E.ON is planning to build a biomass power plant on a paper mill site provided by UPM in Hürth. The new plant is designed for an electrical output of 20 megawatts (MW) and a thermal firing capacity of 87 MW. E.ON is planning to invest around €110 million in the project that could create more than 30 new jobs.
In addition to supplying heat to the Hürth paper mill, the plant will feed renewable energy into the grid and thus contribute to the energy transition, climate protection and the stability of the German power grid. E.ON will obtain the fuel, residual wood, from the regional environment. The plant is scheduled to start operations in the first quarter of 2022.
E.ON Board member Karsten Wildberger: “Together with UPM, we will demonstrate that it’s possible to supply an energy-intensive industrial company with an economical and reliable CO2-neutral energy supply. We will be contributing our experience and mature technology to the partnership. UPM and E.ON will thus set an example of climate-friendly energy supply for industry that goes far beyond the paper industry.”
“The new supply would significantly reduce UPM Hürth’s CO2 footprint. The project supports the long-term phase-out of coal-fired power generation in Germany”, says Winfried Schaur, Executive Vice President, UPM Communication Papers. “The new plant ensures a stable and economically predictable supply of heat to the site and would make our production cycle in Hürth, which is already based on 100 percent recovered paper, even more sustainable”, concludes Schaur.
Both companies are already cooperating at UPM’s site in Plattling, Bavaria. E.ON supplies the paper mill there with a highly efficient gas and steam power plant. E.ON also operates industrial-scale biomass power plants in the UK and Sweden.
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