SCA obtains permit for biorefinery in Östrand

On september 30th, the Land and Environmental Court announced that it had granted an environmental permit to SCA to construct a biorefinery adjacent to Östrand pulp mill.

The permit covers the new biorefinery operations as well as the necessary modifications required at the pulp mill to create the desired synergies between operations.

A comprehensive application was submitted. Over a period of many years, the project team has conducted investigations and consulted with the authorities and the general public. The court decision that was received yesterday covers 184 pages alone. Work to examine the court decision is now fully underway.

“From what we have seen so far, it seems as though the court has taken our point of view for the most part and accepted the conditions that we have proposed,” explains Roger Östlin, Project Manager. “On October 21, we will find out if the ruling will gain legal force or if it will be appealed.”

“Naturally, we are delighted to have received the environmental permit,” continues Roger. “We now know what we have to consider when the next step begins, which is the technical design of the facility.”

The facility will likely be one of the first of its kind in the world. As such, entirely new technology will need to be used for some aspects, which will result in the project taking a longer time than other major projects carried out by SCA.

The decision from the Land and Environmental Court is an important milestone for the project, but there is much more work to be done before SCA can finalize the decision to implement the project.
https://www.sca.com/en/energy/news/2020-10/sca-obtains-permit-for-biorefinery-in-ostrand/