Eni ends palm oil procurement for its biorefineries

In Italy, Eni has definitively ended the procurement of palm oil for use at the Venice and Gela biorefineries for the production of hydrogenated biofuels. The last shipments arrived in the last few weeks, ahead of the declared goal of becoming ‘palm oil free’ by the end of 2022.

Eni’s biorefineries in Venice and Gela are already fuelled with ‘waste & residue’ raw materials, such as used cooking oil and animal fats, for more than 85% of their processes, as well as other biomasses regulated by current national and European regulations.

In November, the first load of vegetable oil produced in the Makueni agri-hub in Kenya will arrive at the Gela biorefinery, where castor, croton and cotton seeds are pressed. These agri-feedstocks, produced by Eni, do not compete with the food chain. They are grown in degraded areas, harvested from wild trees or are derived from the enhancement of agricultural by-products. In addition to the country’s agri-feedstocks, whose production will reach 2,500 tonnes of oil by the end of 2022 and 20,000 tonnes by 2023, there is also the collection of waste and residues, including used vegetable oil, collected in Kenya. The first shipments are on their way to Italy and up to 5,000 tonnes are expected to have arrived by 2023.