Neste Sells First Batch of 100% Renewable Propane in Europe

Neste Corp. (Espoo, Finland) has commenced operations at the world’s first large-scale renewable propane production facility in Rotterdam. The first cargo has been delivered to SHV Energy (Hoofddorp, Netherlands), which will market and sell the product to its customers across Europe as BioLPG.

Neste’s new plant has a production capacity of 40,000 metric tons a year and SHV Energy will be the exclusive distributor, supplying 160,000 tons over four years. BioLPG will enable users of existing fossil fuels to reduce their carbon footprint without any modifications to LPG-fired appliances or equipment. BioLPG can be used with the full range of existing applications, from transport to commercial heating to retail leisure cylinders.

“Start-up of the new production facility means that SHV Energy’s customers in Europe will be able to use this new renewable product and enjoy its environmental benefits, combined with ease of use in already familiar applications,” said Kaisa Hietala, executive vice president of renewable products at Neste. “For us it also represents an important step in implementing our growth strategy for renewable products.”

Neste’s Rotterdam refinery primarily produces MY Renewable Diesel from various waste and residues, as well as vegetable oils. The new unit will purify and separate renewable propane from the side-stream gases produced at the refinery.

“SHV Energy is proud to be part of this unique renewable energy project and congratulates Neste on a fantastic engineering achievement,” said Fulco van Lede, management board member. “In use, BioLPG will be very low carbon and extremely clean. The biggest environmental contribution that it can make is when it replaces existing high-carbon solid and liquid fuels in homes and businesses located beyond the natural gas grid.”

(SOURCE: The Weekly Propane Newsletter)