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Starting next year, half a million cubic meters of German beech will be processed into, for example, raw material for plastic drinking bottles and Lego blocks.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n The construction of UPM's biorefinery under construction in Leuna, Germany is in full swing. About a thousand builders from different parts of Europe will stay busy until the end of the year, when the facility is scheduled to be completed.<\/p>\n Testing of the facility's wood processing is already starting, and hundreds of cubic beech logs have been driven to the wood yard for that purpose. Although the process is different from, for example, a pulp mill, the journey of the trees to be processed starts from the bark and continues to the chipper.<\/p>\n The plant's wood procurement is also being strengthened. After starting up, the Leuna facility will consume about half a million cubic meters of wood per year.<\/p>\n \"Our goal is to get the trees from a radius of about 250 kilometers,\" says Martin Ledwon, UPM Biochemicals' vice president responsible for stakeholder relations .<\/p>\n In the German way, trees are procured mainly through contracts with local forestry agencies. In terms of wood resources, it shouldn't be difficult to get half a million beech cubes.<\/p>\n \"Beech smaller than a log has hardly been used,\" says Johannes Brodowski, operations manager of the Saxony-Anhalt Forest Agency.<\/p>\n According to him, nine million cubic meters of beech are felled in Germany every year, the majority of which is chopped into firewood. Fiber-sized beech often accumulates from repeated, careful thinnings and from the tops of log trees.<\/p>\n According to Ledwon, beech has been chosen as the factory's raw material based on its good availability and chemical properties. Other hardwoods could also be used as raw material for processing.<\/p>\n \"We are able to produce a better processing value for pulpwood than it is for firewood.\"<\/p>\n Coke bottles and Lego blocks<\/strong><\/p>\n UPM's Leuna plant is the first biorefinery that separates the sugar parts of wood and lignin with a so-called steam explosion. The process is called hydrolysis.<\/p>\n Biomonoethylene glycol is formed from sugar compounds. It is used, for example, as a raw material for plastic drinking bottles and Lego blocks, as well as in the production of engine and battery coolants. Lignin is processed into a rubber additive.<\/p>\n The factory's annual production is about 220,000 tons, most of which is biomonoethylene glycol.<\/p>\n UPM's Leuna facility is currently the largest factory under construction in Germany. A tour of the factory reveals the plant's dimensions, which are comparable to pulp mills. According to the original estimate, the construction of the factory would have cost 550 million euros.<\/p>\n Compared to euros and the dimensions of the factory, the amount of wood to be processed, as well as the factory's annual production, are small. Mets\u00e4 Fibre's Kemi bioproduct factory consumes seven million cubic meters of wood per year and produces one and a half million tons of pulp.<\/p>\n Most obviously, the margins in the biochemical industry are different than in the pulp business based on wood fiberization.<\/p>\n UPM's Leuna facility is currently the largest factory under construction in Germany. A tour of the factory reveals the plant's dimensions, which are comparable to pulp mills. According to the original estimate, the construction of the factory would have cost 550 million euros.<\/p>\n Compared to euros and the dimensions of the factory, the amount of wood to be processed, as well as the factory's annual production, are small. Mets\u00e4 Fibre's Kemi bioproduct factory consumes seven million cubic meters of wood per year and produces one and a half million tons of pulp.<\/p>\n Most obviously, the margins in the biochemical industry are different than in the pulp business based on wood fiberization.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Starting next year, half a million cubic meters of German beech will be processed into, for example, raw material for plastic drinking bottles and Lego blocks. The construction of UPM’s biorefinery under construction in Leuna, Germany is in full swing. … Continue reading