FI
Windmills bring wind power back to commercial shipping as well, in the form of biomethanol.
SSE’s planned investments in biomethanol plants in Finland are the largest in the Nordic countries. The efficiency of the plants is superior compared to other synthetic fuel production methods. Biomethanol will soon also help the clean transition of maritime transport.
Electricity produced by wind and solar power plants is also suitable as fuel for ships. When electrolytic hydrogen is produced with renewable electricity and bio-derived carbon dioxide is added to it, biomethanol is produced as a synthesis of these. And biomethanol is suitable for use in marine multi-fuel engines. This is how wind power is transferred to ship fuel. So the wind is speeding up the passage of the ships again.
SSE is developing a network of biomethanol facilities, the bio-derived carbon needed in the production process is obtained by gasifying wood-based biomass. In the gasification of wood pulp, the plant produces synthesis gas, which contains carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide and hydrogen. To this, the plant adds electrolytic hydrogen produced with renewable electricity. The mixture produces biomethanol.
Three known methods, their new combination
The production methods chosen by SSE combine well-known wood pulp gasification technology and electrolytic hydrogen production with methanol synthesis. These three technologies are well-known and industrially manufactured methods. What is new is their integration with each other in the production of biomethanol.
The waste heat generated in the production of biomethanol can also be used in the district heating network. Thanks to the utilization of waste heat, the amount of input required by the heating plant – in many cases energy wood – is reduced. The integration of biomethanol and district heating plants improves the efficiency of using energy wood.
The need for electricity storage is growing wildly
In the Baltic and Nordic regions, there is an avalanche of investments in wind and solar power plants. There may even be overproduction of renewable electricity in the next few years. It is possible to solve this positive challenge by promptly investing in electricity storage solutions. Biomethanol production is an excellent way to store renewable electrical energy.
The combined nominal power of the electrolytic hydrogen equipment of the biomethanol plants in SSE’s investment plans is approximately 240 MW. The energy efficiency of these facilities is close to 80 percent. It is superior compared to other synthetic fuel production methods. The annual production capacity of the five plants planned by SSE in Finland is more than 420,000 tons of biomethanol. The project is the largest in the Nordic countries.
The further processing of SSE’s electrolytic hydrogen and bio-derived carbon produced by gasification into biomethanol is part of the developing hydrogen economy in Scandinavia and the Baltic countries. Finland’s excellent electricity grid, significant wind power investments and growing wood-based biomass reserves create a solid foundation for investments in the plant network.
Suomen Säätöenergia Oy
Indrek Tiits
Sales Director