Advanced BioFuels USA

by Sean Goulding Carroll (EURACTIV.com) The list of EU-approved sustainable fuel sources should be expanded to meet the higher targets for second-generation biofuels under the updated renewable energy directive, according to the advanced biofuels industry.

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The leaked draft also includes an increase in the renewables target for transport, from 14% to 26%, and an increase in the sub-target for advanced biofuels, from 3.5% to 5.5%.

Environmental groups have expressed doubts that the target can be met, because advanced biofuels are made from agricultural waste or residues from the forest industry, which are limited in supply.

But the industry dismisses those doubts, saying an enlarged list of approved feedstocks will enable producers to meet the EU’s higher goals using a wider range of renewable energy sources.

“We are confident the higher [advanced biofuels] targets will be met but it is also critically important to see how the Commission enlarges the feedstock list for advanced biofuels which is done separately through a delegated act,” said Marko Janhunen of UPM Biofuels, a Finnish company which produces wood-based alternatives to fossil-based transport fuels.

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UPM Biofuels is part of the Advanced Biofuels Coalition LSB, an industry body that comprises 11 companies, which are set to benefit from the reform.

The group says advanced cellulosic ethanol produced from grasses, wood, or algae, are a climate-neutral solution readily available to decarbonise cars or trucks that are currently running on internal combustion engines.

“By the end of this year, Europe’s first commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol production plant will be completed by the Swiss company Clariant in Southwest Romania,” the group said in a statement. The plant will produce advanced biofuels made form agricultural residues, such as cereal straw, corn stover, rice straw, or sugarcane bagasse. And other cellulosic ethanol projects are also underway in Slovakia, Poland, and Bulgaria using Clariant’s technology.

Authorised feedstocks for biofuels are set out in Annex IX of the renewable energy directive, which is coming under revision next week as part of a broader package of EU climate laws. The package aims to cut the EU’s CO2 emissions by 55% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels as an interim step towards carbon neutrality by 2050.

As a delegated act, the European Commission may add to the list of approved feedstocks in Annex IX based on scientific advice. However, it may not remove items. Currently recognised feedstocks include waste items such as animal manure, sewage sludge, and straw.

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It (the Advanced Biofuels Coalition) cited a 2014 study by the International Council on Clean Transportation, which said around 225 million tons of residues could be available in the EU to produce advanced biofuel, with the potential to supply 16% of road transport fuel in 2030.

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The aviation sector has called for scarce waste feedstocks to be used solely to produce green jet fuel, arguing that, unlike aircraft, road vehicles have efficient decarbonisation alternatives such as electrification.

However, Vierhout (Robert Vierhout of Enerkem) rejects the argument that advanced biofuels should be ringfenced for selected transport sectors.

“Aviation and maritime sectors are future markets: Advanced biofuels provide a huge potential for de-fossilising the aviation and maritime sectors for decades to come. Still, advanced biofuels should not be exclusively reserved for aviation and maritime transport,” he said.

“To set the right path, these sectors should be mandated in addition to the current advanced biofuels mandate in RED II,” he added, referencing the renewable energy directive.  READ MORE