Built with a total cost of €70m, the plant features a technology, which provides the possibility to use also other solid renewables, like peat and wood residues.
The plant, which uses woody biomass as fuel, has a capacity to generate 23MW electric power and 45MW heat as well as annual generation of 110GWh electric power and 230GWh heat, covering approximately 85% of the city’s district heating demand.
The company has commenced construction on the plant in August 2011 and completed it in about 570,000 working hours, complying with occupational safety with just one noted incident.
Fortum CFO Markus Rauramo said that the cost efficient, CO2-free CHP production is one of the key principles of its strategy.
"The simultaneous construction of an identical bio-CHP plant in Jarvenpaa, Finland, has enabled efficient use of resources and knowledge and ensured the availability of the most modern energy technology in Jelgava," Rauramo added.
