Finland-headed forest industry and energy technology provider Valmet Oyj and CMPC Pulp SpA, the pulp and paper subsidiary of Chile-headed forest industry major Empresas CMPC (CMPC), have finalized the agreement on Valmet's delivery of key technology for the BioCMPC project – a major modernization project of line 2 at CMPC's Guaíba pulp mill in the State of Río Grande do Sul, Brazil.
CMPC produces and markets wood, pulp, packaging products, paper, tissue, and personal care products from certified plantations. The Company has over 641 000 hectares (ha) of forest plantations, mainly pine and eucalyptus, located in Chile, Brazil, and Argentina.
CMPC Pulp operates four production lines in Chile and two in Brazil, with a total annual production capacity of approximately 4.1 million tonnes of pulp.
Valmet and CMPC have finalized the agreement of which Valmet and CMPC signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) in September 2021. According to the agreement, the value of which has not been disclosed, Valmet will deliver key technology and automation for CMPC’s BioCMPC project.
CMPC has chosen the most environmentally efficient and sustainable solutions. Valmet’s delivery offers the full benefits of our unique offering consisting of process technology, automation, and services. We will continue the excellent cooperation by improving the mill performance and including more industrial internet solutions combined with expert services on-site and remotely, said Celso Tacla, Area President, South America, Valmet.
Modernize and increase capacity
The target is to modernize and increase the production capacity of the Guaíba pulp mill’s line 2 from 1.5 million ADt/y (air dry tonnes per year) to 1.85 million ADt/y. The upgraded mill is expected to start operation in the fourth quarter of 2023.
BioCMPC project’s main targets are to both increase the sustainability of the pulp mill and modernize the production technology. The project will include new control and environmental management measures across the mill.
The project has been carefully designed, based on CMPC’s mission to sustainably produce and market wood, pulp, paper, and tissue products of first-rate quality that are competitive, add value and create development opportunities for its employees and local communities.
Valmet was chosen to be the key technology and automation provider for the BioCMPC project, and we are very happy to participate in this innovative and modern project. All equipment and solutions included in this project represent proven technology that provides better environmental performance and increased production efficiency. The project brings benefits to the customer, community as well as local and global environment, said Fernando Scucuglia, Director, Pulp and Energy, South America, Valmet.
Technical information about the delivery
Valmet’s delivery for the Guaíba pulp mill line 2 modernization will include a rebuild of the pulp drying, fiberline, evaporation, and white liquor plant, a new recovery boiler, and new ash treatment, and extended distributed control system including advanced industrial internet features.
The technology delivery is supported by spare parts packages. The upgraded line is optimized for high reliability and performance with low environmental impact.
The pulp drying line upgrade will increase the drying and baling capacity and performance with the same high operational safety requirements. The upgrade includes improvements to screening and drying, automatic tail threading, and an additional baling line.
The fiberline upgrade includes cooking plant technology update, fiberline improvements in brown stock and post oxygen washing, and a new additional bleaching stage. The upgrade gives the flexibility to minimize water usage and effluent generation improving the fiberline sustainability and environmental KPIs.
The recovery island modernization includes a capacity increase of the recaustisizing and lime kiln, evaporation plant upgrade to eight effects, new high-power recovery boiler with electrostatic precipitators (ESP), and ash treatment with Ash Leaching Duo technology.
The recovery island modernization emphasizes high energy efficiency and low emissions. The collection and handling of the mill’s odorous gases are further improved with non-condensable gas (NCG) upgrades across process islands.
The automation delivery includes Valmet DNA distributed control system, advanced process controls (APC) for selected process areas, analyzers, and online measurements.
The delivery is supported with extensive Valmet Industrial Internet (VII) services package with onsite and remote expert support. The VII services include Valmet Performance Center support, Data Discovery, Dynamic Center Line Advisor, Performance Monitoring tools, and Operator Training Simulator.
We provide the mill with our latest technological innovations designed for high efficiency which will allow the mill to be one of the most sustainable mills in Brazil with low environmental impact. The project will have a significant employment impact both for our engineering, production, and project execution in Brazil and the Nordics, said Bertel Karlstedt, Business Line President, Pulp and Energy, Valmet.
