Gasum will handle the processing the biodegradable waste into biogas and for processing it into a transport fuel
Image: Gasum and Oulun Energia to build new biogas plant in Finland. Photo: Courtesy of Gasum Oy.
Oulun Energia and Gasum are working together for the development of a new biogas production and processing plant, to be located in northern Finland.
The new plant will allow for the production of road fuel biogas. This plant could be located in conjunction with Oulun Energia’s Laanila eco power plant and will be the first use biodegradable material mixed with municipal general waste as feedstock.
Laanila eco power plant will convert municipal and industrial waste from across Northern Finland into process steam, electricity and heat. It is expected that the Laanila plant will be completed in 2021.
The new plant will have a sorting capacity of 45,000 tonnes of biodegradable material
As part of this joint venture, Oulun Energia aims to invest in a waste processing facility, with a sorting capacity of around 45,000 tonnes of biodegradable material from 130,000 tonnes of household general waste each year.
Gasum has agreed to shoulder the responsibility of processing the biodegradable waste into biogas and for processing it into a transport fuel.
Oulun Energia business director Pertti Vanhala said: “A considerable amount of biodegradable waste ends up in general household waste in particular. The treatment process also allows for the recovery of other materials before incineration.”
Gasum also plans to invest in a gas liquefaction unit to enable the biogas produced to be processed into a fuel for heavy duty vehicles. The Laanila plant would be just the second liquefied biogas production plant in Finland.
Gasum circular economy Finland director Ari Suomilammi said: “Since heavy duty vehicles cannot readily be electrified, liquefied biogas provides the best avenue to cut emissions in truck transport.
“In May, we opened two new gas filling stations in Oulu, one of which is intended for heavy duty vehicles. During the coming years, Gasum intends to build a total of 50 new liquefied gas filling stations in the Nordic countries.”
Besides this new biogas plant, Gasum plans to expand its existing biogas plant in Rusko. The Rusko plant uses separately collected biowaste and local sewage sludge as feedstock from which recycled nutrients are also produced.
Studies show that the Laanila plant could produce around 40,000MWh of biogas a year. There are plans to increase annual production at Rusko biogas plant by 20,000MWh. This additional production would be sent to Laanila for liquefaction, bringing the total annual production of liquefied biogas to 60,000MWh.
Earlier this year, Gasum partnered with Tampere Regional Solid Waste Management to buy biogas produced from a newly constructed plant in Koukkujärvi, Nokia, Finland.