MME propõe aliança global para fomentar biocombustíveis
O ministro de Minas e Energia, Alexandre Silveira, propôs a criação de uma agência global para financiar a adoção de energias renováveis, em meio a esforços do Brasil para liderar a corrida mundial pela descarbonização.
Silveira compartilhou a iniciativa durante uma reunião da Aliança Global dos Biocombustíveis, no Fórum Econômico Mundial, em Davos, na Suíça, em 18 de janeiro.
Atualmente, o Brasil ocupa a presidência do G20, o que fornece "o foro necessário para consolidar os biocombustíveis como importantes vetores de promoção da transição energética", disse o ministro.
O diretor da Agência Internacional de Energia (IEA, na sigla em inglês), Fatih Birol, reconheceu as ações do país para desenvolver o setor de biocombustíveis e descarbonizar a frota de transportes, assim como seu potencial para a produção de biogás e biometano. O ministro de Petróleo e Gás Natural da Índia, Hardeep Singh Puri, também participou do encontro.
As questões ambientais possuem destaque na agenda do governo do presidente Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva desde a campanha eleitoral de 2022.
Em setembro de 2023, o governo federal apresentou o Projeto de Lei Combustível do Futuro para acelerar a transição energética e substituir gradualmente os combustíveis fósseis.
O programa pretende aumentar a mescla do etanol na gasolina, definir metas de emissões para o setor aéreo e incorporar gradativamente o diesel verde na matriz brasileira de combustíveis.
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ScanOcean to supply MGO-HVO blend in Sweden
ScanOcean to supply MGO-HVO blend in Sweden
London, 21 May (Argus) — Swedish bunker firm ScanOcean will supply a B30 marine biodiesel blend made of marine gasoil (MGO) and hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) by truck at all Swedish ports. The B30 blend will comprise 70pc MGO and 30pc HVO and meet ISO 8217:2017 MGO specifications, according to ScanOcean. The biofuel component will not contain any fatty acid methyl ester (Fame) and the blend will reportedly be accompanied by ISCC-EU certification and a proof of sustainability (PoS) document. ScanOcean added that they will supply the physical blend but that the HVO component will be sourced from the EU. The B30 blend will achieve a 25pc reduction of CO2 emissions on a well-to-wake basis when compared with conventional MGO, according to the Swedish supplier. By Hussein Al-Khalisy Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Australia's Woodside plans CCS for Browse gas project
Australia's Woodside plans CCS for Browse gas project
Perth, 21 May (Argus) — Australian independent Woodside Energy is planning a carbon capture and storage (CCS) element for its Browse gas project offshore Western Australia (WA), but blamed stalled approval processes for the slow progress. The North West Shelf (NWS) life extension — which was first referred to regulators in 2018 — needed to be approved before Browse could progress further, chief executive Meg O'Neill said at the Australian Energy Producers conference held in WA's capital Perth this week. The life extension would allow the joint venture and third-party users to use the NWS project facilities until around 2070. WA's Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) recommended that the NWS life extension be approved in 2022, if it reduces its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to net zero by 2050. But the process remains incomplete, awaiting state and federal ministers' decisions and a final issuance of conditions for the project. WA's Office of the Appeals Convenor is still working through responses to the EPA's recommendation, which it must then report to the environment minister alongside its own recommendations, a process which was interrupted by the resignation of a senior bureaucrat last year. Woodside wanted to progress the CCS side of the Browse project before the end of 2024, O'Neill said, but the lack of certainty regarding approval timelines affected other elements of the project. "We've been working closely with the [federal government], state regulators and the Browse JV on the right approach to the environmental approvals, there are a couple of possible pathways that we are evaluating and we hope to be lodging the requests for approving that element of the project within this year," O'Neill said on 21 May. "But part of why we've been very disciplined in our work on Browse and not ramped up engineering work is because it is very difficult to get line of sight for when we'll get those approvals. With personnel changes at the appeals convenor we really don't have very good line of sight unfortunately." The 368bn m³ Browse development is considered critical to WA's future as a major LNG exporter and could provide long-term certainty for the 16.9mn t/yr NWS LNG, where partners have already signalled they will close a 2.5mn t/yr train later this year. Average gross GHG emissions from the three Browse fields are between 6.4mn-6.8mn t/yr with an additional 7.7mn t/yr once Browse gas is liquefied, resulting in total emissions of 14.1mn-14.5mn t/yr of CO2 equivalent, according to the environmental impact statement Woodside released in 2022. This necessitates a CO2 solution for it to progress under Canberra's net zero scope 1 emissions rule instituted last year. By Tom Major Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Australia pauses pro-upstream offshore oil, gas reforms
