The Port of Riga has announced it will produce hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) for the Baltic market in cooperation with investors from Ukraine.
Minister for Climate and Energy Kaspars Melnis visited the Port of Riga, in Latvia, on 26 November to look at the SIA PARS TERMINALS project’s planned site in Kundziņsala and to discuss other renewable energy projects, the port authority said on 27 November.
“The renewable fuel plant will strengthen energy independence …while providing Latvian farmers with stable demand for energy-intensive crops and helping Latvia to meet its climate neutrality goals,” he said during his visit.
The port of Riga is the largest port in Latvia and the second largest port in the Baltic States. In 2023, a total of 2,588 vessels arrived at the port, which handled 18.79M tonnes of cargo.
The plant would produce 93,000 tonnes/year of HVO and 87,000 tonnes/year of SAF from approximately 236,000 tonnes/year of feedstock with vegetable oils as the main feedstock, the port authority said.
The total cost of the project was estimated at up to €120M (US$127M) and it could be completed in 20 months.
“With Ukrainian partners, we will ensure economic independence from foreign supplies, shortening logistics chains and obtaining high added-value products that are currently only imported in the Baltics. This would also benefit our aviation sector, and the Latvian national airline AirBaltic would be a direct beneficiary, with immediate, significant economic benefits, especially looking beyond 2030, when at least 20% of aviation fuel will have to be renewable,” SIA PARS TERMINALS owner Armands Sadauskis said.
Located on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea at the mouth of the River Daugava in the Gulf of Riga, the Port of Riga provides access to a logistics network connecting Northern Europe.
A multifunctional port, a range of cargo – dry bulk cargo, liquid bulk cargo and general cargo – can be handled at its terminals including timber, containers, agribulk, oil products, metals, fertilisers and coal.
The port can accommodate large cargo carriers and cruise ships. In terms of vessel size, the Freeport of Riga can accommodate all vessels whose size makes it possible to sail through the Danish Sea straits and enter the Baltic Sea, including Panamax and post-Panamax type vessels with a draught of up to 15m and a length of up to 300-320m.
