Romania’s OMV Petrom invests EUR 750 million in biofuels

Bucharest-headquartered energy conglomerate OMV Petrom will invest EUR 750 million at Petrobrazi to transform the refinery into the first major producer of sustainable fuels in the region. The company has made the final investment decision to build a SAF/HVO facility along with two facilities for green hydrogen which will be used in the production of biofuels.

Christina Verchere, CEO, OMV Petrom, announced, “We are moving forward with our transformation, in addition to our new renewable power projects, today we have taken a decisive step towards decarbonizing transport in Romania. In total, by 2030, we’re committing EUR 11 billion to transform the company for a lower carbon future, both in Romania and the region.”

Radu Căprău, OMV Petrom Executive Board Member responsible for Refining and Marketing, added, “Together with electro-mobility, biofuels are the answer to low carbon transport, and we expect a gradual increase in demand for these products.”

SAF/HVO production facility

OMV Petrom said that the investments for this unit amount to EUR 560 million.  The plant will have a production capacity of 250 kt/year, of SAF and HVO as well as by-products like bio-naphtha and bio-LPG, which are used in the chemical industry.

The plant will have an annual consumption of 11 kt of hydrogen, most of which will be provided by the two new green hydrogen production units.

The investment for the two green hydrogen units is estimated at EUR 190 million, of which up to EUR 50 million is from European funds, through the National Plan for Recovery and Resilience (NPRR).

The two units will have a total capacity of 55 MW, with a total annual production of green hydrogen estimated at around 8 kt. Integrating green hydrogen into sustainable fuels, such as sustainable aviation fuel and renewable diesel, will result in at least a 70% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to conventional fuels.

Petrobrazi is the first refinery in the country certified to produce SAF and HVO through the co-processing of biological raw materials.

In order to ensure access to a safe source of raw materials to produce biofuels, OMV Petrom has acquired a 50% stake in “Respiră Verde”, a leader in the collection of used cooking oil in Romania. “Respiră Verde” collects up to 10 kt of used edible oil per year from economic agents in fields such as the hospitality industry (hotels, restaurants) and retail.

In 2020, OMV Petrom announced its support for the recommendations issued by the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) regarding risks and opportunities on climate change.