EU approves grant for Swedish biorefinery

The European Union has approved the SEK 500 million (€55 million) grant from the Swedish Energy Agency that will help fund the construction of a biorefinery in Örnsköldsvik, Sweden.

The industrial scale demonstration biofuel plant, based on technology provider Chemrec's gasification technology, will be located at the Domsjö Fabriker. It will produce biomethanol or bioDME using forest harvest residues as energy feedstock.

The commission concluded that the R&D support is compatible with the priority objectives of the EU.

The grant approval comes after Chemrec and its partner the Domsjö Fabriker biorefinery were awarded the R&D support back in September 2009.

The plant will be based on Chemrec's black liquor gasification technology combined with advanced technology for fuels production. The cost of the project is estimated at around SEK 3 billion. Upon completion the facility will produce 140,000 tonnes of biomethane or 100,000 tonnes of bioDME annually in a dual production plant.

According to Chemrec's CEO Max Jönsson: 'Biofuels produced using our gasification technology reduce carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 95% compared to gasoline or diesel and replace imported fossil fuels with renewable fuels.'