At a hearing held on September 4, 2029, at Palacio de Los López in Asunción, the President of Paraguay Mario Abdo Benítez received a briefing on the progress of ECB Group's Omega Green biorefinery project – a one of a kind advanced biofuels plant and the largest in the Southern Hemisphere – from ECB Group's CEO, Erasmo Carlos Battistella.
According to a statement, ECB Group has selected a site for the proposed US$800 million Omega Green renewable fuel biorefinery in the city of Villeta, located about 45 km from the capital, Asunción. Furthermore, financial partners for the project have also been selected and will be announced in the coming weeks.
In addition, applications for environmental permits have been filed for the start of construction of the plant, which is estimated to take place in the first half of 2020. The implementation of the plant is expected to last 30 months, and the intention is to have full production capacity from 2022.
Omega Green will have a nameplate production capacity of up to 20 000 barrels-per-day (bpd), approximately 3.18 million litres, of renewable diesel and kerosene (sustainable aviation fuel – SAF), making it the largest of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere.
This volume is enough to cover more than one-third of current domestic fossil diesel consumption in Paraguay. However, most of this production is expected to be exported to Paris Agreement signatory countries, which need to accelerate the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by replacing fossil oil products.
Omega Green project has taken important steps in recent months, both financially and in technical studies. This venture will be a milestone not only in renewable energy but also in Paraguay’s economic development. More than an investment, we are promoting an alliance with the country, said Erasmo Carlos Battistella, CEO, ECB Group.
Low energy consumption
The Omega Green project aims to be a milestone in renewable fuel production by adopting an unprecedented clean and sustainable process. The manufacturing will have as raw material inputs of organic and renewable origin, produced in areas “without environmental liabilities”, and will be powered with energy from renewable sources only.
ECB Group also revealed that it has decided on a “low-power” mode of production – of the 300 MW estimated at the beginning of the project, it is now expected that the plant would require only 40 MW representing an 85 percent reduction in the energy required for plant operation.
Our goal is to have the cleanest and most renewable production possible among the world’s most advanced biofuels, certified by the strictest international quality and sustainability criteria, said Erasmo Carlos Battistella.
The project anticipates signing contracts with the engineering and technology service providers that will be responsible for the construction of the complex in the near future.
