Metso to supply biomass power plant to Sia Graanul Invest in Latvia

Metso Corporation’s press release on March 21, 2011 at 3:00 p.m. local time

Metso will supply SIA Graanul Invest with a biomass power plant for combined heat and power production (CHP) in the municipality of Launkalne in Latvia. The power plant will be delivered by the Metso-Wärtsilä joint venture MW Power. The delivery scope includes plant automation system delivered by Metso. The value of the order is about EUR 15 million and the order is included in Energy and Environmental Technology’s Q1, 2011 orders received.

The biomass power plant will utilize bubbling fluidized bed (BFB) technology and will use combination of forest residues such bark and wood chips or milled peat as the main fuels. The plant will produce 15 MW of heat and 6.4 MW of electricity which will be partly utilized in the customer’s own pellet factory. Most of the produced electricity will be distributed into national grid.

SIA Graanul Invest is Latvian based subsidiary of AS Graanul Invest, which is a private capital based company dealing with bioenergy and renewable energy production. AS Graanul Invest is the biggest producer of pellets in the Baltics with six pellet factories and counts among the top three European producers.

Only two months ago Metso announced a similar delivery to same group to their Estonian location. “The wide scope and reliable technical solution tailored to our needs as well as good relationships we built up with MW Power during the negotiations on Estonian as well as Latvian plants were very important to us, says Raul Kirjanen, CEO of Graanul Invest.

MW Power, Metso-Wärtsilä joint venture, provides medium- and small-scale power and heating plant solutions for sustainable energy generation, focusing on flexible utilization of local renewables, as well as innovative technologies and service capabilities. www.mwpower.fi

Metso is a global supplier of sustainable technology and services for mining, construction, power generation, automation, recycling and the pulp and paper industries. We have about 28,500 employees in more than 50 countries. www.metso.com

Further information for the press, please contact: Olli Elo, Product Line Director, MW Power, tel. +358 40 556 5504