of course is very attractive even if many important issues must be resolved before the project can be realised. We sincerely believe that Flagship Biorefinery will be an important part of the future bioeconomy that so many are talking about," says Lars Winter, Vice Chairman Processum and MD Domsjö Fabriker.

"We experience a strong trend and political commitment for the transition from a fossil economy to a bioeconomy," says Jonas Joelsson, Research Manager Processum and project leader for Flagship Biorefinery. "The concept we have studied could become a part of this transition, and is well aligned with the priorities of the Swedish Government".

"The results presented by Pöyry suggest good prerequisites for a plant of this type," Jonas Joelsson continues. "However, one needs to be aware that the realisation of such a plant is a long process. The feasibility study was the first step, giving the basis for a decision to invest. It will be very interesting to follow the further development of this project in the future."

The next step is to appoint a project organisation with the special task to investigate how to safeguard sufficient supply of feedstock and how to finance the investment. It is estimated that this investigation will take up to three years and will be the basis for a decision whether to invest or not. A possible decision to go ahead with the project means that the start-up of this large scale biorefinery will take place 2023 at the earliest, provided that decision on location is taken and that environmental permits are granted.

For more information, please contact:
Jonas Joelsson, Research Manager Processum,
Tel. +46 (0)10 516 67 60, email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Lars Winter, Vice Chairman Processum and MD Domsjö Fabriker,
Tel. +46 (0)660-756 11, mobile: +46 (0)70-207 51 13, email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Additional information
"Flagship Biorefinery" is a project, carrying out a feasibility study for a large-scale biorefinery based on softwood feedstock. The biorefinery would produce approximately 1 million tonne per year of cellulose for textile applications in addition to a range of bioproducts such as automotive biofuel, protein for feed industry and lignosulphonate for advanced dispersion applications.
The feasibility study project has had 13 partners and was funded by the partners and by the County Council of Västernorrland.
According to the Swedish Government's overall EU priorities for 2017 (available at government.se), "The EU needs an ambitious and cohesive climate, energy and environment policy to achieve the agreed climate and environmental objectives, and for the EU to be a strong and proactive force globally. Sweden will lead the way and the Government is therefore taking a leading role to speed up the transition to a bio-based and circular economy, with a higher percentage of renewable energy."

Processum started in 2003 and is situated in Örnsköldsvik, Sweden. We support and initiate research and development within biorefinery. Together with other biorefinery initiatives, our cluster with partners from industry and academy constitutes an important hub for development of new products, processes and energy solutions from wood raw material and residual streams from the process industry. We cooperate with national as well as international partners. Processum hosts the growth initiative The Biorefinery of the Future. Processum is owned by RISE Research institutes of Sweden (60 %) and Processum Interest Association (40 %), and is thus a subsidiary of the RISE Group. Processum is a part of division RISE Bioeconomy.
www.processum.se

Source: SP Processum