Opcon: E.ON installs Opcon Powerbox
From district heating to Combined Heat and Power
Opcon AB, the energy and environmental technology Group has signed an agreement with E.ON Värme Sverige AB regarding the installation of Opcon’s new, steam-powered Opcon Powerbox WST-CU (Wet Steam Turbine – Condensing Unit) at E.ON’s district heating plant in Sollefteå, Sweden. At planned operations, the turbine is expected to generate over 4 GWh of renewable electricity per year out of steam from one of the heating plant’s two biomass-fired boilers.
Apart from the turbine the Opcon Powerbox WST–CU model also comprises a condensing unit used after the turbine expansion in order to condensate the steam into hot water of desired temperature to be used in the district heating grid, thereby increasing efficiency even more,
The deal, that will transform E.ON’s heating plant into a Combined Heat and Power (CHP) plant, is an EPC-deal where E.ON has signed a three year leasing contract and where E.ON later has the opportunity to buy out the equipment. At the same time, E.ON invests in rebuilding and adapting the district heating plant in Sollefteå in order to optimize it for electricity production with the Opcon Powerbox. Commissioning is expected during spring 2014.
Today, E.ON’s two biomass fueled boilers of 12 MW and 5 MW, combined with the 3 MW flue gas condenser earlier supplied by Opcon’s subsidiary SRE, deliver around 65 GWh of heat/year to the district heating grid in Sollefteå. The district heating plant serves the larger part of Sollefteå with the majority of its customers being businesses and apartment blocks.
“We have invested large resources into developing the Opcon Powerbox and can offer a technology that brings new possibilities for renewable electricity production, energy efficiency and small-scale CHP. When an international and leading energy company like E.ON now invests and installs Opcon Powerbox it is an important step forward in the commercialization of our technology”, says Rolf Hasselström, President and CEO of Opcon.
“We want to generate and deliver energy in the most efficient and sustainable way possible. The Opcon Powerbox makes it possible for us to convert a conventional heating plant to a small scale CHP-plant where we can generate sustainable heat and electricity at the same time. To us this is a very exciting project where we now invest to be able to test and optimize this in our own plant. Our aim is, with the help from Opcon’s technology, to get an even more efficient and clean energy production”, says Tomas Andersson Group Manager for E.ON 's regional operations & production of district heating, Västernorrland
“Even with today’s low Swedish electricity prices, electricity production with the Opcon Powerbox is profitable. On other markets and with increasing electricity prices we believe the technology we are offering will be even more interesting”, says Rolf Hasselström, President and CEO of Opcon.
A part of Opcon’s focus on Waste to Value, Opcon Powerbox is Opcon’s proprietary product for production of carbon-free electricity using primarily waste and surplus heat starting at temperatures of 55° C. At the heart of the Opcon Powerbox is a Lysholm Turbine, based on technology from Opcon’s subsidiary Svenska Rotor Maskiner. Opcon Powerbox can be installed at plants in the process industry, power plants and on large diesel engines both at land and on sea. Opcon Powerbox is available in several sizes and configurations both for hot water and wet steam and can produce up to 6,000 MWh of electricity per year.
For further information, please contact
Niklas Johansson, vice president, Investor Relations, Opcon AB, tel. 46 8-466 45 00, 46-70-592 54 53
Opcon AB, Box 15085, 104 65 Stockholm, Sweden
Tel. 46 8-466 45 00, fax 46 8-716 76 61
e-mail: info@Opcon.se
Fredrik Elgh, Acting Director of Communications, E.ON Värme Sverige AB tel. +46 701 42 19 17
The Opcon Group
Opcon is an energy and environmental technology Group that develops, produces and markets systems and products for eco-friendly, efficient and resource-effective use of energy.
Opcon has activities in Sweden, Germany and the UK. There are around 150 employees. The company’s shares are listed on Nasdaq OMX Stockholm. The Group comprises one business area:
Renewable Energy focuses on the following areas: electricity generation based on waste heat, bioenergy-powered heating and CHP plants, pellets plants, handling systems for biomass, sludge and natural gas, industrial cooling, flue gas condensation, treatment of flue gases and air systems for fuel cells.
About E.ON
E.ON Sweden is a part of the international E.ON Group, one of the world's largest investor-owned energy companies. E.ON has just under 4,000 employees in the Nordic countries and the turnover in 2012 was approximately 39 billion SEK. As an energy company, we want to help build a sustainable society. Between 2006 and 2013 E.ON is investing 58 billion in the Nordic countries.
Opcon AB (publ) is obliged to disclose the information in this press release in accordance with the Swedish law governing the securities markets and/or trading in financial instruments. The information was submitted for publication at 08.45 (CET) on Tuesday 15 October 2013.
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