Plans for the construction of a world-scale biorefinery located in Grangemouth, Scotland, UK are progressing with project owner, Celtic Renewables, saying that it has appointed Allen Associates to conduct the Front-End Engineering and Design (FEED).
The study by Allen Associates, which will take seven months to complete, will build upon existing plans drawn up by Celtic Renewables, and will provide an improved cost estimate accuracy, secure the basis for overall project schedule, and set out the project execution plan for the detailed design and construction phases.
Celtic Renewables is currently producing bio-based products at its biorefinery demonstrator facility, also in Grangemouth, and during November 2024 it shipped its first tanker of sustainably produced bioacetone and biobutanol. The company said that the planned production facility will have a capacity ten times the size of its existing plant.
Celtic Renewables CEO Mark Simmers said: “When built, our new biorefinery at Grangemouth will be Celtic Renewables’ first world-scale commercial facility. It will provide the blueprint for future green chemical production facilities, both here in the UK and other markets around the world.”
Celtic Renewables is a spin-out from Edinburgh Napier University. It started as a university research project looking at what raw materials and sustainable by-products might potentially replace fossil-based feedstocks with biogenic carbon and then be converted into high value, low carbon compounds to make sustainable butanol.
Collaborating with Scotland’s whisky production industry, researchers found that the by-product residues from whisky distilling could be combined and used as a new starting material for a bio-based production process. Celtic Renewables’ proprietary technology can now use by-products and waste from various industries including food, drink and agriculture as feedstock. The process also leads to a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. As an example, the company says that converting whisky residues into high-value green chemicals that can be used to make everyday items generates up to a 65% carbon saving in comparison to petrochemicals, and for every tonne of bioacetone or biobutanol produced, almost three tonnes of carbon is saved.
Simmers added: “Our proposed facility is a cornerstone of the Scottish and UK government’s plans to deliver an inclusive, long-term just transition for the Grangemouth area, so that it can move forward from its refining and petrochemical heritage and become a hub for Scotland’s burgeoning green economy that brings with it new high-value jobs.”
This latest development at Celtic Renewables came the day before the UK government used its Autumn Budget, announced on 26th November, to say that it would make £14.5 million available to back Grangemouth’s transition to a hub for low carbon technologies. The government is focused on cementing Scotland’s place as the home of the UK’s clean energy revolution, as region’s role as a petrochemical hub declines.
Further reading:
- Eni's biorefinery and chemical recycling plant moves forward
- New process converts whisky waste into valuable chemicals
- Industrial Strategy: The outlook for science
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