Workington Paperboard Mill – Biomass combined heat & power
Workington, Cumbria
Our Story
Holmen Iggesund’s Workington Mill is an integrated pulp and paperboard mill. The industry is energy intensive and the mill at Workington was reliant on fossil fuels. Holmen Iggesund invested in a biomass combined heat and power plant for the primary purpose of being able to run its paperboard mill on renewable energy.
The Challenges
The project proved to be a huge commercial and capital undertaking for the site so visiting and bench marking other sites ahead of the investment and construction was essential. The project received support through the Renewable Obligation now shut and although the main Renewable Obligation Certificate (ROC) scheme has been grandfathered, the availability of some of the “embedded benefits” cannot be taken as guaranteed.
Year-by-year, there is the chance that incentives aimed at encouraging the adoption of a green technology schemes gets adapted at short notice with consequent loss of expected revenues. Keeping track of government policy and incentives is therefore important.
Our Solution
Overnight the mill switched its energy supply from fossil natural gas to biomass, and thereby reduced its fossil fuel carbon dioxide emissions by 190,000 tonnes a year, the equivalent to the annual emissions of over 10,000 homes. As part of a truly circular economy, the biomass fuel is sourced from the UK from sustainably managed forests. These forestry operations aim to yield the maximum quantity of rectangular planks from the growing trees to supply the sawn timber industry. Whatever is left over, industry co-products – wood shavings, bark and branches – we turn into their paperboard and bio-energy. Nothing goes to waste!
To supplement the biomass from forest residues, we worked with local farmers and landowners to grow and supply energy crops. Local farmers can sell biomass (SRC Willow) to the Workington Mill and we offered support with planting and harvesting. The paperboard produced at the mill is recyled to complete the circularity model.
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