Honeywell and Repsol join forces to enhance biofuel, recycling efforts

Honeywell and Repsol have announced a strategic collaboration to advance the production of biofuels and circular materials.

This partnership aims to leverage Honeywell's cutting-edge technologies to create new pathways for chemical production and renewable fuels at Repsol's refineries, utilizing various waste materials such as fats, oils, greases, biomass, and solids, Honeywell said in a statement Aug. 12.

The primary objective of the collaboration is to scale and commercialize Honeywell's technologies to produce diverse biofuels, including sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and renewable diesel.

The technology will be integrated into Repsol's existing refinery infrastructure, aiming to align with the global energy transition megatrend and reduce carbon emissions.

Repsol has committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050. The company is actively working on various fronts, including increasing the production of renewable fuels, enhancing energy efficiency, and investing in carbon capture and storage technologies.

"We seek collaborations to provide innovative solutions that help our customers and stakeholders reduce carbon and greenhouse gas emissions through biofuel production. Our collaboration with Repsol illustrates how Honeywell can apply new technologies to reduce carbon emissions while producing biofuels and advanced materials leveraging current refinery infrastructure," Bryan Glover, CTO of Honeywell Energy and Sustainability Solutions, said.

Honeywell's UpCycle process technology, which will be deployed at Repsol's facilities converts plastic waste into Honeywell Recycled Polymer Feedstock, which can be used to produce new plastics. This technology can recycle a wide range of plastics with potential to recycle nearly 90% of waste plastics, significantly increasing the amount of them that can be turned into polymer feedstock.

Honeywell is committed to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions and supporting the global energy transition. The company has set a target to achieve carbon neutrality in its operations and facilities by 2035.

Berta Cabello, Repsol's Director of Renewable Fuels, emphasized the importance of the initiative: "Renewable fuels and plastics recycling are crucial to Repsol's commitment to achieve net zero emissions by 2050. Our collaboration with Honeywell to advance and adopt cutting-edge technologies will help us reduce our carbon footprint and become a benchmark in renewable fuels and hydrogen production by 2030."

In 2023, Repsol selected Honeywell's Ecofining technology to produce renewable fuels from sources such as used cooking oil and waste animal fat at its plant in Puertollano, Spain. This technology, developed in collaboration with ENI, will enable the plant to produce approximately 240,000 mt/year of renewable diesel and other products.

This alliance follows the trend of leading corporations worldwide setting ambitious emission reduction targets to align with global sustainability goals.