Energy, Estonia, Good for Business, Investments

The aim of the chipped wood fueled boiler plant to be built Kunda is to ensure long-term favorable prices for Kunda's district heating customers, Priit Tiit, head of the development and investment department of Adven Eesti, said in a press release.

"Biofuel is the best possible choice for several areas, as it is a local Estonian fuel, the burning of which has a small impact on the environment," Tiit said. "As the price of biofuel does not depend on the changing price of oil and no excise duties apply to it, the energy produced from biofuel has a long-term stable and favorable price for the consumers."

He said that the company in the next few years is planning to transfer to biofuel all of its larger district heating areas, where until now heat has been produced from natural gas -- in total, these investments will amount to 8 million euros.

In cooperation with OU Efipa, which supplies equipment from Austria, and AS Paide MEK, Adven Eesti is planning to complete the biofuel boiler plant by this fall already -- for that, design work will be conducted first and construction work is scheduled to start in April. The companies to build the new boiler plant on Voidu Street have successfully completed similar projects before, for example the boiler plant built to the new Tallinn Prison.

A significant contribution for the realization of the construction will be made by the co-financing of the European Union Structural and Investments Fund through the Environmental Investments Center. "As the new boiler plant will make producing heat in Kunda more effective and based on renewable energy, we can also involve support from the European Union Structural Funds for updating our heat networks in Kunda," Tiit said.

Adven Eesti will reduce the chipped wood fueled boiler plant's impact on the external environment and neighbors to minimal. "For this, we will install purification facilities compliant with the requirements for cleaning smoke in the boiler plant and organize the transport, reloading and storage of fuel so that the fuel ending up in the external environment has been brought to a minimum. We have also designed the warehouse big enough so that there is enough fuel also for the weekend and it will not be necessary to bring separate loads to the warehouse on those days," Tiit said.

Altogether 57 households receives heating from the Kunda district heating network. Heat has been generate from natural gas in the region so far. A construction permit has been issued by the city for the new biofuel boiler plant and the construction of it has been set as a goal in Kunda's district heating area's heating economy development plan for 2013-2025.

In addition to Kunda, Adven Eesti has been of help when finding better heating solutions for other regions. The company in December completed a new chipped wood boiler plant in Viiratsi, while the construction of a boiler plant in Adavere is in the final stage and the construction of a new boiler plant has been launched in Vaike-Maarja.

Adven Eesti is an Estonian heat producer, which operates in 18 district heating areas across the country. The company offers energy solutions in the industrial and service sector, provides heat to private and corporate customers and is active in the distribution and sales of natural gas. The company employs 75 people.