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Interreg Botnia-Atlantica

Bioraff Botnia

The project develops biorefinery-related solutions for existing and new industries within the programme area and utilizes residues from forest industry, forestry and sawmill by-products to develop new products, chemicals and materials.

Branch: Chemistry and bioeconomy

Duration: 01.05.2015 – 30.04.2018

Region: International

Financed by: European Union Interreg Botnia-Atlantica, Regional Council of Ostrobothnia

Budget: 1457785 EUR

Further information: Tero Tuuttila, +358 40 1904788, tero.tuuttila@centria.fi

Background

The project aims to nourish the emergence of new industries that produce products and materials from wood, as well as provide opportunities to strengthen businesses in an increasingly competitive market by making several and more profitable products with the same amount of wood that is used today. Overall, the project aims to develop biorefineries or biorefinery-related solutions for existing and new industries within the programme area. These solutions also include re-launching of innovative companies within production, research and services.

This project aimed to nourish the emergence of new industries producing products and materials from forest raw material, as well as provide opportunities to strengthen businesses in an increasingly competitive market. This can be done by making several as well as more profitable products with the same wood consumption as used today. As a result, companies will increase their profit margins and contribute to a sustainable future. Overall, the project aimed to develop biorefineries or biorefinery-related solutions for existing and new industries within the Interreg area.

Out of the eight products or process prototypes, which the project has demonstrated during the project, we expect that tree of them could be commercialized within a 5-year period. There are opportunities for two full-scale industrial plants and two new value chains to be fully established and operational within a 10-year period. The long-term impact is that by 2020, at least two of the paper and pulp mills or chemical industry in the region will make more use of the forest raw material and have at least two competitive products for sale on a market

An unexpected result was the production of tannin foam, which can have many applications, as well as the results of the grafting which became so successful that several big companies participated in a continuation project.

Co-financiers

Regional Council of Ostrobothnia (FI), County Administrative Board of Västernorrland (SE), SP Technical Research Institute of Sweden (SE), Vinnova (SE), Jyväskylän yliopisto: Kokkolan yliopistokeskus Chydenius (FI), Centria University of Applied Sciences (FI), Kvarken Council (FI)