News Energy
Fuel from straw must open up the ethanol market
The Swiss company Clariant opens its doors on October 15th opened of a completely new ethanol plant in Romania. Straw is processed here into high-quality biofuel for the automotive and aircraft industry. The blending of this new generation of biofuels is mandatory by the EU.
Clariant previously built a factory on a small scale for the high-quality ethanol, which bears the Sunliquid brand name. Production will now take place on a large scale in Romania. On an annual basis, the company aims to process 250.000 tons of straw into 50.000 tons of ethanol. This means that 'food' such as maize, sugar or wheat is no longer processed, but a by-product.
Cellulose ethanol
Sunliquid is a kind of cellulosic ethanol. By adding an enzyme to the straw, the sugars are removed from the cell wall soaked off. This sugar solution is fermented and the result is ethanol. According to the producer, the big advantage is that the factory only processes waste products and no primary products such as the grain itself. A Dutch farmer probably has a different view on this, but in Romania it is easy to get straw.
CEO Conrad Keijzer sees a bright future for the producer, he says. "The European Union obliges fuel producers to mix in at least 0,2% of these second-generation biofuels from 2022. This applies to the transport sector. The percentage increases to 2,2% by 2030. Clariant also sees opportunities for the aircraft industry and the chemical industry. The Dutch CEO Keijzer held a senior position within AkzoNobel until 2017, before he quietly left for Switzerland.
Worldwide
Ethanol production will start this quarter. The straw is supplied by a total of 300 farmers with whom contracts have been concluded. In addition to wheat, corn straw can also be used. Clariant has now sold the technology under license to five companies in Europe and China. Because by-products are used, the CO2 footprint is much lower than the 'first generation' bioethanols, according to the producer.
Niels van der Boom
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