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    1. Industrial Microgrids

    Doosan Škoda Power Commissions 270-MW Steam Turbine to Power Wood Pulp Mill in Finland

    Feb. 20, 2024
    The massive on-site turbine could produce an additional 2 terawatthours (TWh, or 2,000 GWh) of renewable electricity, powered by biofuels, according to Doosan Škoda Power. The cleaner bioenergy should significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
    Image credit Doosan Skoda
    65d4b85ed387cb001e15bfb4 Doosan Skoda

    A new Finnish wood pulp mill is now powered by a 270-MW steam turbine manufactured and delivered by Czech firm Doosan Škoda Power.

    The new steam turbine was commissioned by Doosan Škoda Power, the company announced earlier this month. The project at the Metsä Fibre Kemi Bioproduct Mill energizes the plant in its production of pulp from locally sourced wood.

    Mill owner Metsä Group is investing deeply in production and efficiency technologies for the Kemi mill which is expected to make about 1.5 million metric tons of softwood and hardwood pulp annually, as well as other bioproducts, according to the release. The pulp total would be twice what the old mill previously produced per year, according to reports.

    The massive on-site turbine system could produce 2 terawatthours (TWh, or 2,000 GWh) of renewable electricity per year, powered by biofuels, according to Doosan Škoda Power.  This represents close to 2.5% of Finland's total electricity generation. The cleaner bioenergy, as opposed to fossil fuels burned to power the first mill, should significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

    The energy efficiency measures being deployed with the new mill and steam turbine include integrated production that optimizes advanced recycling of water and chemicals into the production process. Some of the gases are processed into sulfuric acid, used in the production of pine oil, and thus minimizing waste discharges, according to the report.

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    Finland's electricity sector is primarily made up of nuclear and hydropower (40 and 18%, respectively), while wood-fueled generation is close to 13% of the mix, according to reports. 

    Tightly regulated European Union markets can make it difficult to get microgrid projects approved and commissioned, but Finland is seen by some as more open to decentralization of its power sector and also to on-site power, according to a Guidehouse Insights report about the International Symposium on Microgrids held years ago in Australia. 

    Finland has been considered a global leader in smart meter deployments, while also conducting wholesale and retail electricity markets. Severe grid blackouts in the past decade has motivated some leaders to consider distributed energy and larger on-site power projects, according to the report. 

     

    About the Author

    Rod Walton, Managing Editor | Managing Editor

    For Microgrid Knowledge editorial inquiries, please contact Managing Editor Rod Walton at [email protected].

    I’ve spent the last 15 years covering the energy industry as a newspaper and trade journalist. I was an energy writer and business editor at the Tulsa World before moving to business-to-business media at PennWell Publishing, which later became Clarion Events, where I covered the electric power industry. I joined Endeavor Business Media in November 2021 to help launch EnergyTech, one of the company’s newest media brands. I joined Microgrid Knowledge in July 2023. 

    I earned my Bachelors degree in journalism from the University of Oklahoma. My career stops include the Moore American, Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise, Wagoner Tribune and Tulsa World, all in Oklahoma . I have been married to Laura for the past 33-plus years and we have four children and one adorable granddaughter. We want the energy transition to make their lives better in the future. 

    Microgrid Knowledge and EnergyTech are focused on the mission critical and large-scale energy users and their sustainability and resiliency goals. These include the commercial and industrial sectors, as well as the military, universities, data centers and microgrids. The C&I sectors together account for close to 30 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S.

    Many large-scale energy users such as Fortune 500 companies, and mission-critical users such as military bases, universities, healthcare facilities, public safety and data centers, shifting their energy priorities to reach net-zero carbon goals within the coming decades. These include plans for renewable energy power purchase agreements, but also on-site resiliency projects such as microgrids, combined heat and power, rooftop solar, energy storage, digitalization and building efficiency upgrades.

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