Finnish dairy manufacturer Valio, together with the energy company St1, has built the largest biogas and biogas liquefaction plant in the Nordic countries.
The companies have set up a joint venture project called Suomen Lantakaasu, which aims to produce renewable biogas from dairy manure and other agricultural by-products. Biogas is used as a transport fuel.
The goal of the joint venture is to build 8-10 biogas plants and liquefaction plants by 2030.
The first liquefied biogas plant in Northern Savonia is scheduled to start operating in 2026.
High annual production capacity
By Juha NousiainenValio’s carbon-neutral program manager at the North Savo plant would have capacity in the vicinity of about 330 farms.
"At its core is an industrial plant that produces liquefied biomethane. A biogas stove is nearby. But the hybrid model also includes decentralized biogas operations on a smaller scale, even on a single farm scale."
Valio says the plant would have an exceptionally high annual production capacity of 125 gigawatt hours. Nousiainen estimates that the amount of energy produced would roughly correspond to about 12 million liters of diesel.
"If it is considered as fuel for heavy vehicles, it would be enough for 200-300 trucks a year," he adds.
Valio believes that the project will have significant environmental impacts. The plant’s annual production is estimated to reduce carbon emissions from agriculture and transport by 71,000 tonnes per year.
The conflict in Ukraine increased the importance of the project
According to Nousiainen, recent events in Ukraine have highlighted the importance of the project.
"We need to invest more actively in energy self-sufficiency in Europe and Finland. It is also important that we start using unused agricultural by-products for renewable energy production."
Precise investment cost estimates for the project are not currently available, but Nousiainen believes it will easily reach several million euros. The biogas plant would permanently employ 20-30 people.
Although the exact location of the plant has not yet been selected, the company is reportedly considering a few locations in Ylä-Savo.
Source: The Nordic Page