Optimised and integrated wood-based value chains

Topic description

ExpectedOutcome:

In line with the EU Bioeconomy Strategy, the EU Forest strategy, the EU Biodiversity strategy, the updated Industrial strategy and the Circular Economy Action Plan, successful proposals will facilitate the large-scale deployment of industrial bio-based systems based on primary woody biomass. These systems will contribute to the EU Bioeconomy Strategy implementation, demonstrating improved environmental performances, maximising resource- and energy-efficiency, and optimising cascading use of bio-based primary and secondary feedstock, aiming at ‘zero waste’ and ‘zero-pollution’ operations and outputs.

Project results should contribute to the following expected outcomes:

• Deployment of competitive, replicable, regional/local, circular and inclusive bio-based business models in the forest-based sector and industry encompassing all segments of the value chain
• Improved circularity and resource efficiency of wood-based resources via practical applications of the circular (bio)economy concept to reduce the consumption of primary woody biomass
• Significant improvement in environmental sustainability across the value chain against specified fossil-based and/or bio-based benchmarks
• Reduction in the dependency on imported feedstock and products
• Social acceptance of circular bio-based solutions and products
• Availability of a broader range of competitive circular bio-based products meeting consumer and market requirements
• Industrial competitiveness, strategic autonomy and resource independence of bio-based value chains of EU member states and/or Associated countries
• New skilled job opportunities and investments in the bio-based sectors, particularly in the regions with underdeveloped capacities and in the rural and coastal areas

Forest-based value chains are often vertically integrated but could be further optimised by introducing innovative processing technologies, e.g., upcycling residual flows to higher value applications and exploiting industrial symbiosis concepts (within the same industrial sector but also with other industrial sectors when applicable) to maximise the value extracted from main and side streams of forest biomass. Moreover, there are non-forest woody resources, both primary and secondary, not yet efficiently managed and valorised.

This topic aims to considerably increase resource efficiency by promoting cooperation of companies of different scales and other actors and move towards "zero waste, zero pollution" operations. The feedstock in scope of the topic are woody biomass from sustainably managed forests and wood industry side streams and residues.

For this purpose, seamless and efficient integration of processing technologies of main and side flows of woody biomass between various companies and other actors is needed, specialising manufacturing of diverse materials and products. This may be achieved by the creation of a symbiotic ecosystem with clusters of companies of different scale and technology providers using the residual streams of large-scale industrial plants, but also exploiting the technical opportunities from emerging manufacturing systems. The cascading use of woody biomass already allows for a range of industrial purposes; the better integration would provide efficiency gains and higher value of the wood-based value chains at a regional scale. The cooperation between well-established and emerging industrial operators, forest owners, innovators and RTOs/ academia, as well as financial support from public and private investors must be increased, to ensure circular, resource efficient and zero pollution processing.

Proposals under this topic should:

• Establish a symbiotic and flexible woody biomass processing system involving the cooperation of several actors to maximise the cascading use of feedstock and the use of residues for high value added circular products. Contribute to match interests, priorities and technological status of different participating companies and other actors as well as gaining support from public and private investors to a large-scale systemic change. One example would be clustering several enterprises/technology providers around a main woody-biomass operator^[1] to valorise its side and residual streams.
• Identify regional opportunities to share primary materials, recycled materials, and side-streams between different industries in the wood-based sectors in a secure and economically feasible way.
• Identify and support process technologies and logistical solutions that can be integrated in a symbiotic way to create a circular economy. Develop processes to share heat, process water and chemicals between different businesses, at production site level.
• Develop cost-efficient processes to allow for efficient recycling of secondary woody biomass-products.
• Develop innovative and efficient methods to extract and produce valuable molecules and components from biomass (addressing material decomposition processes which are energy-consuming) and individuate new market sectors for such materials (e.g., pigments, new materials for additive manufacturing, bioadhesives and bio-based functional additives, food and feed ingredients etc.).
• Develop new production methods enabled by innovative, including emerging breakthrough, technologies.
• Develop material-and energy-efficient processing and recirculation of (chemicals) flows, towards the fully circular model, within the single industrial plant and within the extended production site.
• Innovate the outputs from the value chain while applying the principles of eco-design of bio-based products.
• Demonstrate the substantial improvement of environmental performance, including reduction of GHG and other harmful emissions, across the value chain against specified fossil and/or bio-based benchmarks.
• Incorporate and integrate innovative processes and solutions along the value chain into a large-scale system, including woody biomass-based products for high value applications.
• Develop and demonstrate a sound business model, based on experienced bottlenecks/gains, ensuring long-term investments and new jobs opportunities, encouraging the inclusion of all actors in the regional value chain.
• Apply certification schemes of woody biomass, including certification of environmental sustainability, and expand its use along the different types of woody biomass.
• Consider integrating activities contributing to climate change adaptation.
• Demonstrate the replication potential of this flagship concept in the EU and the associated countries.

Proposals are recommended to include a task to perform an assessment based on the safe-and-sustainable-by-design (SSbD) framework, developed by the European Commission, for assessing the safety and sustainability of chemicals and materials^[2]. Under this context, proposals are recommended to also include a task to contribute with and develop recommendations that can advance further the application of the SSbD framework^[3].

Proposals may consider making existing/new industrial assets (e.g., labs, test rigs, etc.) or other training packages accessible to researchers, SMEs, etc., for visiting, or training and testing bio-based processes.

Proposals must implement the multi-actor approach and ensure adequate involvement of all key actors in the value chains relevant for this topic, across the sustainable circular bio-based system, e.g., the bio-based processing industry, including brand owners, but also researchers, feedstock producers and suppliers, regional actors, regional policy makers, consumers and civil society.

Proposals should also describe their contribution to the Specific CBE JU requirements, presented in section 2.2.3.1, and the Cross-cutting elements, highlighted in section 2.2.3.2 of the CBE JU Annual Work Programme 2023^[4].

Where relevant, proposals should seek links with and capitalise on the results of past and ongoing EU funded projects^[5], including from BBI JU^[6].

[1]For example, construction, furniture, textiles, pulp and paper industries, sawmills, etc.

[2]See documents defining the framework and criteria on: https://ec.europa.eu/info/research-and-innovation/research-area/industrial-research-and-innovation/key-enabling-technologies/advanced-materials-and-chemicals_en.

[3]More specifically, provide thresholds that can support the criteria definition and improvements for the assessment SSbD methodologies, including any specificities related with bio-based surfactants. Recommendations should also include identification of data gaps, especially safety, environmental, but also socio-economic factors, as well as priorities for data collection.

[4]CBE JU Annual Work Programme 2023 (https://www.cbe.europa.eu/reference-documents)

[5]For example, HORIZON-CL6-2021-ZEROPOLLUTION-01-06: Increasing the environmental performance of industrial processes in bio-based sectors: construction, woodworking, textiles, pulp and paper and bio-chemicals; the RIA on “Forest-based high value applications and improved forest management via “learning from nature” and non-invasive quality control” in the same CBE AWP.

[6]For example, Sweetwood, VALCHEM, INGREEN, EXILVA, VIOBON