From a plant supplier’s perspective, the hydrogen economy is moving towards industrial-scale projects, and the forest industry could play a significant role
There are intriguing similarities and connections between the hydrogen and forest industries that could benefit both sectors. This is the assessment of Henrik Grönqvist, Head of the e-Methanol Business Area at the international technology group ANDRITZ. Grönqvist shared his insights on the hydrogen economy from a plant supplier’s perspective in Fimpec’s Kumppanit podcast.
Henrik Grönqvist has a 20-year career in various leadership positions at ANDRITZ, initially working extensively on pulp and paper industry projects before spending the past couple of years developing the company’s e-fuel business. Given this background, the discussion in the Fimpec “Kumppanit” podcast naturally focused on the relationship between the hydrogen economy and the forest industry, which presents particularly interesting opportunities from a Finnish perspective. Grönqvist sees significant potential and synergies between the industries.
“One key aspect is the biogenic carbon dioxide generated in the forest industry, which is a valuable raw material for producing hydrogen-based e-fuels. Heat recovery and other byproducts also offer opportunities. There is also synergy in the fact that methanol is naturally produced in the pulp process. In the past, it has been burned, but now we have technologies to purify it and sell it to the market as biomethanol. I see tremendous potential if the forest industry could integrate itself more into the value chain of hydrogen and e-fuels.”
There are also similarities in investment strategies and project execution, as both industries operate on a large scale. Therefore, experiences from the forest industry in successfully completing projects on schedule and within budget can be leveraged in large-scale hydrogen economy projects.
“From the forest industry’s perspective, one of the biggest challenges is how to make better use of carbon. My understanding is that currently, only about half of the carbon molecules actually end up in the final product, while the rest are emitted as carbon dioxide. By leveraging the opportunities of the hydrogen economy, more products could be produced at the plant instead of releasing carbon dioxide emissions.”
“I have a strong feeling that these opportunities will be utilized and that the forest industry has the capability to rethink its value chains. This has happened before, and I believe the industry sees the potential of hydrogen and will develop something new in collaboration,” Grönqvist summarizes.
The scalability and dynamism of hydrogen plants help meet future challenges
Currently, Henrik Grönqvist’s main focus is on projects related to the hydrogen economy, particularly e-fuels. In the “Kumppanit” podcast, he elaborates on how ANDRITZ, as a plant supplier, is addressing the challenges that arise as the industry moves toward industrial-scale projects and production capacities grow from tens to hundreds of megawatts. According to Grönqvist, the key words are scalability and dynamism.
“ANDRITZ’s hydrogen plant is modular and consists of 10-megawatt modules, making scaling relatively straightforward. I don’t see major challenges there. Perhaps a bigger challenge with these large, high-energy-consuming plants lies in the electrical grid—how to connect them to the power network. It is crucial to design the plants to be dynamic so that they can take into account and respond to grid operations and fluctuations in electricity prices. That is definitely a challenge.”
Grönqvist looks to the future with confidence. He explains that ANDRITZ is investing heavily in integration, ensuring that the hydrogen plant, carbon dioxide capture, and synthesis are properly connected. The main focus is on e-methanol.
“There are, of course, many alternatives, and we must constantly monitor developments and react accordingly. However, at the moment, we strongly believe in e-methanol, which is also where customer demand is most concentrated.”
According to Grönqvist, ANDRITZ’s hydrogen-related business has gained strong momentum. Several e-methanol and other Power-to-X (P-to-X) projects are in progress, and in Germany, ANDRITZ is currently delivering an EPC contract for Salzgitter’s 100-megawatt hydrogen plant. The plant is expected to be operational by 2026, making it one of the largest hydrogen plants in Europe.
Finland has the expertise
From Grönqvist’s perspective, Finland and the Nordic countries are well-positioned in the hydrogen economy, and ANDRITZ is also increasing its focus on Finland. The country’s expertise is particularly appealing to the company.
“I would say that Finland is a leader in biogenic carbon. When this is combined with emission-free hydrogen, Finland has a strong and unique position to advance this development, offering renewable fuels and the necessary technology. Finland also has ambitious hydrogen economy goals and a clear regulatory framework. I see great potential here,” Grönqvist states.
Henrik Grönqvist was a guest of Maiju Aaltonen and Panu Rahikka in Fimpec’s “Kumppanit” podcast.
Listen to episode 19 of the Kumppanit podcast: The Hydrogen and Forest Industries Can Benefit Each Other in Many Ways
Please note that the podcast is available only in Finnish.
