PBF Energy Expects Chalmette Renewable Diesel Production, Pretreatment Unit to Be Online Mid-2023

by Ron Kotrba (Biobased Diesel Daily) PBF Energy continues to advance its $600 million renewable diesel project at the Chalmette refinery in Louisiana, the company stated in its first-quarter earnings report. The project, located outside New Orleans, involves constructing a new feedstock-pretreatment unit and converting an idled hydrocracker to process up to 840,000 gallons per day of renewable diesel.

PBF Energy invested $40 million in the first quarter “to continue to progress and incubate the project with the goal of being in production in the first half of 2023,” the company stated, adding that it is continuing discussions with potential strategic and financial partners.

According to Eric Young, chief financial officer for PBF Energy, the company has already invested in total roughly $90 million in cash—15 percent of the total project cost—and plans to invest another 15 to 20 percent in the second quarter, he said on an April 28 earnings call. The bulk of the remainder of financing is expected to be funded by a partner, which Matt Lucey, president, said he expects to be shored up in coming months.
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“We anticipate startup with full pretreatment capability in the first half of next year,” Lucey said. “Importantly, the project is on time and on budget. ... "
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No specific feedstock plans were provided, although executives said on the call that the pretreatment unit will allow PBF Energy to run the most economical material available.

In August, PBF Energy announced it planned to use Ecofining™ process technology jointly developed by Honeywell’s UOP and Eni S.p.A. READ MORE

Excerpt from PBF Energy/PR Newswire: Eni Sustainable Mobility and PBF Energy Inc. (NYSE: PBF) today announced they have entered into definitive agreements to partner in a 50-50 joint venture, St. Bernard Renewables LLC (SBR), for the biorefinery currently under construction co-located with PBF's Chalmette Refinery in Louisiana (US). Upon consummation of the transaction, which is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals, Eni Sustainable Mobility will contribute capital totaling $835 million plus up to additional $50 million that is subject to the achievement of eventual project milestones and will provide expertise in biorefining operations, supply and marketing. PBF brings its strong industrial know-how in the United States and, as the contributor of the biorefinery, will continue to manage project execution and serve as the operator once construction is complete. The St. Bernard Renewables biorefinery startup is scheduled in the first half of 2023 and the facility is currently targeted to have processing capacity of about 1.1 million tonnes/year of raw materials, with full pretreatment capabilities. It will produce mainly HVO Diesel (Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil, commonly known as 'renewable diesel' in North America), with a production capacity of 306 million gallons per year. The biorefinery will use the Ecofining™ process developed by Eni in cooperation with Honeywell UOP.

This strategic partnership will leverage the experience and expertise of Eni Sustainable Mobility and PBF. Together with Ecofining™ technology, Eni brings its experience in biorefining that led to the world's first conversion of a refinery into a biorefinery in Porto Marghera (Venice) in 2014, and to the second converted biorefinery that has been working in Gela (Sicily) since 2019. The company also provides its worldwide knowledge in supplying sustainable feedstock sourcing for HVO, mainly based on oily waste and residues, and raw materials that do not compete with the food chain, coupled with access to international markets beyond PBF's footprint in the United States. PBF brings experience in large capital project execution and fuels manufacturing as well as access to the California renewables market through its existing logistics assets. The joint venture reflects both partners' commitment to deliver more sustainable transportation fuels using low carbon intensity feedstocks.

"Joining St. Bernard Renewables biorefinery project enables Eni to enter into US biofuels growing market together with a strong partner such as PBF. This is a further step for Eni Sustainable Mobility to expand its biorefining capacity, that today is over 1 million tonnes/year and it is planned to grow in the upcoming years. Following results achieved in Venice and Gela, Eni Sustainable Mobility is a pioneer in the biorefining industry, and it is also studying possible construction of two new biorefineries in Italy and in Malaysia. We do believe the role of HVO will strongly contribute to decarbonization of road transports, including hard to abate heavy duty sector, as it leverages existing infrastructure and can immediately fuel existing vehicle fleets. Biofuels are part of Eni strategy to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 through the reduction of the emissions generated during the entire products life cycle", Stefano Ballista, CEO of Eni Sustainable Mobility, said.

"We're excited to enter this strategic partnership with Eni Sustainable Mobility, a global leader in biorefining. The SBR biorefinery will benefit greatly from PBF and Eni's complementary strengths and expertise. The project will utilize existing processing infrastructure and diverse inbound and outbound logistics and is ideally situated to support growing demand for low-carbon fuels," said PBF President Matthew Lucey. "Our partnership with Eni signals a major milestone for PBF and demonstrates our commitment to contributing diversified sources of energy to the global mix while lowering the carbon intensity of our operations and the products we manufacture."

SBR will operate as an independent entity with feed procurement and product distribution managed by a dedicated team working on behalf of the St. Bernard Renewables joint venture. While the partnership is set to benefit from its co-location with PBF's Chalmette refinery through a variety of shared services, the operations and ownership of the Chalmette refinery will not be affected by the formation of the partnership.

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Citi is serving as financial advisor to PBF Energy. PBF Energy Inc. (NYSE: ) is one of the largest independent refiners in , operating, through its subsidiaries, oil refineries and related facilities in , , , and . Our mission is to operate our facilities in a safe, reliable and environmentally responsible manner, provide employees with a safe and rewarding workplace, become a positive influence in the communities where we do business, and provide superior returns to our investors. Eni Sustainable Mobility is the Eni company dedicated to sustainable mobility. The company is vertically integrated along the entire value chain to provide gradually decarbonized services and products that support the energy transition and accelerate the path to net zero emissions throughout their entire life cycle. The company incorporates existing bio-refining and biomethane assets, including the and Gela bio-refineries, and oversees the development of new projects, including the biorefineries in Livorno (), Pengerang () and in (US) which are currently under evaluation. Eni Sustainable Mobility also incorporates a network of over 5,000 sales points in to market and distribute a number of energy carriers, among them fuels of organic origin including HVO (Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil) and biomethane, as well as hydrogen and electricity, in addition to other mobility products such as bitumen, lubricants and fuels. Eni station network also support Eni's other mobility-related services such as the Enjoy car sharing service, food services and stores close to Eni's retail outlets. Eni Sustainable Mobility is directly controlled by Eni, which holds 100% of its share capital.