Wartsila, Vantaa Team up for Finnish Power-to-Gas Study

Finland's Wartsila said on May 18 it had signed a deal with Vantaa Energy on conducting a joint feasibility study for a power-to-gas unit at the latter's waste-to-energy plant in Finland.

The proposed unit would produce carbon-neutral synthetic biogas using CO₂ emissions and electricity generated at the waste-to-energy plant, Wartsila said. The aim of the study is to determine the project's optimal size, the cost of synthetic biogas for district heating, and boundary conditions for its feasibility.

Once the facility is considered feasible, the two companies intend to advance a commercial-scale pilot project. The synthetic biogas produced would be used to replace conventional gas in district heating, thereby lowering Vantaa's CO₂ emissions. But the project could also support the broader development of synthetic fuels, Wartsila said.

"Wartsila has been actively working on and investing in Power-to-X research since 2018, during which time we have gained a thorough general understanding of the technology. This co-development agreement will allow us to apply the know-how into a real project," the tech company's director for strategy and business development, Matti Rautkivi, said in a statement.  "We are very excited about this opportunity as it will demonstrate the feasibility of synthetic fuels as an integral part of power and heat systems, while developing the overall sector coupling concepts going forward."

"Both Vantaa Energy and Wartsila share a vision of a 100% renewable energy future, and this project is a perfect place to start building that vision into concrete business," he said.