Biovalley – know-how and growth Anne Pesola Development Manager City of Kannus Finland.

Biovalley – know-how and growthAnne Pesola

Development ManagerCity of Kannus

Finland

• Biovalley is the region of strong and diverse expertise on the natural resource sector– Situated in the Middle of Finland by the Gulf of Bothnia– Only 3 % of the Finnish population but produces almost

fifth of the country’s milk and food potatoes, strong agriculture and Food industry

– Produces also tenth of the wooden houses and buildings, pulp and forest chips, strong wood processing and bioenergy production

• OULUN ETELÄISEN INSTITUUTTI

Governmental research institutes• The Finnish Forest Research Institute Metla

– Solutions to the challenges posed by the care, utilisation, products, services and intangible value of forests

• MTT Agrifood Research Finland– Promotes consumer well-being, the competitiveness of agriculture and

the food industry, the sustainable use of natural resources, the quality of the production and living environment, and the vitality of the countryside

• The Geological Survey of Finland GTK– Top expert in assessment, research and sustainable use of Earth

resources, land use and energy sector research and surveys

• Kokkola University Consortium Chydenius– Functions as a centre of the Jyväskylä, Oulu and Vaasa

universities in Kokkola, educational sciences, information technology, social and regional sciences, business and economics as well as natural sciences

• Oulu Southern Institute– Regional unit of the University of Oulu, the main research

fields are technology education, astroparticle physics, wireless data transmission and communication, digital media, digital holography, future manufacturing technologies and entrepreneurship

• Natural resource sector education all the way from vocational education and training to doctoral degree– The Kokkola University Consortium Chydenius– The Centria University of Applied Sciences– The Federation of Education in Central Ostrobothnia and

Jokilaaksot, both have six units offering vocational education and training

• Biovalley has the whole value chain from high quality research, applied education and business

EU co-financed project funding to natural resources during 2007-2013, total 21 Milj.€

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

Agriculture Renewable energy

Forestry Fur production Processing Others

Milj

. €

Yhteensä n. 23 milj. € keskim. 3,3 milj. €/vuosiMetlan ja MTT:n budjettirahoitus 1,7 milj. € v.

Bioenergy in Biovalley

• Alholmens Kraft power plant, Pietarsaari– is one of the largest bio-fuelled power plant in the

world, the electricity effect of the power plant is 265 Mwe. Its boiler is among the largest CFB-boilers (Circulating Fluidised-Bed Boiler) in the world (8.5 m x 24 m, 40 m high)

– produces electricity, process steam and district heating for the industry and private households

– Wood and peat as the main fuels– Employs 400 people, 50 for running the plant and

350 for fuel production and handling

• Kokkolan Energia; water power, wind power, biofuels (peat and wood)

• Kannuksen Kaukolämpö Oy; district heating by peat and wood-based fuels

• Toholammin Energia Oy; CHP by peat and wood-based fuels

• Bioenergy co-operatives– owned by forest owners, running small-scale

heating and power plants– fuel supply by the owners– Heat supply to mainly to public buildings and

district heating systems

Other Power Plants in Biovalley

• Efficient raw material supply to biorefineries• How can raw material from the forest be part

of the transition towards renewable fuels and new products?

• The purpose of this Finnish-Swedish cooperation it to analyse and improve the raw material supply to biorefineries. Scientists from both countries are working together. The knowledge from two disciplines; forestry and chemistry are combined.

• Low temperature geothermal energy– Geoenergy is renewable energy stored in soil,

bedrock and waterways. – In Finland, most of this energy originates from the

Sun and partly from the ground. – Geoenergy can be utilised in heating and cooling

buildings by using a heat pump. – Planning and constructing a geoenergy system is

a multi-stage project in which experts from different fields work in cooperation.

– GTK conducts geological and geophysical research to find out whether the target location is suitable for geoenergy production. GTK then uses the results from the field studies to accurately measure and model the energy field in order to create a durable and cost-efficient system.

• Biovalley is interested in co-operation in the field of bioenergy– Forest-based bioenergy– Biogas from wastes– Combined geoenergy and bioenergy productionPlease contact to www.biolaakso.fi/frontpage

Thank you for your attention!