BioRefineries Blog

Type of post: NEWS IN BRIEF. The first CBE JU call invited project proposals across 12 different topics, with the objective to advance competitive circular bio-based industries in Europe, as well as develop new circular and sustainable products and solutions for the market.  125 proposals were submitted to this call, requesting more than 600 M€ in funding. Based on the evaluation results and available CBE JU budget, 21 of them have been selected for funding: two innovation actions - flagships, eight innovation actions, ten research & innovation actions and one coordination & support action.  The successful applicants and the CBE JU Programme Office will now start preparing grant agreements to be signed by the end of May 2023 for a total amount of nearly 120  M€ . Press relase: " First 21 CBE JU projects selected for funding ", 16/01/2023.

Type of post: NEWS IN BRIEF. Steeper Energy and Topsoe sign a global licensing agreement for Steeper’s Hydrofaction® technology, enabling Topsoe to offer a complete waste-to-fuel solution. Press release: " Steeper Energy Enters Agreement with Topsoe to Introduce Complete Waste-to-Biofuel Solution ", 26/01/2023 . The agreement grants Topsoe the right to sublicense Steeper’s Hydrofaction® technology, used for converting biomass to renewable biocrude oil.  The agreement accelerates the deployment of advanced biofuels produced from waste biomass such as residues from forestry and agriculture. This is a strong pathway to renewable fuels for the transportation sector including road, aviation and shipping. The agreement combines Topsoe’s unique technologies in renewable fuels and hydrogen production as well as decades of experience in engineering with Steeper’s proprietary Hydrofaction® technology and industry know-how.  With the agreement, Topsoe will be able to provide a complete ...

Type of post: NEWS IN BRIEF. Henkel and Shell Chemical LP have agreed to a five-year collaboration to replace up to 200,000 tons of fossil feedstocks used in the manufacture of surfactants with feedstocks that are based on renewable raw materials. The renewable-based surfactants will be used in Henkel’s laundry product brands, including many varieties of Persil®, Purex® and all® brands. Surfactants are an ingredient in cleaning products that help lather and lift dirt. Press release: " Henkel signs agreement with Shell on renewable-based ingredients for Persil®, Purex® and all® brands ", 17/01/2023. Figure 1. Shell Chemical to manufacture renewable surfactants for Henkel Shell estimates that replacing up to 200,000 tons of fossil feedstocks with renewable feedstocks has the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 120,000 tons of CO2eq over the length of the five-year agreement.  Starting in 2023, up to 200,000 tons of renewable feedstocks will be used by Shell du...

Type of post: NEWS IN BRIEF. Montinutra has been granted a Circular Economy Investment Subsidy by Business Finland to build a first-of-a-kind plant to upcycle forest industry side streams. Press release: " 7 M€ funding decision from Business Finland for a plant implementation ", 18/01/2023. Figure 1.  Plant 3D draft / Feasibility study 2022 (taken from the press release) The company  develop new ingredients for future bioeconomy from  hemicellulose and lignin. Its  first ingredients will be launched under the brand Boreal Bioproducts® in personal care consumer products early 2023. This is possible with the production from our current pilot plant in Turku. Montinutra’s business model focuses on using side streams such as sawdust, wood processing residues or bark as feedstock. The production process is based on pressurized hot water extraction without the use of chemical solvents. This enables robust and cost-effective production of natural products with minimal enviro...

Type of post: NEWS. Braskem has announced a project to evaluate an investment in producing carbon negative bio-based polypropylene (PP) in USA. The project would utilize Braskem's proven, proprietary technology to convert bioethanol into physically segregated bio-based polypropylene. Braskem is exploring partnership opportunities for this project with several clients, brand owners, and suppliers. Press release: " Braskem Announces Project to Evaluate Production of Bio-Based Polypropylene ", 17/01/2023. The US is home to the largest ethanol industry production in the world and consists of ample technology, infrastructure, and supply availability for a project in the polymers' value chain. Braskem's bio-based PP would be a drop-in solution that has the same technical properties and recyclability found today in Braskem's current PP portfolio, with the additional benefit of a negative carbon footprint. As the largest PP producer in the Americas and utilizing its p...

