Dear reader,
According to a new study by the German Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), the damage caused by climate change will cost around 38 trillion dollars a year worldwide by 2050. These damages already exceed the costs required to limit global warming to 2°C by a factor of six in this short-term timeframe and are heavily dependent on emissions decisions thereafter. Andreas Levermann, co-author of the study, emphasised the need for a rapid transition away from fossil fuels. Attached is a brief summary of the study
The Biogas Association of India has entered into a partnership with the Hydrogen Association of India to promote bio-based energy solutions with a special focus on green and blue hydrogen. Meanwhile, NGK and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries will jointly develop a hydrogen purification system. In addition, Korean companies Hanwha Ocean, Amogy and Hanwha Aerospace have announced a partnership to decarbonise the maritime industry through ammonia-powered ships.
Salzgitter and Uniper agree on green hydrogen to be produced in Uniper’s planned electrolysis plant, which is scheduled to go into operation in Wilhelmshaven in 2028. https://www.zfk.de/energie/gas/gruener-wasserstoff-salzgitter-und-uniper-unterzeichnen-vorvertrag
TotalEnergies and Vanguard Renewables, a U.S. leader in farm-based organics-to-renewable natural gas production and a portfolio company of a fund managed by BlackRock’s Diversified Infrastructure business, have signed an agreement to create an equally owned joint venture to develop, build, and operate Farm Powered® renewable natural gas (RNG) projects in the United States. https://totalenergies.com/news/press-releases/totalenergies-and-vanguard-renewables-portfolio-company-blackrocks-diversified
The Indian government palnt to allow diversion of 670,000 tonnes of heavy B molasses for ethanol production after the ban was lifted and the ban on sugarcane-based feedstock was reinstated due to expected lower sugarcane production this season. The mills have been storing molasses stocks even before the ban came into effect on 7 December. In addition, the mills were previously allowed to convert 1.7 million tonnes of sugar into ethanol. https://www.business-standard.com/industry/news/sugar-mills-can-use-670-000-tons-of-b-heavy-molasses-to-make-ethanol-govt-124042400986_1.html
The Singapore Business Review reports that the Coastal Sustainability Alliance (CSA) will invest up to $10 million in the development and deployment of marine biofuels in Singapore. According to the report, two members of the alliance, Green COP and Ken Energy, will lead the partnership and signed a memorandum of understanding on 16 April during Singapore Maritime Week 2024. https://www.maritimegateway.com/coastal-sustainability-alliance-boosts-development-and-adoption-of-maritime-biofuel-in-singapore/
Brownfield Ag News reports ethanol production fell to its lowest level in 13 weeks on the back of seasonal maintenance, the third consecutive week in a row that production as fallen. Production reached just 954,000 barrels a day, levels not seen since mid-January, which has helped to tap into growing stocks that have now fallen to 25.733 million barrels, the lowest in nine weeks. https://www.brownfieldagnews.com/news/ethanol-production-hits-13-week-low/
Peninsula announced in Spain the launch of an IMO II chemical tanker dedicated to sustainable fuel distribution in the Western Mediterranean. The vessel is capable of delivering 100% biofuels (B100), unlike conventional tankers which are not allowed to contain more than 25% bio-components. https://www.offshore-energy.biz/peninsulas-chemical-tanker-to-supply-biofuel-in-port-of-barcelona/
Blue Biofuels announced the commencement of engineering study for a 2.4-million-gallon cellulosic ethanol facility. This endeavor is grounded in the company’s Cellulose-to-Sugar (CTS) system, which has undergone and is undergoing continuous refinement and optimization for the efficient conversion of cellulosic biomass into ethanol, the firm said. https://www.valvemagazine.com/news/blue-biofuels-announces-commencement-of-engineering-study-for-ethanol-plan
The DECHEMA report ‘Carbon for Power-to-X – Suitable CO2 Sources and Integration in PtX Value Chains’ deals with the possibilities of capturing and utilising carbon dioxide for sustainable production pathways. Carbon dioxide can serve as a carbon source for numerous climate-friendly raw materials produced with Power-to-X technologies. https://dechema.de/Forschung/Studien+und+Positionspapiere/2024+04+Carbon+for+Power_to_X+%E2%80%93+Suitable+CO2+sources+and+integration+in+PtX+value+chains-p-20480537.html
Cepsa has signed an agreement with Evos, a liquid energy and chemical products storage company with several centers in strategic locations in Europe, to allow the storage of green methanol, which Cepsa will produce, at Evos facilities in Algeciras and Rotterdam. https://www.cepsa.com/en/press/cepsa-and-evos-boosting-green-methanol-storage
Peninsula successfully conclued the first B30 biofuel supply deal in Zeebrugge, Belgium, in collaboration with the Japanese shipping company, Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK). The deal, which marks a significant milestone in sustainable fuel distribution, saw the delivery of 1,200 metric tons of B30. https://shipandbunker.com/news/emea/361828-peninsula-completes-first-biofuel-bunker-supply-at-zeebrugge
STX Group and Norsk e-Fuel recently announced their partnership to promote biogenic CO2 deliveries to future Norsk e-Fuel production sites for fossil free fuels across the Nordics. The collaboration between STX Group and Norsk e-Fuel aims to address key challenges currently hindering the growth of the European Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage (CCUS) market, such as insufficient CO2 transportation infrastructure and scalable CO2 source availability. https://stxgroup.com/article/stx-group-and-norsk-e-fuel-partner-to-boost-biogenic-co2-delivery/
Nigeria has signed an agreement with Shell to supply gas for the planned $3.8bn methanol plant in Brass, clearing a key hurdle to a final investment decision on the project. Niegeria has the largest natural gas reserves in Africa, totalling over 200 trillion cubic feet, and has struggled to develop the resource due to capital constraints and lack of infrastructure, according to the report. http://web.sabc.co.za/sabc/home/channelafrica/economy/details?id=4b4e54e4-debb-4a8e-ae8b-6ee97558f681&title=Nigeria%20secures%20Shell%20gas%20supply%20for%20$3.8bn%20brass%20methanol%20project
Dutch PostNL and its subsidiary Spring GDS will feed around four million litres of HVO100 into the European diesel network from Monday. This is an important next step on the road to a cleaner and more sustainable logistics industry, as it will result in around 12,000 tonnes less carbon being released into the environment every year – the equivalent of driving almost 5,000 petrol-powered cars for twelve months. https://www.postnl.nl/en/about-postnl/press-news/news/unique-move-postnl-adds-four-million-litres-in-biofuels-to-european-diesel-network/
In Germany, synthetic rubber is indispensable today, especially for car tires and technical rubber goods. Until now, the raw materials for its production have largely been obtained from fossil sources. Under the leadership of the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Polymer Research IAP, four Fraunhofer Institutes are now developing alternative, biobased raw material sources for synthetic rubber, which will enable completely new types of rubber for car tires. The three-year project is being funded by Fraunhofer with 3.25 million euros and starts in April 2024. https://www.umsicht.fraunhofer.de/en/press-media/press-releases/2024/bio-based-synthetic-rubber.html