RenFuel and Nordic Paper to build test facility for lignin-based biofuels in Sweden

RenFuel and Nordic Paper have signed an agreement to build a production test facility in Sweden to test manufacture an advanced biofuel based on lignin.

The plant, to be located in the municipality of Bäckhammar in the region of Värmland, has been awarded a SEK71 million (€7.7m) grant by the Swedish Energy Agency.

RenFuel has developed and patented a method to refine the lignin from black liquor, a renewable byproduct from the production of paper pulp, into lignin oil.

The oil, called Lignol, can replace fossil oil and be used as raw material in the production of renewable petrol and diesel.

Using the black liquor also leads to an increase in production capacity and profit in the paper and pulp industry.

“Lignol is the key to reaching the goal of a fossil free vehicle fleet in Sweden by 2030,” Sven Löchen, CEO of RenFuel, said.

The production test facility will be built inside the Nordic Paper pulp factory in Bäckhammar, and will be ready for production by the beginning of 2017.

If the production tests are successful, the next step will be large scale production of Lignol to meet the demands of the rapidly growing market for biofuel.

Lignol has the potential to quickly decrease the need for fossil oil, and it is a realistic way of reaching the goal of a fossil free vehicle fleet by 2030.

”The paper and paper pulp industry is an important link in the bioeconomy. We can, through this cooperation, contribute tangibly to a fossil free future,” said Per Bjurbom, CEO of Nordic Paper.

Another important link in the chain is access to refineries that have the capacity to produce diesel and petrol from Lignol.

Preem has since 2010 gradually adjusted its production toward renewable fuels through exchanging crude oil with, for example, tall oil.

According to Petter Holland, CEO of Preem, one of the big challenges of the adjustment into independence from fossil fuels in Sweden is supply of sustainable raw materials.

“Byproducts from Swedish forestry, such as lignin, more than fulfill our requirements of the sustainability of the raw material, and in addition, the demand of lignin can be met in great volumes. We look forward to receiving the first volume of Lignol at our refineries and starting production of the renewable petrol and diesel of the future,” Holland said.

”The RenFuel pilot project is in line of the Swedish Energy Agency strategic priorities of renewable fuels and complements the research programmes that we recently initiated regarding biofuels,” Jonas Lindmark, programme manager at the Swedish Energy Agency, said.