Finland-headed forest industry and energy technology major Valmet Oyj has announced that it has been selected to deliver key technology areas for a planned cellulosic ethanol plant in Poland.
The engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) delivery are for ORLEN Południe’s S.A. planned second-generation (2G) ethanol plant at its Jedlicze Refinery in Jedlicze.
Valmet has a natural role to support its customers in the global transition from fossil fuels to renewable resources, said Bertel Karlstedt, Business Line President, Pulp and Energy, Valmet.
Part of the Polish oil and multi-energy company Polski Koncern Naftowy ORLEN S.A (PKN ORLEN) company, ORLEN Południe focuses on the primary product segments related to the production and sales of biofuels and bio-components, paraffin and solvents.
The delivery includes a BioTrac pretreatment system with a capacity to process approximately 400 tonnes per day of dry straw per day, a 48 MWth (fuel) BioPower lignin fired combined heat and power (CHP) plant and a Valmet DNA Automation system.
Operational in 2024
The plant, the value of which has not been disclosed, will start its operation in 2024. Through this project, ORLEN Południe will increase its share in the biofuels market.
In addition, the project will support ORLEN’s ambition to reach the EU target for bio-additives in the liquid fuels market.
The 25 000 tonnes per annum of 2G ethanol will be produced from agricultural residual feedstocks, predominantly cereal straw, sourced mainly from Polish farmers.
The lignin, a by-product from the conversion process, will be used as fuel in the CHP plant, producing all steam for the ethanol plant and power.
The CHP plant is based on proven bubbling fluidized bed (BFB) combustion technology and flue gas cleaning combined with factory-manufactured modules.
According to Valmet, this enables faster project implementation, shorter site time, and completion with better quality and lower implementation risks.
Both installations are controlled by a Valmet DNA automation system with embedded information management and cyber security solutions.
The second-generation bioethanol is a very good example of Valmet utilizing decades of experience in biomass processing for developing solutions that can be used for other applications outside its traditional pulp, paper, and energy field. We see great potential in this field and are very happy to have been selected by ORLEN Południe as a key technology partner in this very important project, ended Bertel Karlstedt.
