The Southwest Finland Biorefinery has reached an important milestone. Letters of intent have now been signed with local farms for more than 470,000 tonnes of manure and field biomass.
The first target was to secure letters of intent for 400,000 tonnes of manure by early 2026, and it has been met. Most of the participating farms are pig and cattle farms, but other farms are also involved. Milla-Mari Vastavuo, who is responsible for feedstock at the biorefinery, says the 470,000 tonnes shows that the project is on schedule and that there is strong interest in the region.
Wega is continuing to collect letters of intent throughout the spring. The team is currently focusing on crop farms, but there is still room for livestock farms too. Over the summer, the work will move on to defining the operating models and price levels.
A diverse feedstock base, built in stages
The feedstock mix is being designed to suit the biorefinery’s processes and optimise biogas production. It is essential that the operation does not compete with food or feed production.
The feedstocks also affect the nutrient content of the fertiliser products and the carbon footprint of the end products.
The biorefinery planned for Oripää in southwest Finland will use manure from different livestock, various types of field biomass and clean side streams from the food industry. Under current plans, about 80% of the total will be manure, just under 10% field biomass and about 10% food industry side streams.
Vastavuo says that 200–300 farms and companies will eventually be involved, each of them important to the whole. The aim is a cooperation model that benefits local farms.
The number of participating farms is growing all the time, so an exact current figure is hard to give. The volume of letters of intent and the number of farms involved show that strong commitment has already built up around the project. All feedstocks will be sourced locally. According to public sources, farms within 65 kilometres of the biorefinery produce about 2.7 million tonnes of agricultural side streams alone each year.
Want to get involved? Get in touch!
Milla-Mari Vastavuo
Feedstock and Sustainability, Wega
+358 50 560 3551
milla-mari.vastavuo@wega.fi
