25 Oct 2024

International Cooperation in Focus at the Nordic Wood Biorefinery Conference

The Nordic Wood Biorefinery Conference, held for the first time in Örnsköldsvik, gathered participants from around the world to discuss the future of biorefinery with the forest as the main resource. New to the conference was the matchmaking event organized by North Sweden Cleantech, which became a valued springboard for new international collaborations and exchanges of ideas.

The conference was organized by RISE as the main organizer and North Sweden Cleantech responsible for the matchmaking, where participants from both industry and academia had the chance to network and find potential partners.

“This is a golden opportunity for our regional companies to make contacts with stakeholders from around the world,” says Helena Näsström, the main project manager for the event and International Business Developer at North Sweden Cleantech. She continues:

“Meeting regionally in Sweden is important, but here we had access to a global market – it was unique and very valuable.”

Interest in the conference was high, with over 150 registered participants and 117 booked matchmaking meetings. It was arranged with specific tables where participants had pre-booked meetings with those who best matched their interests. Each meeting lasted 20 minutes, and when the time was up, a bell rang to signal the switch to the next participant – creating a lively buzz in the room and an intense networking environment.

The day before, many conference participants attended the inauguration of RISE’s new pilot hall for demo environments within biorefinery.

“We have now shown the world that we can drive successful projects with the help of testbeds. BioAcademy Arena, with its heart in Örnsköldsvik, is Sweden’s testbed arena in this sector. The focus is on what we do best – forest biorefinery development within wood,” says Helena.

"Inspiring Projects"

Karin Hägglund, an innovation engineer at the local company Sekab, was one of the participants in the matchmaking event. She highlights how valuable it is to meet both researchers and other actors in the industry.

“It’s very enjoyable to meet actors and exchange ideas. Particularly exciting are the doctoral projects, where you really see the drive of the next generation of researchers. It’s inspiring to hear about the projects ongoing at universities and to exchange experiences,” says Karin.

Sekab is working on developing its focus on green chemicals and expanding its product portfolio, and the matchmaking offered a perfect opportunity to listen to how others are working.

“I’ve already had two meetings, both on techno-economic evaluation and biofuels. It has been incredibly interesting to hear about how other companies and researchers conduct their evaluations, what software they use, and how they validate their data,” she explains.

Meeting other companies and researchers working towards the same goal – replacing fossil raw materials – was uplifting.

Karin Hägglund from Sekab appreciated meeting companies and researchers working towards the same goal, replacing fossil raw materials.

“These kinds of meetings give energy and inspiration. It feels meaningful to know that we are all driving in the same direction and working for a sustainable future,” she concludes.

"Valuable Meetings"

Steven Govoni, Vice President and Innovation Fellow at Ecolab, traveled from Chicago to attend the conference. Ecolab is a global leader in sustainability, offering solutions and services in water, hygiene, and infection prevention that protect people and the resources vital to people. The company serves over 40 markets, including the pulp and paper industry through its Nalco Water division.

“Our programs help pulp and paper customers use input resources more efficiently, optimize the conversion to the final product, and improve the final product’s performance – for example, in terms of strength and softness,” explains Steven.

He was impressed by how well-organized the matchmaking event was and how effective it was for establishing new contacts.

“We already have collaborations with both institutes and producers, but here I got another chance to talk to people specifically within the biorefinery sector, people I probably would never have met otherwise. It was very valuable,” he says.

Steven Govini from Ecolab was impressed by how effective it was to establish contacts during the matchmaking.

Steven has high expectations for the results of the “speed dating” meetings that took place. Meeting face-to-face in this way proved successful for networking and collaborations.

“I am very satisfied. These events are underestimated by those who do not participate. Meeting in person this way beats any Teams meeting,” says Steven with a smile.

Regarding the potential for biorefineries using forest resources, Steven is convinced that a significant change is on the way.

“There is no doubt that this will happen, hopefully during my professional lifetime. We have talked about biorefineries in the industry for a long time, but it is only now, with the growing social awareness of environmental issues, that the movement has gained clear momentum. Consumers demand more environmentally friendly products, and this can best be achieved if we use carbon that is already on earth,” he says.

“Opens Up for New Conversations”

Therese Nylander, project manager at SCA and Biorefinery Östrand, also participated in the matchmaking event. Biorefinery Östrand is co-owned by SCA and St1 and is planned to become the world’s first large-scale biorefinery using by-products from the forest industry as raw material. During the conference, many different projects were presented, some with pure research results and others more developed.

“Our project may have come the furthest in the development process, and our advice to other projects is to focus on building strong strategic partnerships, just as we have done with SCA and St1. Having control over a large part of the value chain reduces risks and increases the possibility of reaching a final investment decision,” explains Therese Nylander.

Finding new contacts, getting inspiration, and gathering ideas that can contribute to the project were high on the agenda for Therese – hence the importance of a wide range of participants.

“We have met everyone from doctoral students to companies working with the same raw material as us, and who may become future partners. The beauty of matchmaking is that it opens up conversations you might not have planned from the beginning, which can lead to new, rewarding opportunities,” she explains.

Matchmaking opens up conversations that were not planned, says Therese Nylander, SCA.

SCA and St1’s ambitious plans in Östrand have received much attention, and on the first day of the conference, Therese gave a speech titled “Possibilities and challenges of scaling up,” where she highlighted both the opportunities and the challenges they face.

“It has been very rewarding here. We wanted to come here and share our insights and what is important for the project at the stage we are in.”

What feedback have you received from participants during the matchmaking?

“Many are curious about how the technology works and how we will succeed in creating a completely new sustainable value chain where a forestry company and an energy company meet. It often concerns the technology, how the value chain will function, and what we can use the products for. We are open about the challenges that exist in this type of project and what support may be needed,” says Therese.

 

The matchmaking was arranged through the project "Innovation for Green Transition", which is funded by the European Regional Development Fund, Region Västerbotten, Piteå Municipality, Skellefteå Municipality, Umeå Municipality, Örnsköldsvik Municipality, RISE, Arctic Business, BizMaker, Uminova Innovation, Piteå Science Park, Skellefteå Science City, PiteEnergi, Övik Energi, Skellefteå Kraft, Umeå Energi, Umeå Kommunföretag, and Vakin.