Reims is worldwide known as the capital of Champagne, the excellent sparkling wine that is made in the Champagne region of France using the traditional method (méthode traditionnelle). Founded by the Gauls, Reims became a major city in the Roman Empire and played later a prominent ceremonial role in French monarchical history as the traditional site of the coronation of the kings of France. From 19 to 21 March Reims will be also the capital of the industrial biotechnology and bio-based economy.
Airbus and TotalEnergies signed a strategic partnership to meet the challenges of aviation decarbonization with sustainable aviation fuel. In line with the objective of achieving net carbon neutrality of aviation by 2050, this partnership aims to contribute to the reduction of the sector’s CO2 emissions, in which Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF) play a key role. SAF supplied by TotalEnergies – the Franch company claims – can reduce up to 90% CO2 emissions over lifecycle compared to their fossil fuel equivalent. These are biofuels produced from waste and residues from the circular economy (animal fats, used cooking oils, etc.) and “e-jets”, synthetic fuels for aviation.
“In future, I believe that regulation, consumer behaviour and sustainability will force the traditional petrochemical industry to rethink and find alternative ways to move forward.” To say it – in this exclusive interview with Il Bioeconomista – is Bertel Karlstedt, the new CEO of Circa Group, the Oslo-headquartered biochemical company, which is listed on Euronext.
Interview by Mario Bonaccorso
Evonik and Uniper officially launched the Technical Options for Thermal Energy Recovery (TORTE) project in Gelsenkirchen. As one of the first phases of Evonik’s ‘Herne Green Deal’ to sustainably transform the Herne chemical site, the TORTE project will feed industrial waste heat from isophorone production into the district heating network. Around 1,000 homes in the Ruhr region will be supplied by the end of 2024.
Green COP, a Singapore-headquartered deep-tech start-up in sustainable fuel solutions, successfully garnered substantial funding from a curated group of angel investors, including a corporate investor, Ken Energy Pte. Ltd., positioning itself for accelerated growth and groundbreaking advancements in the sustainability landscape.
Enerkem will be retiring its Enerkem Alberta Biofuels (EAB) plant in Edmonton. According to the Canadian company the facility achieved its main objective of completing the commercial scale-up of Enerkem’s industry-leading technology. With more than 15,000 hours of operation producing ethanol and methanol (ISCC EU and ISCC PLUS certified), the plant facilitated the validation by strategic industry players and other third parties of Enerkem’s innovative waste-to-biofuels platform. It also allowed Enerkem to attract global partners and investors while developing a world-class team with expertise in design and deployment of advanced gasification technology.
There is a new company in the global bioeconomy: Novonesis. On December 12, 2022, Novozymes and Chr. Hansen entered into an agreement to create a leading global biosolutions partner through a statutory merger of the two companies. All regulatory approvals and registrations are now in place and the proposed combination is successfully completed following the final registration with the Danish Business Authority.
The Commission published a detailed impact assessment on possible pathways to reach the agreed goal of making the European Union climate neutral by 2050. Based on this impact assessment, the Commission recommends a 90% net greenhouse gas emissions reduction by 2040 compared to 1990 levels, launching a discussion with all stakeholders; a legislative proposal will be made by the next Commission, after the European elections, and agreed with the European Parliament and Member States as required under the EU Climate Law. This recommendation is in line with the advice of the European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change (ESABCC) and the EU’s commitments under the Paris Agreement.
Eni confirms its decision to build Italy’s third biorefinery in Livorno. The project, first announced in October 2022 and followed by an application for Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) in November 2022, is awaiting official authorisations and includes the construction of three new facilities for the production of hydrogenated biofuels: a biogenic feedstock pre-treatment unit; a 500,000 tonnes/year Ecofining™ plant; and a facility to produce hydrogen from methane gas.
Helios Resins, a Slovenian based producer of advanced coating- and composite resins, signed a capacity reservation agreement for FDCA (furandicarboxylic acid) developed by Avantium, a leading company in renewable and circular polymer materials. FDCA is a raw material whose commercial applications include coating resins, surfactants, polyamides, polyurethanes and the 100% plant-based polymer material PEF (polyethylene furanoate).
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