The former Kwinana oil refinery will be the core of a multi-billion-dollar energy transition plan by BP in Australia.
That investment – worth hundreds of millions of dollars – could be the first commercial scale production of ‘Sustainable Aviation Fuel’, or SAF, which demand is expected to surge, said BP Australia’s senior manager, integrated decarbonisation solutions, Justin Nash. in Western Australia, is also examining options for energy transition projects at its second former refinery site, at Bulwer Island in Brisbane.
The renewable fuels plant will use waste oil, tallow and used cooking oil to produce 8000-10,000 barrels a day of a combination of sustainable aviation fuel and renewable diesel.Referred to as “drop-in” fuels, the products can be directly substituted for fossil fuel-based aviation and diesel fuels currently used by planes and trucks.
Mr Nash said that while SAF is fully technologically proven and has been around for more than 10 years, it is still two-to-three times more expensive than conventional aviation fuel. However, increased production would bring costs down and help close the gap, and demand is rising despite the high prices.