2021-02-23 18:05Press release

Mundus Nordic Green News – 23 February, 2021

Mundus Nordic Green News

Scania’s CEO resigns to lead huge new green steel start-up

Norrbotten is to get a major new player, with the start-up H2 Green Steel announcing it will build a new mega factory for fossil-free steel production, at an estimated cost of SEK 25 billion (€2.5 billion), providing around 10,000 new jobs. Construction will start in 1Q22 in the Luleå-Boden region, and production is expected to begin in 2024. When the factory reaches its full-scale production rate, it will produce 5.5 Mt of fossil-free steel per year, consuming 8 TWh of electricity, which will grow to around 12TWh when the plant reaches its full capacity of 5 Mt p.a. of steel (note represents around 8% of Sweden’s total current electricity consumption – see our blog). The company will target customers will be in several segments, ranging from vehicles and industrial equipment to white goods and furniture.

 

The factory will be a fully integrated, digitized and automated steelworks, and by combining raw materials, renewable energy, local expertise and AI, the company is striving to reduce CO2 emissions to zero. 1,500 people are expected to work when the factory is completed and, when indirect jobs are also counted, around 10,000 new jobs are expected.

 

This is the biggest thing that has happened to Boden since the construction of Boden's fortress. This will change the Luleå-Boden area in perpetuity, according to Mayor Clas Nordmark at press conference on Tuesday morning. The reason why Boden-Luleå was chosen as the location for the mega factory is due to the region's unique conditions for fossil-free steel production, with access to renewable energy sources, high-quality iron ore, a large port in Luleå and a cluster of expertise in metallurgy and steel production.

 

In the first stage, SEK 500 million will be invested in the project where, among others, Spotify's founder Daniel Ek and Kinnevik's major owner Cristina Stenbeck have invested.

 

H2 Green Steel will be led by Henrik Henriksson, who is resigning as CEO of truck maker Scania to lead the project. 

 

CIP announces plans to build Europe’s largest PtX-facility for shipping and agriculture

Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) announced its intention to build Europe’s largest production facility of CO2-free green ammonia, on the west coast of Denmark. CIP is a Danish fund management company focused on renewable energy infrastructure.

 

The Power-to-X-facility (PtX) will convert power from offshore wind turbines to green ammonia, which will be used by the agriculture sector as CO2-free green fertilizer and by the shipping industry as CO2-free green fuel. Excess heat will be used to provide heating for around one third of the local households in Esbjerg. The facility will be based around a 1GW electrolyser producing green hydrogen, which is expected to reduce CO2-emissions by about 1.5 Mt CO2 p.a.

 

The factory is expected to cost DKK 7.5 billion (€1 billion). The plant will create 100-150 new, permanent jobs, and if everything goes according to plan, it will be completed in 2026. Esberg’s mayor believes that the investment will make the city the centre of green energy in the entire North Sea area.

 

The announcement was made in collaboration with market leaders within agriculture. Arla, Danish Crown and DLG are all part of the collaboration, representing a significant part of the agricultural value chain: dairy, meat, and crops production. The project companies also include A.P. Moller – Maersk and DFDS, representing the shipping sector. Together with CIP, they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), in which the signatories commit themselves to work towards realizing the establishment of the facility.

 

The press release says that new solutions such as Power-to-X are necessary for the decarbonization of the agriculture and shipping sector, as a large portion of their sector cannot be electrified directly. Fertilizers are necessary to continue to hold a high level of production. Ammonia production contributes to roughly 1.4% of global CO2 emissions. The facility in Esbjerg has the capacity to replace all imported fertilizers in Denmark, which are produced on fossil fuels.

 

SAS signs biofuel contract worth $100 milliom

SAS has signed an extended agreement with Gevo for the purchase of sustainable fuel worth more than $100 million. The first delivery is expected in 2024. Under the agreement SAS has committed to buying the equivalent of 19 million litres of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) from Gevo, which expects to deliver the first batch in 2024 from the company's 'Net-Zero 2' project. Lars Andersen Resare, Head of Sustainability said that “SAS has an ambitious goal of reducing its absolute climate footprint by 25% from 2005 levels by 2025. This increased amount of biofuel will help us reach at least 20% of the biofuel needed to achieve our reduction target in emissions.”

 

Wave power company Corpower raises capital - SEB and al-Amoudi among the investors

The Swedish wave power company, Corpower Ocean is raising new capital to showcase its wave power on a commercial scale. Through a private investment of €9 million, the company's capital financing will be increased to EUR 20.3 million, with SEB Greentech and Mohammed al-Amoudi's company Midroc amongst the investors. The private investments, together with public funding from Sweden, Portugal and the EU, give Corpower's Hiwave-5 program a budget of EUR 38 million.

 

According to documents to the Swedish Companies Registration Office, Corpower is now valued at approximately SEK 620 million. Corpower Ocean is developing a new generation of high-efficiency wave energy converters inspired by the pumping mechanism of the human heart. 

Axel Johnson has "ambition to become a leader" in solar

Axel Johnson Group is looking for new revenue legs for the future. Its’ solar energy investor, Axsol is seeking play a prominent role, according to CEO Johan Bergström Hyldahl. Already after a year and a half, the company has doubled one of its first investments – Norway’s Otovo, which has operations in leasing photovoltaic systems. After listing on Euronext Growth in Oslo Axsol’s investment of NOK 177 million has more than doubled in value. Another of Axsol's portfolio companies, Alight, has built a solar park in Linköping and will, be building Sweden's largest solar park in Skurup to produce 18 MW of power.

 



About Nordic Green News

The Nordic countries are some of the most dynamic and successful economies in the world. They are also leaders in sustainability, from renewable energy, biofuels, carbon capture and storage and the hydrogen economy, circular economy business models and battery development, the Nordics are pioneers in policy design, technology development and consumer uptake. Mundus Nordic Green News is covering this transition for the international community. Every day we clip the stories of most relevance to international businesspeople and policy experts from the flow of news. We supplement these with our own opinion pieces and commentary, in English.