Brazil’s state-run oil company Petrobras has signed a deal for Honeywell UOP technology to be used in the production of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and 100% renewable diesel.
Petrobras would use Honeywell’s hydro-processed esters and fatty acids (HEFA) technology to produce renewable fuels from soyabean oil and beef tallow at the company’s first biorefinery plant at the Presidente Bernardes Refinery (RPBC) in Cubatão municipality, São Paulo state, the company said on 30 December.
Petrobras said the facility’s HEFA unit would have the capacity to process 2,700m³/day of vegetable oils and animal fats.
The initiative is part of Petrobras’ BioRefining Programme in which the company expects to invest US$1.5bn (€1.3bn) in its refineries to develop more modern and sustainable fuels.
“This is an important milestone in Petrobras’ path to decarbonisation. Petrobras has already adapted some of its refineries with co-processing units capable of producing Diesel R5, a mixture of mineral diesel with 5% vegetable oil,” Petrobras executive officer for industrial processes and products William França said.
Overall, the company said it planned to invest US$11.5bn in energy transition and low-carbon initiatives.
