The circular economy continues to strengthen in Sweden following an agreement between energy company Gasum and paper manufacturer Stora Enso which will lead to the production of biomethane from waste waters at the latter’s Nymölla Mill in the country’s far south. The plant, built and operated by Gasum, will turn the mill’s waste water effluent into renewable energy.

Gasum plans to produce Liquefied Biogas (LBG) and sell as fuel for cars, buses, trucks, and ferries. The Nymölla biogas plant project includes biogas production, upgrading and liquefaction. The expected LBG production of the plant is 220 MWh per day. Start-up is expected during 2020.

“We are happy to be part of a project that will turn waste into valuable renewable energy,” says Michael Lindemann, Mill Director at Nymölla Mill. “For Stora Enso, substituting fossil-based fuels in our society with renewable solutions is a vital way to combat global warming. The cooperation with Gasum is a good example of the collaborative efforts Stora Enso is taking to do this.”

“The biogas plant is a sustainable solution for the processing of wastewater. Gasum is actively building a gas ecosystem for industry, marine and Road Transport Segment in the Nordics. Due to increasing demand for low-emission traffic, we are planning to build a considerably large number of gas filling stations for the heavy-duty vehicle segment in Sweden”, says Johanna Lamminen, Chief Executive Officer of Gasum.

The total investment volume of the project for Gasum is around EUR 27 million and for Stora Enso around EUR 5 million. Gasum has been granted an investment subsidy of SEK 121.5 million (EUR 12.7 million) by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency under the Climate Leap (‘Klimatklivet’) programme.

Located in southern Sweden, Stora Enso’s Nymölla Mill has an annual production capacity of 340,000 tonnes  pulp and 485,000 tonnes woodfree uncoated (WFU) paper for office and postal use. Stora Enso’s well-known office paper brand Multicopy is produced in Nymölla.

Liquefied biogas (LBG) is similar to liquefied natural gas (LNG). LBG is a renewable and environmentally friendly fuel. If heavy-duty vehicles use LBG as fuel, the emission reduction can be as much as 85% compared to fossil fuel. LNG and LBG offer the heavy road transport segment a practical and cost-effective alternative to traditional fossil fuels.

The energy company Gasum is a Nordic gas sector expert. Together with its partners, Gasum is building a bridge towards a carbon-neutral society on land and at sea.

Gasum is a member of NGVA Europe

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