Australia pauses pro-upstream offshore oil, gas reforms
Perth, 21 May (Argus) — Australia's federal resources minister Madeleine King acknowledges the political situation in the nation's upper house of parliament the Senate prevents any deal to clarify consultation requirements for the nation's offshore oil, gas, carbon capture and storage (CCS) and renewables sectors. The Senate last week passed the Labor party-led federal government's legislation on changes to deductions permitted under the Petroleum Resources Rent Tax (PRRT) and a new fuel efficiency standard for light commercial and passenger vehicles . But the deal struck with the Greens party and two independent senators meant the government withdrew amendments designed to specify which stakeholders must be consulted under law before receiving environmental permits. King blamed the Greens for her government removing the amendments from the agenda. "My disappointment is not for the industry but the community that will remain subject to inadequate and inappropriate consultation requirements for longer," King said on 21 May at the Australian Energy Producers conference in Perth. "The Greens political party and the crossbench independents and others promoted widespread misinformation in relation to the proposal that would ensure the community had the benefit of clarity and certainty in consultation." Environmental lawyers delayed field drilling and pipeline laying for Australian independent Santos' $4.6bn Barossa backfill project from late 2022 until early 2024, citing insufficient consultation with traditional owner groups, in a case ultimately dismissed by the Federal Court of Australia. Changes to offshore laws were promised by the federal government in January with concerns legal tactics could lead to further lawsuits aimed at driving up costs for LNG backfill, offshore wind power projects or CCS. Climate campaigners saw the changes as a vehicle for easing scrutiny on developers and its politicians promised to oppose any changes. But having dealt with the Greens instead of the Liberal-National coalition on legislation for fuel efficiency and the PRRT because of the latter's demands that the approvals process for oil and gas be expedited, Labor is less likely to now receive support for changes to consultation ahead of next year's federal election. The future gas strategy released by the federal government this month said new supplies are urgently needed, as gas-fired power generation will likely replace firming capacity provided by retiring coal-fired power plants. The report also found multiple reasons for Australia's low gas exploration investment, including difficulties with the approvals processes, legal challenges and market interventions that may lead international companies to focus on lower cost and lower risk fields in other jurisdictions. By Tom Major Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Q&A: Marine CO2 goals need culture shift: TotalEnergies
Q&A: Marine CO2 goals need culture shift: TotalEnergies
Amsterdam, 20 May (Argus) — A cultural change in buying behaviour and supply patterns is necessary for the shipping sector to meet its decarbonisation targets and may be the biggest hurdle to overcome, strategy and projects director for TotalEnergies' marine fuels division Frederic Meyer told Argus. Edited highlights follow: What is the biggest challenge standing in the way of the maritime industry in meeting decarbonisation targets and the fuel transition ? A cultural change is required — for decades the maritime sector has relied on by-products with high energy density from the crude refining process such as fuel oil. The industry will now have to pivot its attention towards fuels developed for the purpose of consumption within the maritime industry. This will also require time as the sector looks to level up, and it remains to be seen whether there will be enough time to meet the International Maritime Organisation (IMO)'s net-zero by or around 2050 targets. But we have seen some good progress from cargo owners who are seeking scope 3 emissions related documents. How does TotalEnergies see marine biodiesel demand moving in the short term? In the short term, there is little incentive for the majority of buyers in the market. This is due to a lack of any regulatory mandates, as well as limited impact from existing regulations such as the IMO's carbon intensity indicator (CII) and the EU's Emissions Trading System (ETS). Despite providing a zero emission factor incentive for biofuels meeting the sustainability criteria under the EU's Renewable Energy Directive (RED), EU ETS is still on a staggered implementation basis beginning with only 40pc this year, rising to 70pc next year and 100pc in 2026. Further, EU ETS prices have been quite low, which also weighed on