Italian oil and gas company Eni has stopped the procurement of palm oil for use at its Venice and Gela refineries, the company announced on 25 October.
The last shipments arrived in the middle of October, in line with the company’s goal of becoming 'palm oil free' by the end of 2022, Eni said.
Prior to the move, Eni said its refineries in Venice and Gela were fuelled with “waste and residue” raw materials, such as used cooking oil (UCO) and animal fats, for more than 85% of their processes, as well as other biomasses regulated by current national and European regulations.
In November, the first load of vegetable oil produced at Eni’s Makueni agri-hub in Kenya was scheduled to arrive at the Gela biorefinery, where castor, croton and cotton seeds are pressed, the company said.
“These agri-feedstocks, produced by Eni, do not compete with the food chain. They are grown in degraded areas, harvested from wild trees or are derived from the enhancement of agricultural by-products,” the company said.
“In addition to the country's agri-feedstocks, whose production will reach 2,500 tonnes of oil by the end of 2022 and 20,000 tonnes by 2023, there is also the collection of waste and residues, including used vegetable oil, collected in Kenya. The first shipments are on their way to Italy and up to 5,000 tonnes are expected to have arrived by 2023.”
Eni's biorefineries produce hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) biodiesel and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).
