A new pilot plant heralded as “the world’s first direct solid biomass-into-diesel fuel operation” has opened onsite at an ONV refinery in Schwechat, Austria. Source: Bioenergy News
The second-generation fuels will be extracted from biomass at the plant using waste products, like woodchips and straw, from the agricultural and forestry sectors, but without the use of food.
The BioCrack technology-powered plant is a joint venture by Austrian industrial company OMV and customised bioplant construction company BDI Bioenergy International, with support from the Austrian Climate and Energy Fund and the Federal Ministry for Transport, Innovation and Technology (BMVIT), and is set to meet growing European diesel demand.
“The European fuel market faces considerable challenges: it must meet the growing demand for diesel and raise the renewable energy share in the transport fuel sector to at least 10 per cent by 2020,” said OMV CEO Gerhard Roiss.
“Conventional first-generation biofuels are not a long-term solution because the cultivation of the necessary raw materials competes with food production. Our refineries are well-positioned and the BioCrack technology that was developed in partnership with BDI is a further response by us to the changing conditions.”
“There are high expectations worldwide for second-generation biofuels and this new pilot plant represents true pioneering work by domestic companies and researchers,” said BMVIT minister Doris Bures.
The plant has been an on-going project since 2009.
