South Korea's top refiner SK Innovation invests $20 mil in US biofuels producer

South Korea's biggest refiner SK Innovation has invested $20 million in a US biofuel company as part of its push for a shift into green energy businesses, the company said July 13.

Fulcrum BioEnergy, a California-based renewable transportation fuels producer using household garbage, is the first US company to begin to commercialize a process for producing synthetic crude oil from household garbage, SK Innovation said.

Fulcrum has the proprietary refinery technology to gasify the garbage and produce synthetic crude oil and runs a commercial-scale biofuel plant in Nevada with the capacity to produce 11 million gallons/year, it added.

SK Innovation said in a statement that it will work with Fulcrum to explore Asian markets for biofuel energy, particularly converting waste into fuel by gasifying landfill waste to produce low-carbon transportation fuels.

In the waste gasification process that turns waste into fuel, trash is heated in a low-oxygen environment to produce synthesis gas -- a mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide – which is then processed into high-value products like synthetic crude oil. The synthetic crude oil can be refined to produce sustainable jet fuel, according to SK Innovation.

"By expanding its green business portfolio, SK Innovation seeks to transform itself into a green energy and material provider," the company said in the statement, adding: "We aim to grow in the future by developing a green business portfolio that puts carbon-free and low-carbon energy and a circular economy at the center of it."

The $20 million investment came after SK Innovation's parent SK Inc. made a $50 million investment in Fulcrum late last year jointly with a South Korean private equity company.

In another effort to accelerate its green business goals, SK Innovation has started applying eco-friendly pyrolysis oil in refining and petrochemical production process at its main complex with plans to supply carbon-neutral oil products.

SK Innovation in March signed a deal with Permian-based Occidental Petroleum Corp to import 200,000 barrels/year of "net zero" crude oil for five years from 2025, which would make the refiner the world's first buyer of net zero oil.

Last year, SK Innovation spun off its EV battery business in a major strategic swift from a carbon-intensive model.

SK Innovation runs two major complexes with a total refining capacity of 1.115 million b/d in addition to a 100,000 b/d condensate splitter.