UOP’s Ecofining Tech Linked to Massive Renewable Diesel Project in Ohio

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August 5, 2014

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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Will the old Buckeye Ethanol site in South Point, Ohio be transformed into an ultra-modern base for renewable diesel and jet fuel blendstocks?
That’s the vision for a new project origination team that is talking about 1.2B gallons of capacity. Possible? The Digest investigates.
From Ohio, word has been going around this week of a 120 million gallon renewable diesel and jet fuel project that’s been announced for South Point, in Lawrence County in the southeastern part of the Buckeye State. Scheduled for completion in 2017.
One slight mystery from the story that first appeared on PR Newswire was the nature of the technology – was it proprietary, or based on an existing system such as the Dynamic Fuels or Honeywell UOP technology?
The Digest has learned that the massive proposed project utilizes Honeywell UOP technology — a licensing agreement has been signed between SG Preston and Honeywell’s UOP unit, according to SG Preston CEO R. Delbert “Randy” LeTang.
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It’s the 4th commercial-scale project in the news this year based on Honeywell UOP/Eni Ecofining technology. A massive $800 million aviation jet fuel project developed by Petrixo for the Emirates was announced last month, and the 133 million gallon Diamond Green Diesel project (a JV of Darling International and Valero) is already completed and started operations in mid-May.
Commercial scale production of Green Diesel started in April 2014 in the ENI biorefinery located in Venice, Italy — which will supply fuel to the Italian fleet, among other customers.
But the project may end up having more in common with Emerald Biofuels — an 85 million project announced for Louisiana in 2012, and which picked up Defense Department support last year via a small project development grant — and which is also based on the Ecofining technology. The two projects — this one by SG Preston and that one by Emerald — are the first two we have publicly announced which are being developed by entrepreneurs rather than established major players in refining, such as Eni, Petrixo or Valero. READ MORE and MORE (SG Preston)

Editor’s note (8/6/2014): A clarification was received from Honeywell UOP:
“The story stating SG Preston has entered into a license agreement with UOP for Ecofining technology is incorrect. SG Preston has not signed a formal agreement to license UOP technology.”

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