Type of post: NEWS. Vertex is continuing to advance construction activities on its renewable diesel conversion project, which is designed to convert the Mobile, Alabama refinery’s existing hydrocracking unit to produce renewable diesel fuel on a standalone basis. Press release: " Vertex Energy Provides Operational Update for Q4 2022 ", 17/01/2023. On January 6, 2023, the Company safely completed shutdown procedures on the hydrocracker unit for the next stage of construction activities, as planned. The unit is scheduled to remain offline for a total of approximately 70 days while the project is finalized, with ultimate mechanical completion expected to occur during the final week of March, 2023. Upon completion of the project, the refinery is expected to commence production of renewable diesel in 2Q 2023. Initial volumes are planned to ramp to approximately 8 – 10 thousand barrels per day (Mbpd), with production volumes anticipated to subsequently ramp up to approximately 14 M...

Type of post: NEWS IN BRIEF. Circa Group AS and OQEMA AG have signed a supply and capacity reservation agreement for the sale of Cyrene™ into Europe. The agreement is for the market development and supply of several thousand tonnes of Cyrene™ per annum. This brings reservation commitments for Cyrene™ volumes to over 5,000 tonnes per annum, which will be supplied by Circa’s ReSolute™ plant, and the following FC6 plant, now at planning stage. Press release: " Circa and Oqema partner for multi-year distribution of Cyrene " , 17/01/2023. Related posts: - “ ReSolute project - New BBI JU flagship biorefinery will produce green solvent from wood biomass ”, 05/10/2020. - “ Circa successfully completes 56 M€ IPO that will be used to build its green solvent biorefinery ”, 03/03/2021.

Type of post: NEWS. LanzaJet petitioned the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to approve a pathway for the generation of biomass-based diesel (D-code 4) renewable identification numbers (RINs) for renewable diesel and jet fuel produced at its facility near Soperton (Georgia, USA).  Based on the EPA evaluation, the fuels produced through the LanzaJet Soperton Process are eligible for biomass-based diesel (D-code 4) RINs.  The renewable jet fuel and renewable diesel is produced from undenatured ethanol through a process of dehydration, oligomerization, and hydrotreating using grid electricity, natural gas, and hydrogen as process inputs (the “LanzaJet Soperton Process”). The undenatured ethanol is produced from sugarcane. Press release: " EPA letter to LanzaJet, Inc. approving a pathway for the generation of biomass-based diesel (D-code 4) renewable identification numbers (RINs) for renewable diesel and jet fuel produced at the Soperton, Georgia facility under the RFS Pro...

Type of post: NEWS IN BRIEF. Smart Resilin  (company producing resilin protein through genetic engineering) is joining forces with Acies Bio  (leading European biotechnology company) to found a joint company. The joint venture will see Smart Resilin's state-of-the-art technology paired with Acies Bio's advanced abilities in genetic, microbiological, and scale-up development to bring to market resilin as an environmentally beneficial game changer across industries. Press release: " Smart Resilin and Acies Bio Join Forces To Commercialize Resilin ", 09/01/2023. Recombinant structural proteins, such as resilin, are promising alternatives to conventional synthetic plastics due to their thermal and mechanical properties and potential for biodegradability. Most recombinant proteins produced for industries today are silk-based, which has a significantly lower return of energy than resilin, making it considerably less resilient: resilin has ~92% resilience, whereas silk has ...

