Zug, Switzerland, 14^th June 2022 - Taaleri's associated company Fintoil has signed a significant offtake agreement with the Swiss company VARO Energy (“VARO”). At the same time, Taaleri and VARO agreed on strategic cooperation for sustainable development in the context of the energy transition. Taaleri owns 24% of Fintoil.

According to the agreement between Fintoil and VARO, VARO will buy crude fatty acid from Fintoil. The agreement covers a significant part of the refinery's crude fatty acid production. The raw material of this feedstock is a by-product of softwood pulp, crude tall oil (CTO) qualifying for advanced biofuels as defined by the European Commission’s list, meaning it does not compete for the raw material with the food or feed chain.

“Taaleri and VARO have a similar strategy and common ambitions, so our intention is to develop and deepen our cooperation in several areas,” says Juhani Elomaa, Chairman of the Board of Taaleri Plc. “Taaleri’s vision is to be a Nordic forerunner in alternative investments focusing on sustainability.”

“VARO wants to be a frontrunner in offering renewable and carbon-neutral energy solutions to meet our customers’ changing energy needs”, said Dev Sanyal, CEO of VARO. “Through this strategic, long-term partnership between VARO and Fintoil we are able to secure important volumes of feedstock, which plays a critical role in our capabilities to offer sustainable energy solutions to our customers today and in future.”

Fintoil's Hamina biorefinery will become operational in Q3 2022. In addition to crude fatty acids, the plant will refine biochemicals for the chemical, food and pharmaceutical industries. The biorefinery has an annual refining capacity of 200,000 tonnes of CTO feedstock. Fintoil aims at a revenue of EUR 150 million and will employ 35 persons directly and an estimated 100 persons indirectly. Fintoil’s refinery utilizes the patented NEXPINUS™ technology provided by Neste Engineering Solutions, which enables more than 40% lower energy consumption in comparison to a traditional tall oil refinery. When completed, the Hamina biorefinery will be the world's fourth-largest crude tall oil refinery.