In a new report from an f3 project, a certain case of business development for production of second generation transportation fuels is presented. The project, titled Transportation fuels from lignocellulose in a process combination, has been performed as a joint study between Lantmännen Agroetanol AB and Cellulose Fuels Sweden AB, patent holder of a process combination potentially using a wide range of biomass as raw material. One of its features is that it is dedicated solely to production of transportation fuels, meaning no by-product markets have to be considered. This creates a freedom of establishment restricted only by the transportation fuel market. According to previous evaluations, the process combination could produce fuels from wood and straw at cost levels comparable to the present costs for first-generation fuels.
The aim of the f3 project has been to evaluate the process combination from a technical and economical view in order to provide a decision basis for further work towards a demonstration of the total process combination. This is pursued as a case study on Lantmännen Agroetanol’s ethanol plant at Händelö, Norrköping, with the aim of evaluating the possibilities for the establishment of a demonstration unit.
Results from the project include calculations of mass and energy balances, expected investment and production costs. A conclusion is that the establishment if the process combination needs to involve partners, both considering the substantial investment and the fact that the sub-processes originate from other industries.