New bioenergy power plant reduces the CO2 emissions of Altia’s Koskenkorva plant by 30–40% during the first year

Altia's new bioenergy power plant has reduced Koskenkorva plant’s carbon dioxide emissions and increased its self-sufficiency in terms of fuel. Located in Ilmajoki, the bioenergy power plant is the first of its kind in Finland both in terms of technology and fuel mix.

The 10 megawatt bioenergy power plant, which was commissioned a year ago and has been fully operational since January, employs barley husk as fuel. Thanks to the renewable fuel, the Koskenkorva plant is set to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions this year by 30–40 per cent in comparison to last year.

With this investment, Altia is pursuing more than 60 per cent fuel self-sufficiency in steam generation at the Koskenkorva plant. Already, the new power plant has increased self-sufficiency to 50 per cent. Prior to the new bioenergy power plant, the plant’s fuel self-sufficiency stood at approximately 20 per cent.

“With our current rate of development, we will reach our goal of more than 60 per cent self-sufficiency in fuel by the summer of 2016. I’m very happy about the level of commitment and determination with which our Koskenkorva team has worked to ensure that we reach our common objective,” says plant manager Antti Snellman.

The primary fuel for the Koskenkorva bioenergy power plant consists of barley husk. Barley husk is peeled in Altia’s grain spirit and starch production throughout the year. In terms of the technology and fuels it uses, the power plant is the first of its kind in Finland.

“We want to participate in the development of renewable field biomasses within Finnish energy production and make our core competence as an industrial user of barley increasingly diversified,” says Snellman.

The total value of the investment in the new bioenergy power plant is approximately EUR 15 million. The project received a EUR 1.5 million investment subsidy from the Ministry of Employment and the Economy. Altia’s partner in this project is Suomen Teollisuuden Energiapalvelut - STEP Oy.

Facts:

• Altia’s Koskenkorva plant is located in the municipality of Ilmajoki, in Southern Ostrobothnia, in Finland.
• The plant—which relies on barley as its raw material—produces grain spirit as well as starch and feed.
• The husk of barley not used in the plant’s production is incinerated in the bioenergy power plant operating within the area of the Koskenkorva plant and built for the purpose of supplying steam to the Koskenkorva plant. Steam is required for Koskenkorva’s distillation process.
• The bioenergy power plant was commissioned on 24 November 2014. The 10 megawatt power plant, fully equipped to use field biomasses, has been operating at full capacity since January 2015.
• The bioenergy power plant gives Altia a chance to make use of practically the entire grain of barley.
• The Koskenkorva plant uses nearly 200 million kilos of Finnish barley a year. This amount accounts for nearly 15 per cent of the entire Finnish barley crop and more than 30 per cent of the amount of barley traded.

More information and interview requests:
Altia Communications/Niina Vieno, tel. +358 400 728 957, niina.vieno@altiacorporation.com