[Nr.10]

Biomass-To-Liquid

Norske Skog to invest $35.9 million to produce biofuels from wood
Monday, December 24, 2007

Norwegian paper manufacturer Norske Skog announces it will, in cooperation with forest owners cooperatives, establish a joint venture to develop and produce next-generation wood-based biofuels. A prototype facility for biodiesel will be built at its Follum mill in Hønefoss. The single plant will produce between 4 and 6 per cent of Norway's total diesel fuel consumption. The new the company will be jointly owned by Norske Skog (60 per cent) and the forest owner cooperatives (40 per cent), and will be established with equity of NOK 30 million (€3.7 / US$5.4 million).

Norske Skog aims to establish full-scale biodiesel production, even though it is not clear yet which bioconversion pathway will be utilized. Wood-based biodiesel can be produced from either a biomass-to-liquids (BtL) process in which biomass (including black liquor) is gasified and then liquefied via Fischer-Tropsch synthesis to yield synthetic biofuels that can be refined into diesel; alternatively, a fast-pyrolysis process yielding bio-oil could be utilized, with the bio-oil refined into diesel.

Last year Norske Skog and Hydro, the Norwegian energy company, agreed to carry out a joint feasibility study relating to the production of synthetic diesel from wood via gasification and Fischer-Tropsch processing, which is why it can be assumed this pathway will be chosen.

Uit: Artikel