Borregaard ASA has announced that it has received a pledge for an NOK 12.4 million (≈ EUR 1.3 million) grant from Innovation Norway. The funds will be used over three years in the field of innovation projects based on products from biomass.
Norway-headed forest industry and biorefinery major Borregaard ASA has announced that it has received a pledge for an NOK 12.4 million (≈ EUR 1.3 million) grant from Innovation Norway, a government agency to assist innovation and development of Norwegian enterprises and industry. The funds will be used over three years in the field of innovation projects based on products from biomass.
– The support is recognition of the research effort Borregaard puts into this, as well as the products’ importance today and in the future. All of the research projects have an environmental and sustainable upside in that the end products are bio-based and in many cases replace petroleum-based alternatives, while at the same time do not compete with food production, said Per A. Sørlie, President and CEO of Borregaard in a statement.
Three biobased projects
The funds come from the government’s package of measures for the forestry industry as well as the biorefinery programme financed by the Ministry of Local Government and Modernisation. The support assumes that Borregaard itself contributes with just less than NOK 50 million (≈ EUR 5.29 million) spread over three different innovation projects in the fields of lignin, specialty cellulose, and sugar respectively.
- NOK 7.3 million (≈ EUR 0.77 million) has been granted for the project “High Purity Cellulose,” which aims to develop a process to produce specialty cellulose qualities for use in advanced chemicals.
- NOK 2.7 million (≈ EUR 0.29 million) has been awarded to the project “Green Bonds”, a joint project between Elkem and Borregaard which aims to develop bio-based binders for carbon products.
- Innovation Norway and the Technology Strategy Board are working together to support projects between Norway and the United Kingdom, including a joint project between Green Biologics and Lucite where Borregaard has received pledges of NOK 2.4 million (≈ EUR =0.25 million) in support. Here sugar from Borregaard’s BALI technology will be used for the production of biobutanol for various chemical applications.
– Through our support, we assist businesses in taking greater risks and investing more where the potential for future products and services is great. The ability to innovate and focus on profitable niche products makes Borregaard the world leader within its areas, but this is dependent on continuous commitment on the part of the company, said Toril Mølmen, Director of Innovation Norway in Oslo, Akershus and Østfold.
