Italian oil and gas company Eni and leading engineering firm Saipem have signed an agreement to develop new biorefineries for hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).
In line with the decarbonisation goals of both companies, the initiative would combine Eni's technological and operational experience with Saipem's expertise in the design and construction of this type of plant, the companies said on 6 November.
Eni’s Ecofining technology would be used in the development of new biorefineries and the conversion of traditional refineries, the companies said.
As part of its plans to expand the company’s biorefining capacity from the current 1.65M tonnes/year to more than 5M tonnes/year by 2030, Eni has converted two traditional refineries – in Venice Porto Marghera and Gela, Sicily – into biorefineries to process waste feedstocks, such as used cooking oil (UCO), animal fats, agro-food industry residues and vegetable oils, using Ecofining technology. Saipem provided support on both projects.
According to its website, Saipem designs, builds and operates onshore and offshore plants in the energy and infrastructure sectors.
