Valmet selected for ŠKO-ENERGO Mladá Boleslav modernization project

Established to supply Škoda Auto’s manufacturing facilities with electricity and Škoda Auto’s facilities and the town of Mladá Boleslav with heat, ŠKO-ENERGO has been a key player in the region’s energy sector for around 30 years.

The heat supply to Mladá Boleslav serves approximately 14,000 households.

Significant defossilization project

The modernization of the Mladá Boleslav plant, which supplies energy to Škoda Auto’s manufacturing facilities and provides heating for the town, represents a significant milestone in ŠKO-ENERGO’s transition to decarbonization.

For Valmet, the project includes converting the two existing circulating fluidized bed (CFB) boilers from coal to biomass and delivering a new bubbling fluidized bed (BFB) boiler to compensate for the reduced capacity from the converted CFB boilers.

The two coal-fired CFB boilers produce steam at 140 tonnes per hour each. Both CFB boilers will be rebuilt and upgraded to handle woodchips and agro-biomass pellets, with a new steam capacity of 100 tonnes per hour each.

The new BFB boiler will work alongside the retrofitted ones and produce steam at 80 tonnes per hour using woodchips as fuel. It will be equipped with a flue gas cleaning system consisting of a Valmet Bag House Filter (BHF) and additive injection, designed to effectively remove emissions from flue gases.

The flue gas cleaning systems of the upgraded boilers will be modified, too. This enhancement ensures compliance with stringent emission limits. Valmet Industrial Internet solutions are included in the overall delivery, the value of which has not been disclosed.

We are proud to support ŠKO-ENERGO in their transition to renewable energy sources. This project will allow for the complete replacement of coal with wood chips and agro-biomass pellets, reducing CO₂ emissions by 290,000 tonnes annually. It is part of Škoda Auto’s broader GreenFuture strategy to achieve carbon neutrality at the latest by 2030. This underscores Valmet’s commitment to providing sustainable and efficient energy solutions, said Sami Riekkola, Business Line President, Pulp and Energy, Valmet.

Major renewable energy investment

According to ŠKO-ENERGO, the modernization of its Mladá Boleslav will require a total investment of EUR 180 million, of which EUR 87 million will be financed from the Modernization Fund of the State Environmental Fund of the Czech Republic.

This makes the project one of the largest of its kind in the Czech Republic.

The project is expected to be completed by the end of 2027. The existing CFB boilers will be rebuilt in two consecutive years to ensure that the heat and power supply to Škoda Auto’s manufacturing facility in Mladá Boleslav can continue without interruptions.