DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS

Lounavoima is a partner in innovative circular economy and energy solutions

The company actively seeks technical solutions for reducing emissions and improving energy efficiency. Lounavoima is a competitive partner in innovative circular economy and energy solutions in the Korvenmäki area. The company actively promotes solutions that support its shareholders’ objectives in material recycling and emissions reductions.

The City of Salo has elevated the circular economy hub that centres around the waste-to-energy plant to the status of key project. The circular economy is an opportunity for diversifying the city’s economic structure. By promoting circularity we are also responding to some of the greatest global challenges faced by the world, such as diminishing natural resources and climate change.

Heat for the winter from deep heat storage

A heat storage facility is being bored on the site of the WtE plant.

Salo has taken a new step towards more emission-free heat production. On the site of the Korvenmäki WtE plant, a heat storage facility has been drilled into the bedrock to store the excess heat generated during summer production. The stored heat is used in the winter when heat demand is at its highest.

In the first phase, three deep thermal wells have been drilled in Korvenmäki, at a depth of 1.6-2 km. Two of the wells are in operation and the third is being commissioned. During the autumn, 2 more wells were drilled and drilling of the sixth well will start early in the year on the site. The thermal storage of the six deep wells will produce 8-14 GWh of heat per year, which is equivalent to the annual heating demand of 400-700 private houses.

With the completion of the WtE plant, Salo’s carbon dioxide emissions from district heating generation were halved, as waste fuel replaced fossil fuels and peat. The heat storage facility will further improve the plant’s district heating efficiency, as excess heat produced in the summer can be stored and used later when demand is at its highest in winter. The district heating from the storage facility has zero carbon dioxide emissions.

The Finnish Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment gave the Lounavoima heat storage project an investment grant. This financing was intended for renewable energy projects that offer cutting-edge energy solutions that can help in meeting Finland’s and the European Union’s targets for 2030.