Ladies and gentlemen,
In 2024, it is more urgent than ever for world leaders to improve access to affordable and reliable energy in a technology-neutral way, while taking bold action to mitigate climate change. Global leaders must implement nothing less than monumental solutions.
Atlanic Councel, in its Global Energy Agenda 2024, financial experts, business leaders and government officials have shared their perspectives on how the world can rise to this challenge. Along with these essays, in-depth analysis of views from the energy community will set the agenda for the world to achieve net zero emissions and an energy secure future for all.
The analysis of over 600 climate and energy experts found:
62% believe that current wars or new interstate conflicts pose the greatest risk in energy geopolitics in 2024.
51% assume that natural gas will remain in the energy mix as a supplement to low-carbon technologies.
67% cite a lack of political will as the main obstacle to preventing net zero targets.
68% say that extreme weather events will play a very important role in the pace of the energy transition.
56% believe that achieving net zero by 2050 will boost economic growth.
Watch now on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GY-DoADfMe0
Attached is a circular from ufop with BAFA statistics and comments on the fuel/biofuel market.
Green COP, a deep-tech sustainable fuel solutions startup in Singapore, announced the successful completion of its angel investment round. With the newly raised funds, Green COP is ready to build a sustainable biofuels pilot plant with a daily production capacity of 1 ton. The company has raised significant funding from a curated group of angel investors, including investor, Ken Energy Pte. https://bioenergyinternational.com/singaporean-biofuel-startup-secures-angel-investors/
Airbus and TotalEnergies have signed a strategic partnership to address the challenges of decarbonizing aviation with sustainable aviation fuel. In line with the goal of achieving net carbon neutrality in aviation by 2050, this partnership aims to help reduce the sector’s carbon emissions, with sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) playing a key role. SAFs supplied by TotalEnergies can reduce lifecycle CO2 emissions by up to 90% compared to fossil fuels. A research and innovation program is investigating with the aim of developing 100% sustainable fuels tailored to the design of current and future aircraft. The influence of the composition of sustainable aviation fuels on the reduction of CO2 emissions and non-CO2 effects, such as: B. contrails. https://www.airbus.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2024-02-airbus-and-totalenergies-sign-strategic-partnership-for-sustainable
In Germany, Covestro is pushing ahead with the implementation of a process for producing the chemical aniline, which is based entirely on plant biomass instead of petroleum. The company has now put a special pilot plant into operation at the Leverkusen location. Large quantities of bio-based aniline will initially be produced there so that the new technology can be further developed in terms of production technology and transferred to an industrial scale. https://www.covestro.com/investors/news/worlds-first-pilot-plant-for-bio-based-aniline/
U.S. Gov. Kristi Noem held a signing ceremony in South Dakota last week for an E15 fuel tax refund. “Renewable fuels are a very important part of America’s overall energy supply, and ethanol is critical to South Dakota’s future. The Biden Administration’s policies have driven up gasoline prices for South Dakotans, and this bill will provide our citizens the relief they need,” said Governor Noem. “This will make higher quality ethanol blends more readily available and lower prices at the pump. We are committed to a comprehensive approach to energy that does not pick winners and losers, but lowers prices for all South Dakotans.” https://news.sd.gov/news?id=news_kb_article_view&sys_id=6945448f1bd40a1091ac8777624bcb51
The US Secretary of Agriculture is confident that E15 will be available year-round nationwide by 2025. Anonymous sources told Reuters that Midwest governors’ request for full-year E15 in 2022 would likely be approved by the end of March, but implementation would be delayed until next year. The Secretary also noted that the GREET decision on sustainable aviation fuel pathways would include climate-smart agriculture and a range of raw material production practices. https://www.agri-pulse.com/articles/20684-vilsack-confident-about-e15-nationwide-in-2025
Aircastle, Air New Zealand, Embraer, Google, HIS, Natixis Corporate & Investment Banking, Safran Corporate Ventures and Technip Energies are now among the 22 corporate partners that make up the company. The airline’s United Airlines Ventures Sustainable Flight Fund is a first-of-its-kind initiative to reduce emissions and promote the production of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) by investing in startups. https://aviationbusinessjournal.aero/highlight/united-adds-new-corporate-partners-to-sustainable-flight-fund/
