The Port of Loviisa has invested in maintaining circular material flows and other services for the circular economy.

The green transition is visible at the Port of Loviisa. More than a quarter of incoming material flows are related to the circular economy.

When the Ukraine War transformed European energy and raw material streams in 2022, goods flows through the Port of Loviisa quickly turned from exports and transit to imports. Now, more and more of the products passing through the port are related to the circular economy, such as plenty of refuse-derived fuels (RDFs), that is, dry plastic and cardboard that has been treated and shredded. This year, RDF bales were delivered from countries all around Europe, such as Italy, Ireland and Poland.

RDF moves indoors

New raw material flows require new kinds of port services.

“New products that are subject to waste regulations, such as recycled fuels, are demanding. We must take protection, litter prevention and other hazards into account,” says Tiina Vepsäläinen, CEO of the Port of Loviisa.

“Last summer, we experienced some very unfortunate odour issues resulting from batches of recycled fuel that contained bio-waste. We immediately took action to ensure that RDFs will pass smoothly through the port with as little inconvenience as possible,” she says.

In the future, the Port of Loviisa will be processing and storing RDFs indoors. Alterations have been made to existing warehouses, and some brand-new storage solutions are also in the pipeline.

The international transfer of waste is regulated by the EU’s Waste Framework Directive. As a rule, a waste transfer permit will be required to transfer waste from one country to another. There are strict routines for handling permit issues in Loviisa. Tiina Vepsäläinen believes that, as the world stops using fossil fuels, there will be an increase in the kind of raw material flows that support the green transition.

“We want to set an example of how to handle these things in the best possible way,” she says.

A boost for both the circular economy and security of supply

After leaving the Port of Loviisa, RDFs continue their journey to Vantaan Energia’s incinerator power plant by road. The plant has a 30-metre-high boiler with a floor area the size of a football pitch. It produces approximately 100 GWh of electricity and 1,200 GWh of heat for the district heating network per year.

“Our principle is to recycle everything that can be recycled. Anything that is unsuitable for recycling will be incinerated and its energy recovered. Raw materials should be used as efficiently as possible,” says Kalle Patomeri, Production Director at Vantaan Energia.

The environment will also thank us, as the waste might otherwise be buried in landfills in its countries of origin, where it would cause methane emissions. And as district heating is not used in southern European countries, the heat energy would also be completely wasted. The emissions from maritime transport are relatively low in comparison, and the energy company is aiming to be carbon neutral by 2030.

This cooperation between the Port of Loviisa and Vantaan Energia is also important for Finland’s security of supply. Firstly, waste management can be efficiently handled in Finland. Secondly, district heating can be used to heat homes, schools and hospitals throughout the long, cold winters. And as an increasing proportion of Finland’s energy production is based on electricity, it is becoming even more challenging to store energy: electricity is not so easy to “stockpile”. “However, we always have some refuse-derived fuels in stock,” says Kalle Patomeri.