World's first carbon neutral pulp mill

Pulp has been produced for more than a hundred years at Metsä Group’s Joutseno mill. The mill was completely modernised at the turn of the 21st century. It is the world’s largest single-line softwood pulp mill and a world leader in efficiency and environmental management.

Thanks to a bark gasification plant introduced in 2012, the mill is fossil fuel free and has zero carbon dioxide emissions.

The mill produces more bioenergy than it needs and it is a pioneer in the utilisation of renewable energy. Thanks to the bark gasification plant introduced in 2012, the mill does not use fossil fuels and thus generates no carbon dioxide from non-renewable fuels, during normal operation.

The electrical self-sufficiency of the world’s largest single-line softwood pulp mill is 175%.

To fuel the limekiln, biogas is produced from the bark of softwood that is used as raw material for the pulp. The electricity and thermal energy, generated by the recovery boiler, are utilised in the mill’s production, while the surplus is sold. The excess heat from the process is efficiently recovered and used to heat such things as the chip silo. In addition to the tall oil and turpentine generated in the pulp cooking process, there is also enough bioelectricity to be sold; the mill produces 75% more electricity than it consumes. This amount corresponds to the amount of electricity needed by private households and agriculture in the Lappeenranta region.