financial incentives for marine biodiesel. Therefore, many buyers are currently waiting for further incentives and signals from the regulators before purchasing marine biodiesel blends. Another point impacting demand is the current edition of ISO 8217, which does not provide much flexibility when it comes to marine biodiesel blend percentages and specifications. The new 2024 edition will likely provide greater flexibility for blending percentages, as well as a provision for biodiesel that does not meet EN14214 specifications. This will provide greater flexibility from a supply point of view. However, there remains stable demand from buyers who can pass on the extra costs to their customers. And how do you see this demand fluctuating in the medium to long term? If the other alternative marine fuels, such as ammonia and methanol, that are currently being discussed do not develop at the speed necessary to meet the decarbonisation targets, then marine biodiesel demand will likely be firm. Many in the market have voiced concerns regarding biofuel feedstock competition between marine and aviation, ahead of the implementation of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) mandates in Europe starting next year. With Argus assessments for SAF at much higher levels than marine biodiesel blends, do you think common feedstocks such as used cooking oil (UCO) will get pulled away from maritime and into aviation? With regards to competition among different industries for the same biofuel feedstock, suppliers may channel their feedstock towards aviation fuels due to the higher non-compliance penalties associated with SAF regulations as opposed to those in marine, which would incentivise greater demand for SAF. An area that can be explored for marine is the by-product when producing SAF, which can amount to up to 30pc of the fuel output. This could potentially feed into a marine biodiesel supply pool. So it's not necessarily the case that the two sectors will battle over the same feedstock if process synergies can be found. Regarding fuel specifications, market participants have told Argus that the lack of a marine-specific fuel standard for alternatives such as marine biodiesel is feeding into uncertainty for buyers who may not be as familiar with biofuels. What impact could this have on demand for marine biodiesel blends from your point of view? Currently, mainstream biodiesel specifications in marine biodiesel blends are derived from other markets such as the EN14214 specification from road diesel engines. But given the large flexibility of a marine engine, there is room to test and try different things. For "unconventional" biofuels that do not meet those road specifications, there needs to be a testing process accompanied by proof of results that showcase its safety for combustion within a marine engine. Some companies may not have the means or capacity to test their biodiesel before taking it into the market. But TotalEnergies always ensures that there are no engine-related issues from fuel combustion. Suppliers need to enact the necessary testing and take on the burden, as cutting out this process may create a negative perception for the product more generally. Traders should also take on some of the burden and test their fuels to ensure they are fully compatible with the engine. With many regulations being discussed, how do you see the risk of regulatory clashes impacting the industry? The simple solution would be an electronic register to trace the chain of custody. In the French markets, often times the proof of sustainability (PoS) papers are stored onto an electronic database once they are retired to the relevant authority. This database is then accessible and viewable by the buyer, and the supplier could also further deliver a "sustainability information letter" which mirrors the details found in the PoS. It is important for the maritime sector to adopt an electronically traceable system. What role could other types of fuels such as pyrolysis oil potentially play in the maritime sector's decarbonisation targets? We have teams in research and development at TotalEnergies which are studying the potential use of other molecules, including but not limited to pyrolysis oil, for usage in the maritime sector. It may become an alternative option to avoid industry clashes, as pyrolysis oil would not be an attractive option to the aviation sector. We are currently exploring tyre-based pyrolysis oil, but have only started doing so recently so it remains an untapped resource. We need to figure out the correct purification and distillation process to ensure compatibility with marine engines. For the time being we are specifically looking at tyre-based pyrolysis oil and not plastic-based, but we may look at the latter in a later stage. The fuel would also have to meet the RED criteria of a 65-70pc greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction compared with conventional fossil fuels, so we are still exploring whether this can be achieved. By Hussein Al-Khalisy Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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