Spain-headed oil and multi-energy major Repsol S.A has announced that it has successfully completed the production of the Spanish market's first batch of aviation biofuels. This milestone enables the company to advance in the production of low-carbon fuels for industries such as aviation, where alternatives like electrification are not viable today. Consisting of 7 000 tonnes, this first batch of biojet blended aviation fuel was produced at Repsol's Puertollano Industrial Complex in Ciudad Real.
According to Repsol, more batches of aviation bio-blended fuel will continue to be manufactured at other facilities of the Group across Spain and through initiatives using biofuels derived from waste at a later time. The first batch consists of 7 000 tonnes of aviation fuel with a biojet blend under 5 percent in order to meet the quality standards established by international specifications.
With respect to this biojet, testing was carried out to identify the most adequate raw material in order to meet the stringent requirements of the Jet A1 regarding performance in low temperatures and additional quality controls. Moreover, numerous tests were conducted to determine the most adequate concentration of biofuel.
In Spain, the Integrated National Climate and Energy Plan acknowledges that biofuels currently represent the most widely available and used renewable technology in transportation. In the aviation sector, the biojet derived from biomass or waste is currently the only alternative, and it is included in the list of sustainable fuels.
Net-zero emissions target
In December 2o19 Repsol announced that it was aligning its strategy towards becoming a net-zero emissions company by 2050 in accordance with the Paris Agreement making it one of few companies in the sector to set this ambitious goal.
Promoting biofuels, along with renewable generation, synthetic fuels, green hydrogen, self-consumption, and the circular economy, is one of Repsol’s key lines of work to achieve its carbon neutrality target by 2050.
Furthermore, Repsol aims to double its annual production of renewable fuels (HVO) from vegetable oils to 600 000 tonnes by 2030, half of which will be produced from waste oil feedstocks before 2025.
This year, the company says that it will reduce its Carbon Intensity Indicator by 3 percent compared to the 2016 benchmark, cut carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in all its business, and significantly increase its renewable generation capacity.
Green hydrogen and e-fuels
In June 2020, the company announced the launch of two major pioneering decarbonization industrial projects at the Petronor refinery. The first project involves the construction of one of the largest plants in the world for producing net-zero emissions fuels from CO2 and green hydrogen, generated with renewable energy.
This facility will set a new benchmark in Europe thanks to the cutting-edge technology applied and the use of captured CO2 as a raw material in the Petronor refinery. The second project is a plant for generating biogas from urban waste, which will replace part of the traditional fuels used in Petronor’s production process.
