Bio-evolution
Polish petrol giant Lotos will join firms like Gimar and Bio-Tech in producing liquid biofuel components in Poland. The firm has signed an agreement with engineering firm Prochem for the construction of a biofuel-production plant in the Silesian city of Czechowice.
The contract, worth zł.23.6 million, pertains to off-site infrastructure works for fatty-acid-methyl-ester production, including storage tanks for raw materials, pump stations and pipelines. The main installation for the plant is already in place, realized as per Prochem's 2006 contract with German firm MAN Ferrostaal.
Increasing interest in the development of such plants is boosted by a state program calling for compliance with the EU directive on eco-energy solutions. Measures include modernizing out-dated facilities and increasing renewable energy production. Biomass is considered the most practical renewable energy resource in Poland, where there is an estimated 1.5 million ha of arable land available for energy crops. The EU directive requires that Poland increase its current proportion of "green" fuels in total energy consumption from 0.9 percent in 2006 to 2.3 percent this year, 5.75 percent in 2010 and as much as 10 percent in 2015.
"The prognosis for the development of renewable energy sources is in line with the EU directive. It all depends on the strength of those lobbying for government support, whether it's bio-energy firms or traditional oil producers, and the government's stance toward ecological advancement," stated Leszek Jarosz, president of the Domestic Council of Alcohol Distillation and Production of Biofuels (KRGiPB).
Elstar Oils, a Polish producer of rapeseed oil and derived esters, has been expanding its production facilities in Malbork since 2006, with the aim to produce close to 100,000 tonnes of esters in 2008. Stanisław Rosnowski, president of the board of directors at Elstar Oils, is confident that the biofuel market provides a solid opportunity for eco-producers, saying, "Investors value Elstar as a company that is best-prepared to be the leader in the bio-diesel market and take advantage of the developing market." Elstar's revenues reached zł.208 million last year, nearly 50 percent over 2005.
Poznań-based Petroestry has been using rapeseed oil to produce biodiesel esters since 2002. It currently produces 9,500 tons of raw rape oil for bio-components. The company expects to step up production more than three-fold in the coming years as bio-energy solutions become more and more popular.