TruAlt Bioenergy plans to increase its Indian ethanol production by 270,000 liters per day in the next fiscal year and invest up to $72 million to set up ten additional ethanol plants. Current production is around 2 million liters per day in 5 plants. The company is also investing a similar amount in collaboration with GAIL to set up compressed biogas plants, each of which will produce 100,000 kg of biogas from organic waste and food waste. https://www.projectstoday.com/News/TruAlt-Bioenergy-to-further-capacity-expansion-with-Rs-600-cr-investment
America’s Travel Centers and Truckstops, NACS, NATSO and SIGMA: America’s leading fuel marketers sent a letter to Senator Tom Carper, chairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee, urging him to drop his opposition to sales of higher ethanol fuel blends. His opposition to draft laws that would allow the sale of motor gasoline containing 15% ethanol (E15) during the summer months. https://www.natso.com/topics/tag/sigma
VARO Energy and Orim Energy are working together to supply biofuels to shipping customers in the Port of Rotterdam – and the wider Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) region. The agreement supports the decarbonization of maritime transport and inland waterway transport in Northern Europe. It also contributes to the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) broader goals of reducing total annual greenhouse gas emissions from shipping by at least 20% by 2030 and by at least 70% by 2050 compared to 2008 levels. https://www.offshore-energy.biz/varo-partners-with-orim-energy-to-provide-biofuels-in-amsterdam-rotterdam-antwerp-region/
Port of Aveiro, Portugal, has made the first delivery of a ship using eco-bunker biofuel. The delivery of 50 tons of eco-bunker from Prio to the FWN SUN ship of Schulte & Bruns Nederland BV was carried out using a tanker. The B20 eco-bunker is made from marine diesel with 20% renewable energy from waste. According to the producing company, the use of this biofuel in this case makes it possible to reduce CO2 emissions by 40 tons and greenhouse gas emissions by up to 87.8%. https://bunkermarket.com/prio-completes-first-bunker-supply-of-b20-in-aveiro-port/
The Irish Bioenergy Association (IrBEA) has published a guide to Specified Biomass Harvesting (SBH) as part of sustainable forest management. Ireland has grown a significant forest resource over the past century since independence, with much of this forest resource now reaching harvest stage. Maximizing the value of this harvest, while protecting the forest environment and optimizing future crops are challenges that are being addressed through sustainable forest management. https://www.irbea.org/irbea-launches-guide-delivery-sustainable-renewable-fuel-fibre/
Braya Renewable Fuels has begun commercial operations in Canada. This marks the successful completion of the refinery conversion project and is the start of providing reliable renewable fuels for the energy transition. Braya expects an initial production capacity of 18,000 barrels per day of renewable diesel. Future plans include expanding production capacity, adding sustainable aviation fuel production capacity and exploring green hydrogen production. On-site production of renewable diesel, sustainable aviation fuel and green hydrogen provides proven alternatives to fossil fuels and significantly reduces carbon emissions in hard-to-reduce sectors such as heavy transport, aviation and heavy industry. https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/braya-renewable-fuels-commences-commercial-operations-876703349.html
UAE-based Noor Oil will work with Beeah Group to establish a supply chain for used cooking oil. Customers can obtain used cooking oil bottles from various outlets to collect their oil and then drop it off at one of Beeah’s five used cooking oil collection centers. It is expected that at least 2,000 Noor customers will begin using the used cooking oil collection service, which will then increase the supply of biofuel feedstock and save up to 2 million liters of water annually. https://www.zawya.com/en/press-release/companies-news/noor-oil-iffco-groups-flagship-brand-collaborates-with-beeah-to-sustainably-recycle-used-cooking-oil-into-bio-diesel-wkynxis9
Researchers at ETH Zurich are developing a new method to remove CO2 from the atmosphere. These are molecules that become acidic when exposed to light. Their new process requires significantly less energy than conventional technologies. The scientists take advantage of the fact that CO2 exists as CO2 in acidic aqueous liquids, but reacts in alkaline aqueous liquids to form salts of carbonic acid, so-called carbonates. https://ethz.ch/en/news-and-events/eth-news/news/2024/01/capturing-greenhouse-gases-with-the-help-of-light.html