Maarten van Dijk, CEO of SkyNRG, being interviewed by Norran via video link. He co-founded SkyNRG in 2009 and has worked in various roles at the company since then.
The planned aviation fuel factory at Näsudden in Skelleftehamn is a significant hydrogen project. The aim is to produce one hundred thousand tons of sustainable aviation fuel annually, known as eSAF, which is made from water, renewable electricity, and captured carbon dioxide.
This type of aviation fuel will become required for European airlines starting in 2030. Initially, it will need to make up 0.7 percent of total fuel use, increasing to at least 25 percent by 2050.
– This will create a large new market, Maarten van Dijk, CEO of the Dutch company SkyNRG, told Norran.
SkyNRG, pronounced Sky Energy, has been working with sustainable aviation fuel since 2009. Together with the company's co-founder, KLM Airlines, they were the first in the world to use this type of fuel on a commercial flight in 2011.
Since then, they have continued to gain market share in the industry.
– We've had both a short-term strategy where we simply bought and resold fuel, and a long-term strategy focused on building our own factories, says Maarten.
Currently, they have one factory being built in the Netherlands and two more planned. One of them is in the USA – and the other is in Skellefteå.
– We looked at sites in Amsterdam, Germany, Canada, the Middle East, Australia, and Brazil – but ultimately, we decided that northern Sweden is the best place.
Why is that?
– There are mainly two important reasons. We need a completely green electricity network and available carbon dioxide from sources that aren't fossil fuels, like the forestry industry. This makes Skellefteå a very good location, says Maarten, who also mentions that other vital factors are the existing electricity and transportation infrastructure.
En tidig illustration av hur flygbränslefabriken på Näsudden kan komma att se ut. Kapaciteten som planeras, hundra tusen ton eSAF, beräknas täcka uppskattningsvis en sjättedel av det lagstadgade behovet i Europa 2030, baserat på de senaste flygbränsleprognoserna för EU, enligt SkyNRG.
To make this investment happen, SkyNRG teamed up with Skellefteå Kraft and created a joint company called SkyKraft AB.
However, when Joachim Nordin, CEO of the city-owned Skellefteå Kraft, first heard about SkyNRG, he didn’t know who they were.
– We had to do very careful checks. There were many other companies also talking to us, he told Norran.
Today, he considers them the best in the world when it comes to sustainable aviation fuel.
– We’ve visited their headquarters twice and met their board, management, suppliers, and owners. After the second visit, I felt completely sure – they are the best partner for this, says Joachim, who also points out that the Australian investment bank Macquarie Asset Management has invested 1.9 billion kronor in SkyNRG as proof that they are the right partner.
"Just because we’ve made money in the past doesn’t mean we can sit back and assume it will continue. The world around us and our conditions are changing – and so must we," says Joachim Nordin.
That Skellefteå Kraft should be involved in a project like this is, according to Joachim, completely obvious.
He believes that as an energy company, Skellefteå Kraft "can't just keep doing things the way they've always been done" without risking their profits.
– Just because we've made money in the past doesn't mean we can relax and expect it to continue. The world around us is changing – and so must we, says Joachim, pointing out that there's a large surplus of electricity in northern Sweden, which leads to lower earnings for energy companies.
Selling all the extra electricity to the south isn't possible because the power grid has limitations. According to him, Skellefteå Kraft instead needs to, for example through a sustainable aviation fuel plant, process its green energy locally, while also using the leftover heat to warm Skellefteå’s district heating system.
The latter is currently losing money.
– A project like this is the solution to our two biggest strategic problems, he says.
At Hedensbyn, a pilot plant for hydrogen production is being planned. Skellefteå Kraft is building it themselves, with help from, among others, EU funding. According to Joachim Nordin, the pilot plant is expected to be ready in 2026, provided all permits are granted. “The facility in Skelleftehamn is 100–150 times larger than this one, but it’s important for us to learn, for example, how to make use of waste heat,” says Joachim.
But who will pay for the construction of the factory, which is estimated to cost between 20 and 25 billion kronor? Norran asked this question to both Maarten and Joachim. Both answer that the largest part will be financed by banks and other external investors.
SkyNRG, which is backed by the giant investment bank Macquarie, also plans to invest significant capital in the operation itself.
– We are here to stay for the next 40 years, or more, and run the factory. We will not ask Skellefteå Kraft to run it. If they think it’s a good business opportunity to invest in, they can do so; if not, that’s also okay with us, says Maarten.
A potential decision on whether Skellefteå Kraft will invest larger sums will come later. So far, according to Joachim, besides working hours and some overhead costs, they have only invested 24,500 kronor, which is 49 percent of the share capital in SkyKraft AB.
How much Skellefteå Kraft is willing to invest in total, Joachim cannot say, but he admits that he has no problem investing one hundred million kronor, which is the same amount they invested in Northvolt, which recently went bankrupt.
– Even though I wasn't CEO when the decision to invest in Northvolt was made, I would argue that it was a very good decision by Skellefteå Kraft. We have received much more back than that over these years, both directly and indirectly. From a business perspective, we can easily invest 100 million kronor in a project like this, he says.
The number of employees at the factory is estimated to be around 50–100 people. “It’s not a Northvolt in terms of number of employees,” says Joachim Nordin.
If Skellefteå Kraft is to invest larger sums than that, a decision needs to be made by the politicians in the municipal council, Joachim emphasises.
Furthermore, investing larger amounts will only happen in the next phase when more details are available and agreements with future customers are to be signed.
Maarten describes the project in four different financial phases, where varying amounts of money need to be invested to move on to the next.
– In an early stage, perhaps 5 million kronor were needed, and in phase two, where we are now, around 20-30 million kronor are needed, he says.
– In the next phase after that, an estimated 500 million kronor will be needed, and then we will have a discussion with Skellefteå Kraft about whether they want to join that phase. After that will come the really large costs for building the factory.
Approximately 20 billion kronor, according to Maarten.
– Then I imagine that 70 percent will be financed with bank loans, and 30 percent will come from equity. Then the question is whether everything will be owned by SkyNRG, by SkyNRG and Skellefteå Kraft, or by SkyNRG and external investors who want to invest in this type of infrastructure, says Maarten.
"We are very aware of risks and extremely careful before making decisions, especially after all the media attention on Skellefteå Kraft as a part-owner of Northvolt. But at the same time, every business involves some kind of risk, and I wouldn’t be a good CEO if I avoided all risks."
Back to Joachim Nordin at Skellefteå Kraft, who at this point cannot say for sure how Skellefteå Kraft will act in the future. However, he emphasizes that they will carefully consider the risks.
– We are very aware of risks and are extremely careful before making decisions, especially after all the media attention that has been on Skellefteå Kraft as a co-owner of Northvolt. But at the same time, all business involves some type of risk, and I wouldn't be a good CEO if I avoided all risks, says Joachim.
Does a municipally-owned company really need to be involved in a project like this? If it's such a good opportunity, wouldn't private businesses find it attractive?
– I don't think this would become a reality if Skellefteå Kraft wasn't involved as an important partner, and IF it were to happen anyway, it's not certain that the operation would be integrated with our heating network and that we would be the ones selling the electricity. We are doing this because it is best for Skellefteå Kraft and for the people of Skellefteå, says Joachim.
The consultation meeting for SkyKraft is taking place today, Wednesday, between 15:00 and 19:00 at Folkets hus, Skelleftehamn.