Sweden's leading chemical company Perstorp and its partner companies Fortum and Uniper have submitted a €97 million application to the EU Innovation Fund for the Air project. This unique project aims to build a sustainable methanol production plant in Stenungssund, Sweden, which could reduce globalCO2 emissions by 400,000 tons, equivalent to about 1% of Sweden's emissions.
The aim is to achieve large-scale production of sustainable methanol by 2026, which in turn can be used for the production of chemical products with thousands of applications, enabling a better climate footprint in several value chains. The project is enabled by an innovative use of biogas, hydrogen from electrolysis and waste streams as well as carbon dioxide recovered in Perstorp's own plants to produce methanol. This means that the project will utilize carbon atoms that would otherwise becomeCO2 emissions.
"The chemical industry is a key player in the sustainable transformation of society. The realization of Project Air is an urgent priority for Perstorp, our customers and partners, as it increases the availability of sustainable chemical products throughout our value chain," said Jan Secher, President and CEO of Perstorp. "This project is a unique opportunity, but also a challenge for Swedish industry and energy policy. It is one of several industrial transformation projects that want to use biogas as a raw material, and Sweden should take measures to promote sufficient supply for these purposes."
Perstorp believes that Project Air, with a modified application, is well positioned to receive support from the EU Innovation Fund, but the company is also exploring alternative options for future funding. The total investment in Project Air is expected to be €236.3 million.