Type of post: NEWS. The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company unveiled a demonstration tire comprised of 90% sustainable materials. This demonstration tire has passed all applicable regulatory testing as well as Goodyear’s internal testing.  This demonstration tire also tested to have lower rolling resistance when compared to the reference tire, made with traditional materials. Lower rolling resistance means this demonstration tire has the potential to offer better fuel savings and carbon footprint reduction. Press release: " GOODYEAR UNVEILS 90% SUSTAINABLE-MATERIAL DEMONSTRATION TIRE, APPROVED FOR ROAD USE ", 04/01/2023. Figure 1. 90% Sustainable-material Demonstration Tire - 17 Ingredients Across 12 Different Tire Components In addition, after announcing the capability to demonstrate a 70% sustainable-material tire in January 2022, Goodyear, working with its supply base, plans to sell a tire with up to 70% sustainable-material content in 2023. Consumers interested in purchasi...

Type of post: NEWS IN BRIEF. Bain Capital has completed a significant equity investment in EcoCeres, an innovative biorefinery company with leading R&D capabilities. The transaction follows Series A investment in EcoCeres from Kerogen Capital in February 2022. Press release: " Bain Capital completes significant equity investment in EcoCeres ", 12/01/2023. Figure 1. EcoCeres HVO plant EcoCeres is an Asia-based advanced biorefinery platform with industrial-scale production capacity that converts waste-based biomass into a wide spectrum of biofuels, biochemicals and biomaterials. The Company is one of the few players in the world to produce commercialized HVO (Hydro-treated Vegetable Oil), SAF (Sustainable Aviation Fuel), and cellulosic ethanol. It has a dedicated R&D team with strong chemical engineering backgrounds, and commercially available combined capacity of 300,000 tons per annum of HVO and SAF in operation. Through the implementation of core proprietary technolo...

Type of post: NEWS IN BRIEF. Thai Union has announced that its Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) Fund has joined other strategic and financial partners investing in France-based Algama’s 13 M€ Series A fundraising round. The funding in this round will be used to accelerate commercialization of innovations, development of new applications, and setup of a new 10,000 m2 biorefinery in Liege (Belgium). Press release: " Thai Union Corporate Venture Fund invests in French algae ingredients startup ", 11/01/2023. Figure 1. Vegan tuna and smoked salmon alternatives developed by Algama (Credit: Algama) Founded in 2013, Algama leverages its algae innovation platform to offer co-development and industrialization of algae-based ingredients for F&B players looking to replace animal protein and / or fortify their products. Algama’s flagship product, the Tamalga® range of ingredients, replaces eggs in many industrial applications, particularly in bakery and pastry. The investment in Algam...

Type of post: NEWS IN BRIEF. LANXESS and TotalEnergies have entered into a cooperation on the supply of biocircular styrene. The raw material used by TotalEnergies is based on tall oil, which is derived from a tree resin and is a by-product of pulp production. LANXESS uses the styrene to produce sustainable ion exchange resins. These products are applied primarily in the treatment of wastewater and chemical process flows as well as in the food industry. Press release: " LANXESS and TotalEnergies to cooperate on sustainable styrene ", 04/01/2023. The sustainable origin of the styrene is certified in accordance with the mass balance approach of the ISCC PLUS standard. Under mass balance approach, the certified and non-certified materials are mixed physically, but kept separately on a book keeping basis. This method allows companies to document and track the sustainable materials through the complex production process and ensures the full tracibility through the entire supply c...

Type of post: NEWS IN BRIEF. Wood will work with CuanTec Ltd. (Scottish circular economy business) to develop cutting edge separation facilities that will process shellfish waste to extract chitin, a naturally occurring, 100% compostable biopolymer with a wide range of applications in the pharmaceutical, cosmetics and food industries. Press release: " Wood and CuanTec to accelerate circular economy solutions in the UK ", 15/12/2022. The contract will see Wood provide the front-end engineering design (FEED) to deliver modifications for CuanTec’s newly acquired separation plant in Glenrothes (Scotland), followed by the expansion of that facility. Wood will then continue to provide the FEED, engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of additional new production facilities in the UK and globally which will enable mass production of CuanTec’s ultra-pure chitin and chitin-based products. CuanTec’s proprietary technologies use a novel, scientifically proven method to process s...