<article><p class="lead">Spanish integrated firm Repsol's chief executive Josu Jon Imaz has called on the Spanish government to amend its climate change and energy transition bill because it threatens the viability of biofuel plants by not considering their life-cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions savings. </p><p>The focus on direct CO2 emissions from road transport, as opposed to net emissions, in article 12 of the climate bill is misguided, Imaz said at a presentation to a parliamentary committee. It ignores both the CO2 created in the production of electric vehicle components in exporting countries such as China and the sequestration of gas in the feedstocks used to produce biofuels, he said. </p><p>Repsol is about to announce the start of construction of a €150mn ($178mn) second-generation biodiesel plant at its 220,000 b/d Cartagena refinery, which will use a combination of waste vegetable oils and animal fats to replace current first-generation biofuels production and will help the company meet its target to produce 300,000 t/yr of biodiesel from waste in 2025. </p><p>The plant, which will produce biofuels with net zero CO2 emissions, is just one of the projects facing an "uncertain future" and will become unviable unless the Spanish parliament amends the bill to focus on net CO2 emissions rather than direct emissions, according to Imaz.</p><p>Most of Repsol's current 300,000 t/yr of biofuels production comes from virgin oils from sources such as rapeseed and palm oil, although the company said last year that it has <a href="https://direct.argusmedia.com/newsandanalysis/article/1881207">replaced</a> part of the palm oil feedstock used at its 240,000 b/d Bilbao refinery with used cooking oil (UCO).</p><p>In December last year, Repsol became the first major oil and gas company to announce a net zero emissions strategy. Spain's climate change bill is being debated in parliament and is expected to be approved before the end of the year. </p><p class="bylines">By Jonathan Gleave</p></article>
