In Finland, gas major Gasum Oy has announced that its biogas plant on the site of Munkkaa waste center in Lohja has entered into commercial operations. The plant will process around 60 000 tonnes per annum of biowaste from the Helsinki region into renewable natural gas (RNG) for transport and industry as well as organic fertilizers for agriculture.
The Lohja biogas plant, which entered into commercial service in early January 2021 as planned, will use around 60 000 tonnes per annum of biodegradable waste sourced from the Helsinki region as feedstock.
We welcome Gasum to our waste center in Munkkaa, Lohja. Smooth cooperation in biowaste processing will now continue with cooperation in the use of the site. We at waste management company Rosk’n Roll seek to create circular economy centers where it is easy for operators to locate and invest in plants that promote material and nutrient recycling. Gasum’s plant is an excellent example of this, said Vesa Heikkonen, CEO, Rosk’n Roll Oy Ab.
The biogas is then upgraded to biomethane for injection into the gas grid and the recycled nutrients from the biogas plant meet the criteria for organic fertilizers. On an annual basis, the Lohja plant is expected to produce 40 GWh of biomethane and 50 000 tonnes of biofertilizers.
It’s pleasing that our Lohja biogas plant was completed to plan. Our plant promotes the realization of the circular economy in the Helsinki region. Demand for biogas is growing in all segments and we are constantly pursuing new opportunities to increase production capacity. Demand for recycled nutrients and organic fertilizers is showing development in various industrial sectors. We constantly need more biodegradable waste for our production and hope that operators in the Helsinki region will join us in promoting the circular economy by becoming part of the chain, said Johan Grön, VP Biogas, Gasum.
Increase biogas production in Finland
The Lohja biogas plant has been granted EUR 7.83 million in support by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment under the Bioeconomy and Clean Solutions key project programme.
The objective of the key project is to increase in a sustainable way the share of renewable energy of the energy used in Finland by, in particular, improving its availability.
Gasum now has 16 biogas plants in Finland and Sweden, making the company one of the largest producers of biogas in the Nordics. Gasum aims to make 4 TWh of biogas available in the Nordics by 2024 via its own production, and that of its partners.
