Andritz to deliver gasification plant for Metsä-Botnia's Joutseno mill

Andritz will supply the gasification plant for the Joutseno mill of Metsä-Botnia, part of Metsäliitto Group. Construction will commence in June and the plant will be introduced in September 2012. The delivery by Andritz includes a bark dryer, a circulating bed gasifier with related buildings, and a product gas burner for the lime kiln.

The 48-megawatt gasification plant will use bark to produce biofuel, replacing the natural gas used in the lime kiln. As a result of the gasification plant investment, the mill will become a carbon-neutral production facility during normal operation. The plant will utilise the mill's excess heat for drying the bark. The investment is an example of Botnia's leadership in utilising renewable energy.

The total investment is about €20 million, and the Ministry of Employment and the Economy has granted energy support of €4.2 million for the investment.

The Joutseno mill produces ECF-bleached softwood pulp for manufacturing wood-containing printing papers and coated printing and special papers. The annual production capacity of the mill is 650,000 tonnes and it employs about 160 people. The energy self-sufficiency of the mill in 2010 was approximately 170%.

         Ismo Nousiainen, Senior Vice President, Production, Metsä-Botnia, tel. +358 50 598 7378
         Henrik Söderström, Vice President, Mill Manager, Metsä-Botnia's Joutseno mill, tel. +358 40 577 3421