OMV Petrom, the largest integrated energy producer in Southeast Europe, will invest around 750 million euros in Petrobrazi to transform the refinery into the first major producer of sustainable fuels in the region. The company has made the final investment decision for the construction of a SAF/HVO facility and for the construction of two green hydrogen production facilities that will be used in the process of obtaining biofuels. Thus, OMV Petrom is building a plant for the production of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) and diesel from renewable sources (HVO) and two plants for the production of green hydrogen.
Starting from 2028, the company can supply around 250 kt/year of sustainable fuels.
“We are moving forward with our transformation and, in addition to the new renewable energy projects, today we took a decisive step for the decarbonization of transport in Romania. In total, until 2030, we committed to allocate 11 billion euros, to transform the company for a future with low carbon emissions, in Romania and in the region,” says Christina Verchere, CEO of OMV Petrom.
“Together with electro-mobility, biofuels are the answer for low-carbon transport and we expect a gradual increase in demand for these products. Thanks to the investments we announced today, we will be able to replace imports with biofuels produced here in Romania. For our customers, this means product certainty and less carbon emissions. We want to be the first choice for our customers in the future and offer them the products they need,” adds Radu Căprău, member of the OMV Petrom Directorate, responsible for Refining and Marketing.
SAF/HVO production facility
The investments for this unit amount to 560 million euros. The facility will have a production capacity of 250 kt/year of SAF and HVO, as well as bio-naphtha and bio-LPG, products used in the chemical industry. The flexibility of the facility allows the resulting product mix to be adjusted according to market demand and the available raw material mix. The installation has an annual consumption of about 11 kt of hydrogen, most of which will be provided by the two new green hydrogen production units. HVO, or hydrotreated vegetable oil, is also known as renewable diesel, green diesel or biodiesel. This is a low-carbon fuel produced by processing renewable residual lipids.
Green hydrogen for sustainable fuel production
Investments for the two green hydrogen installations are estimated at approximately 190 million euros, of which up to 50 million from European funds, through the National Plan for Recovery and Resilience (PNRR). OMV Petrom and the Ministry of Energy signed the financing contracts at the beginning of this year.
The two installations will have a total capacity of 55 MW. The total annual amount of green hydrogen to be produced has been estimated at around 8 kt.
Integrating green hydrogen into the process of obtaining biofuels, such as sustainable aviation fuel and biodiesel, will result in at least a 70% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to conventional fuels.
Petrobrazi is the first refinery in the country certified for the production of SAF and HVO by co-processing biological raw materials.
To ensure its access to a safe source of raw materials to produce biofuels, OMV Petrom 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.