SCA magazine Shape 3 2011 English

FOCUS: RENEWABLE ENERGY
Now, SCA Energy is engaged in
a wide range of renewable fuel projects.
Some involve tapping energy
from the forest itself, by using leftover
treetops, branches, stumps and peat.
Others involve alternative energy projects
such as wind power or pellets made
from sawdust. In addition, SCA Energy is
looking at cutting-edge ways to convert forest
components into energy-rich products like biooil,
bio-coal and other types of fuel.
From the forest itself, “grot” – the Swedish term
for branches and treetops left over from timber
harvesting – is a promising source of energy.
“We collect it, take it to the road, and cure it by
letting it dry in the wind and sun,” Westberg
says. “Then we chip it and supply it to heat and
power plants, and also to our own factories, for
heat production.”
STUMPS REPRESENT another valuable resource,
never used before. “Harvesting them is a rather
small activity today, but we see the potential,”
he says. “There’s a lot of biomass in stumps,
and it’s very good fuel.” After a tree is cut
down, a machine pulls the stump out of
the ground, along with some of the roots.
“You split that and shake it hard to get rid
of stones and sand, then you dry it in the
forest for about a year. After that, you chip
it and take it to the customer.”
Where conditions are too boggy for
trees, peat may thrive. An early stage of
coal, peat contains plenty of energy.
“We have a lot of peat moss in Sweden,
and it’s growing all the time,” Westberg
says. SCA harvests peat in three
areas and is adding a fourth area
12 SCA SHAPE 32011
SCA’S
ANNUAL SALES
OF RENEWABLE
ENERGY ARE
ALREADY ABOUT
SEK 800M
SCA OWNS
2.6 MILLION
HECTARES OF
FORESTLAND
The fuel component
was the little brother.
It wasn't much talked
about.
Åke Westberg
this year. “We say it’s slowly renewable,
because it takes some time
to replace itself.” Harvesting involves
fl uffi ng the peat a few centimeters
deep, by machine, and letting that dry in
the sun. Then that layer gets collected and
stored in a dry place, while the next layer
of peat gets fl uff ed. “We do that all summer.
Then when the winter comes, we supply our
customers, who burn it.” Production could be
increased substantially.
PELLETS MADE FROM sawmill dust represent
another type of forest product. SCA purchased
a pellet industry several years ago, as part of the
sawmill sector. Now, the business is being developed
in a more serious manner.
Production of all these biomass products will
likely need to ramp up in the next decade, as
Europe gets serious about reducing its carbon footprint.
“If the politicians stick to their goals, then a lot
of the coal in Europe will have to be replaced,” Westberg
says. “We in Scandinavia will need to supply
some of the biomass, and it will be a huge market.”
One critical question for the future is this: How
can biomass be transported all the way from northern
Sweden to the rest of Europe in an effi cient
way? Ultimately, Sweden will need to produce
products that are energy-rich. The technologies
for creating these products are new or still being
developed. Will forest resources like tree stumps
be heated under pressure and made into bio-oil? Or
bio-coal? Or a diff erent form of biofuel?
“We don’t actually know yet,” Westberg
says. “We are looking into this. As new
processes come online, we are following
them very closely.” And so are Europe’s
politicians.