The Regional State Administrative Agency of Northern Finland has granted environmental permits to NordFuel’s biorefinery’s energy centre and the biogas and carbon dioxide processing plants. The environmental permits were not appealed.

“The energy centre, biogas, and carbon dioxide downstream processes are integral to the planned biorefinery complex. These operations will allow us to make use of all material and by-product streams efficiently,” says Maarit Rimpiläinen, QEHS Manager at NordFuel.

The environmental permit for NordFuel’s biorefinery became effective in February when the Supreme Administrative Court issued a ruling on an appeal against the permit.

Utilizing side streams

The biorefinery’s energy centre produces the steam required by the biorefinery and the heating and cooling energy for the site. Power of steam boiler will be up to 99 MW. Biorefinery by-products, like lignin, will be used as fuel.

The water treatment process of the biorefinery will produce raw biogas, which will be refined on-site into liquefied biogas suitable for vehicles.

Carbon dioxide is produced in the bioethanol production process and biogas processing.
The biogenic carbon dioxide is dried, purified, and liquefied. The end product is liquefied carbon dioxide that is suitable for example for the food industry. In the future, the recovered carbon dioxide can be used together with hydrogen to produce synthetic transport fuels.

Additional information:

Maarit Rimpiläinen
QEHS Manager, NordFuel Oy
+358 40 5814753

NordFuel Oy is a wholly owned subsidiary of Kanteleen Voima Oy, which is planning the construction of a modern biorefinery in Haapavesi, North Ostrobothnia. The biorefinery will produce bioethanol, biogas and lignin from domestic sawdust and forestry by-products which will replace imported fossil fuels.