Total Eren and Aliceco to build one of Europe’s largest e-Fuels facility

Total Eren, a leading renewable energy independent power producer, and Aliceco Energy, a Finnish developer of large commercial scale electrofuels facilities, are joining forces to establish one of Europe’s largest electrofuels facilities. 

Recently, French energy company TotalEnergies increased its stake in Total Eren to 100%.

The partnership between Total Eren and Aliceco Energy will lead to the creation of the Vanadis Fuels Project, located in the Kokkola Industrial Park, Finland. The facility is designed to produce low-carbon electrofuels, also known as “e-Fuels”, for various industrial sectors and the shipping industry.

The Vanadis facility will leverage renewable energy sources such as offshore and onshore wind farms and solar power plants to power an electrolyser. This electrolyser will produce green hydrogen while capturing biogenic carbon dioxide from biomass to synthesise e-methanol (e-MeOH). 

The e-methanol production capacity is projected to reach up to 400,000 tons per year, with the first production commencing in 2029.

Both Total Eren and Aliceco will be responsible for the project’s advancement. Aliceco will focus on local development in Kokkola, while Total Eren will bring its extensive expertise in the development, financing, construction, and operation of solar and wind projects, as well as hydrogen production facilities.

The project will also benefit from the support of local partners such as Kokkolan Energia, the local energy supplier, Kokkola Industrial Park, a significant inorganic chemical industrial park, and the Port of Kokkola, the third-largest general cargo port in Finland. 

The Vanadis Fuels Project will draw on Total Eren’s global experience and ambition in executing several large-scale green hydrogen projects through its hydrogen-dedicated subsidiary, TEH2. One such project is the giga-scale green hydrogen project “H2 Magallanes” in the Magallanes region, Southern Chile, which boasts up to 10 gigawatts (GW) of installed wind capacity.

Furthermore, the Vanadis Fuels Project will utilise Aliceco Energy’s innovative oxygen-combustion solution, which will be deployed on a commercial scale for the first time. This technology efficiently captures the biogenic CO2 flue gas from Kokkola Energia’s biomass boilers without using chemical substances on a large scale like conventional technologies. This new CO₂ capture technology is both efficient and more environmentally friendly, the companies said.

Total Eren, founded in 2012 by Pâris Mouratoglou and David Corchia, has a track record of developing, financing, building, and operating renewable energy power plants worldwide. The company has a gross capacity of over 3,700 megawatts (MW) in operation or under construction. Through partnerships with local developers, Total Eren is developing numerous energy projects in regions where renewable energy is an economically viable response to growing energy demand.