A Modern Bioenergy Location In A Rural Setting

IMG Saxony-Anhalt offers a "Center of Excellence" in the Altmark region

Magdeburg /PRNewswire/ - The chimneys of the pulp mill tower over the industrial park in the Altmark region in the north of Saxony-Anhalt and can be seen from miles away - a symbol of modern industry. High-quality industrial products and green energy are produced at the huge site. For this reason, the Altmark Industrial and Commercial Park has recently become one of the Saxony-Anhalt Centers of Excellence. Plenty of land is still available for businesses to relocate to the site.

Over the last 20 years, the bioenergy site has grown up in the heart of Germany between Berlin, Hamburg, Wolfsburg and Hanover. Sven Schulze, the Minister of Economic Affairs of Saxony-Anhalt, recently awarded it the status of Center of Excellence. Development on the site is far from over and more than 220 hectares of land is available for new arrivals. The site is developed and offers opportunities that are hard to find elsewhere.

Mercer launched a new era
In 2004, the Canadian company Mercer International Group opened one of the most modern pulp mills in the world. Now the 600 employees at the plant produce up to 740,000 metric tons of pulp each year. In addition, the site is being developed to create a state-of-the-art biorefinery. At the industrial park, Mercer is already operating Germany's largest biomass power plant with an output of 148 megawatts and an extraction facility for turpentine and tall oil.

"We have excellent conditions here for companies that are looking to the future," says Minister Sven Schulze. In addition to the land available, other important considerations include the infrastructure and the soft factors at the site. There are plans to build a second rail line into the industrial park, the port on the river Elbe is available for industrial use, a hydropower plant is in operation at the site and the nearest regional airport is in Stendal. The Altmark region has a strong renewable energy sector and good links with the research community via the nearby university in Stendal. In addition, the north-south route A14 federal freeway will be completed.

All the 32 companies on the Altmark Industrial and Commercial Park benefit from these factors. One of the first was AMS, a mechanical engineering company. Today, it employs more than 150 people. AMS specializes in manufacturing huge cranes to meet individual customers' requirements. They can move loads weighing up to 40 metric tons and have booms that can be as much as 55 meters or, in the future, even 100 meters long. The manufacturing buildings have solar panels on the roofs to supply the company with energy.

An independent future with green energy
The future concept for the site is that the entire park will have its own largely independent energy supply. The focus is on a networking approach, which is why a pilot hydrogen plant is already in operation at the park. Companies can also erect a wind turbine on their sites to generate their own electricity. The aim is to supply each other with green energy. In the future, the manufacturing processes for all the products in the park will be as climate neutral as possible, with the help of a circular economy. Any company that intends to base its production on green energy will find the ideal conditions in the Altmark.

As Sofidel, an international business from Italy that has been producing paper for hygienic and domestic use at the industrial park since 2006. It benefits primarily from the nearby pulp mill which supplies the raw materials that it needs. Every year around 100,000 metric tons of toilet paper, kitchen rolls and tissues leave the factory, which employs 350 people. Ten years ago, another modern company, Weltec Biopower, moved to the site. It has been producing biogas in its refinery since 2013 and every hour feeds around 700 cubic meters of biomethane into the gas network.