Metsä Fibre and Andritz sign preliminary agreement
September 28, 2020
Metsä Fibre and Andritz signed a preliminary agreement on wood raw material reception and feed equipment for the Kemi bioproduct mill. The delivery includes two automated overhead cranes, as well as their installation and commissioning. This type of fully autonomous, AI-based equipment is a new solution for the reception, storage and process feeding of wood raw material, even on a global scale. It also enables the minimisation of the area needed at the mill for storing wood raw material. The domestic rate of the delivery is 45% and the project is managed by Andritz Oy Lahti center of excellence in Finland.
The electrical equipment and the systematic placement of functions will enable wood yard operations to be run on fossil-free fuel. One of Metsä Group's strategic sustainability goals is to eliminate the use of fossil fuels and the generation of fossil-based carbon dioxide emissions by 2030. The Kemi bioproduct mill will contribute to achieving this goal.
The minimisation of the noise impacts of the wood yard was seen as a key aspect of the environmental impact assessment for the Kemi bioproduct mill.
Transport and unloading arrangements in the new wood yard will be implemented safely and efficiently. The wood processing equipment will be placed in such a way that the wood unloading areas and the wood yard will be close to the equipment. This will minimise the need to transfer wood raw material. Timber trucks will use a one-way route to avoid encounters between vehicles, and there will be no crossings between road and rail traffic. With one-way route of timber trucks it is also possible to avoid reversing traffic and warning signal noises caused by it.
The Kemi bioproduct mill project is progressing as planned in terms of equipment purchases, environmental permit process, financing negotiations and the logistics required for the new mill, among other aspects. The project engineering started at the beginning of August 2020 which means the detailed planning of the mill's technology, construction, installations and commissioning, as well as preparation for the construction phase. The planning work will be carried out in cooperation with the four main implementation partners: Valmet, ABB, AFRY and Fimpec. From the beginning of August, more than 400 people have been working in the project engineering organisation.
