﻿ Production and consumption of energy at Södra - Södra
2013-01-07 09:04

Production and consumption of energy at Södra

Södra uses large amounts of energy due to its pulp manufacturing and timber industry operations, but at the same time it produces so much electricity that it is able to be self-sufficient in terms of power.

Södra turns over such large amounts of energy due to its pulp manufacturing and timber industry operations that it is difficult to relate to such figures. For instance, Södra turns over 15 TWh of bioenergy in its processes, which is enough to heat 750 000 homes or three cities of the size of Gothenburg.

Electricity production
Electricity production amounted to 1 700 GWh in 2011, making Södra more than self-sufficient in terms of electricity. The surplus is fed to the grid, where it replaces electricity produced using fossil fuels such as coal. The amount of electricity produced is equivalent to the amount of electricity used in a city of the size of Malmö. This electricity is produced mainly using steam from recovery boilers and bark boilers at the pulp mills.

A small but growing amount of it is generated by wind power. The first six wind turbines were commissioned in November 2010. These are situated on Södra land adjacent to the Mönsterås mill. Enercon E82-2.3MW type wind turbines are used here. The four wind turbines forming the Em project, to the north of the mill, were also commissioned shortly after. These turbines are owned jointly by Statkraft and Södra. Södra is also running projects for the construction of wind farms at its mills in Mörrum and Värö.

Energy streamlining
Due to their participation in the programme for improving energy efficiency for energy-intensive industries, Södra Cell and Södra Wood have entered into a long-term agreement with the Swedish Energy Agency which will involve working towards becoming a more energy-efficient company.

The target for Södra Cell is to become 2% more efficient in terms of electricity compared with 2008 by the end of the programme in 2014. By 2011, the organisation had already become 2.5% more efficient than in 2008. This is equivalent to electricity streamlining of 33 GWh per year, or enough electricity to run 7 000 households, or the amount of electricity that would be produced by 5 modern wind turbines.

District heating
Södra also supplies significant amounts of district heating, produced mainly from surplus heat from pulp mill processes, but also from the biofuel boilers at the mills and sawmills.

Södra currently supplies district heating to Varberg, Karlshamn, Mörrum, Asarum, Svängsta, Mönsterås, Blomstermåla, Torsås and Kisa. The total amount of heat supplied is more than 400 GWh per year. This heat is more than 99% based on biofuel and replaces the equivalent of 40 000 m3 of fuel oil, or the amount of heat required by 20 000 homes. Södra has enough capacity to be able to supply more than 2000 GWh, but this will require investments in the processes at our pulp mills and access to the district heating networks.

Södra Skogsenergi is one of Sweden’s biggest suppliers of biofuels. Its biggest product is GROT, chips from branches and tops of trees, which used to be left in clear-felled areas. Other products include peat and, a small volume of, chips from stumps. Besides the biofuels generated from forestry operations, the sawmills, pulp mills and interiors factories also produce biofuels in the form of sawdust, cutter shavings, chips and bark.

Södra supplies almost 4.5 TWh of biofuels in total. This is equivalent to more than 400 000 m3 of fuel oil, or enough heat for 200 000 homes.