Chempolis

Chempolis has been established in 1995. In 1996 the company made a pilot scale demonstration of its technology and 1997 successful paper machine trials were done with non-wood-based furnish. After ten years of development, followed the acquisition of the Chempolis Biorefining Park in 2006. In recent years Chempolis technologies have received recognition from respected authorities and the

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company has made licence agreements with Finnish companies and started a subsidiary in China. (Rousu, E. 2011. pp. 13-14)

In March 2012 a Finnish newspaper Tekniikka&Talous mentioned Chempolis as one of the most promising small size cleantech-companies in Finland. The program director of Cleantech Finland, Santtu Heikkonen, identifies Chempolis as one of the cleantech-firms with the best prospects of becoming a company with a turnover of more than 100 000 000 euros. (Heikkilä, M. 2012b. pp. 16-17)

7.1.1 Products and competencies

Chempolis provides sustainable solutions for the biomass, paper, biofuel, alcohol, sugar and chemical industries. The core products of the company are couple of third generation technologies for biorefining of residual biomass. Formicobio is used for the co-production of non-food cellulosic bioethanol, biochemicals and biocoal, and Formicofib for the co-production of non-wood papermaking fibers, biochemicals and biocoal. (Chempolis. 2012)

The expertise of Chempolis covers the entire processing chain from biomass to pulp and other end-products. The company has knowledge and experience in conceptual engineering, process and plant engineering, equipment design, supplying proprietary systems, and turnkey plant deliveries. (Chempolis. 2012) Chempolis provides technologies but also services and complete solutions. The offerings are based on Formico technologies: Formicofib, Formicobio and Formicochem. The company also provides Formico systems: Formicocont, Formicodeli and Formicopure, as well as engineering management, procurement management and commissioning. In addition Chempolis provides services like laboratory tests, pre-engineering work, plant optimisation and training.

(Chempolis. 2012)

72 7.1.2 Technologies

Chempolis’ technologies enable the co-production of papermaking fibres, bioethanol and biochemicals from non-wood and non-food biomasses such as straw, bagasse, corn stover and bamboo. The key technologies of Chempolis are the Formicobio and Formicofib technologies. (Chempolis. 2012) The Formico platform uses non-food and non-wood biomass to produce cellulose products like paper fibres, high value fibres and glucose ethanol, hemicellulose products like sugar and biochemicals, as well as lignin products like lignin, biocoal and nutrients (Anttila, J. 2012. p. 3).

7.1.2.1 Formicobio

Formicobio is a refining technology for the production of high purity non-food cellulosic fuel ethanol. It is an effluent-free low carbon technology which consumes less chemicals than traditional processes and generates its own energy.

It also provides biochemicals as by-products. (Chempolis. 2012)

Formicobio enables cost-effective and sustainable production of transportation fuel from agricultural residues. The technology has no negative impacts on food production and it can provide additional income in rural areas. For example in Southeast Asian countries the sugar industry has a huge potential in bagasse residues which could be used to manufacture biochemicals and bioenergy.

(Chempolis. 2012)

The Formicobio process is selective which means that optimised processes can be applied for each fraction and thus high conversion levels and pure products are achieved. The biosolvent and water circulation is closed which prevents the generation of waste. (Chempolis. 2012)

73 7.1.2.2 Formicofib

Formicofib refining technology is used to produce fibre for paper, board, packaging and hygiene products. It is also an effluent-free technology and it makes selective cooking possible. It has excellent bleachability without chlorine chemicals and it produces biochemicals as by-products. (Chempolis. 2012)

Pulp produced from non-wood raw materials with the Formicofib technology can be used in similar applications as current hardwood and non-wood pulps.

Chempolis’ Formicofib technology provides a cost-efficient and sustainable way to supply pulp for the paper industry in rapidly growing markets like China, India, and Thailand. It enables the use of inexpensive, local non-wood biomasses for the production of high-quality pulp. The solution is very competitive compared to either transporting dried wood pulp across the globe or producing non-wood pulp by inefficient and polluting old technologies. (Chempolis. 2012)

7.1.3 Markets

The headquarters of Chempolis are located in Oulu, Finland, but the target markets of the company are in Southern Asia. Chempolis’ customers in Asia and Pacific region are served by the fully owned subsidiary Chempolis Biorefining Technology in Shanghai. Chempolis is expanding strongly in Asia. (Chempolis.

2012)

There are big opportunities for cleantech companies in China but it is generally a difficult market. The local companies have very low cost structure and are thus hard to compete with. India is also an interesting market for Chempolis. (Rousu, P. 2011. p. 11)

74 7.1.4 Research and development

Chempolis has been strongly focused on developing production technologies and has been granted more than hundred patents. Alongside its headquarters Chempolis has a biorefinery enabling the company to demonstrate to their customers the technologies they offer. The biorefinery also provides facilities for piloting research and development work. Chempolis has invested around 20 million euros in the plant. It is capable of processing 25,000 t of non-wood and non-food raw material per year. (Chempolis. 2012)

Chempolis is willing to invest in its innovation activities as its management believes in innovation being essential in order to deliver sustainable results. The mission of the company is to deliver technologies capable of refining biomass economically into high-quality products while minimising environmental impacts and maximising social benefits. By providing technologies that require less raw material, reduce water and energy consumption as well as decrease emission and waste Chempolis delivers benefits for its customers and stands out from its competitors. (Chempolis. 2012)

7.1.5 Sustainability

Biorefining non-wood and non-food raw materials, helps in preserving forest resources, reducing CO₂ emissions, and securing sufficient food for the growing population. It can also offer a new revenue stream for many rural areas. When renewable residual biomass is used for production, the production cycle is energy-efficient and the carbon footprint remains low. (Chempolis. 2012)

The CO₂ emissions of the transportation sector can be reduced by using bioethanol. This way also the sourcing of fuel can be secured as oil resources are declining and often located in politically unstable areas. (Chempolis. 2012)

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Production of wood pulp consumes forest resources and long distance transportation of papermaking fibers causes CO₂ emissions. Unfortunately many processes that are currently used to produce non-wood pulp consume massive amounts of groundwater, as well as pollute waterways and cause CO₂ emissions.

The Formico biorefineries are significantly more sustainable than their alternatives in social, environmental and economic aspects. (Chempolis. 2012)

Chempolis’ Formico technologies enable higher revenues and reduced operating costs. The operating and investment costs are relatively low but the products are of high quality and their co-production improves the profitability. Local biorefining provides jobs and incomes to rural areas. Formico technologies use raw-materials that are not suitable for food production and thus don’t affect the food supply. The products are locally produced and often used locally as well.

The CO2 emissions and other pollution to atmosphere and waterways are low and residual biomasses can be used for production which benefits the environment.

The Formico technologies also help in preserving forest and water, as they do not use woody biomass as raw material and have low water consumption. (Rousu, E.

2011. p. 6)