Finnish utility Fortum has outlined plans to build a new E220 million combined heat and power production plant adjacent to the existing Suomenoja power plant in Espoo, Finland.
<p>The company revealed that the pre-planning for the new combined heat and power plant (CHPP), which will be completed by the end of 2009, has now been finalized and that the purchasing of main equipment has been agreed. <br /><br />According to Fortum, the increasing demand for district heating in Espoo, Kauniainen and Kirkkonummi has made it feasible to build a new CHPP. The new facility will use natural gas as fuel. It will have a power production capacity of 234MW, and a district heating capacity of 214MW. <br /><br />The annual district heating production is equivalent to that used by 85,000 one-family houses, while the annual electricity production is equivalent to the power needs of 100,000 electrically heated one-family houses in Finland, the company said. <br /><br />Fortum added that, thanks to the plant, the use of coal and oil in district heat production in Espoo will decrease, which will result in lower sulphur dioxide and particle emissions, as well as a more than 10% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to produced energy. <br /><br />Combined heat and power production is an efficient and environmentally benign way to produce energy. The new power plant will not have immediate effects on the price of district heating in the area. Our goal is to keep the prices of district heating competitive both now and in the future, said Timo Karttinen of Fortum.<br /><br />The new plant has a valid environmental license, which was issued in August 2006. Preparation work for the power plant construction will be started in summer 2007, Fortum said.</p>