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🇦🇺 Australia /Energy & Infrastructure

Esperance on cusp of expanding biofuel industry

From ABC Australia · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • Esperance, Western Australia, is emerging as a key center for a potentially large biofuel industry, primarily using canola.
  • The region exports 90% of its 1 million tonnes of annual canola production to the EU for biodiesel.
  • A local refinery, Renewable.Bio, aims to expand production to 60 million liters per year, with ambitions for 200 million liters by 2035, focusing on supplying renewable diesel for local use.

Southern Western Australia's vast winter canola fields are positioning Esperance as a hub for a burgeoning biofuel industry with significant expansion potential. This region, located 700 kilometers southeast of Perth, already plays a crucial role in the global biodiesel market.

Esperance produces approximately 1 million tonnes of canola annually, with a substantial 90% being exported to the European Union for biodiesel production. However, the focus is shifting towards local utilization. Perth-based company Renewable.Bio established a refinery in Esperance in 2023, aiming to leverage the region's abundant raw materials.

"The Goldfields Esperance region uses ... around 130 million litres a year of diesel," stated CEO Angelo Dabala. "At our current estimates, we could export all of that to Europe and make money. That's not what we want to do. We want to make renewable diesel for West Australians."

The Goldfields Esperance region uses ... around 130 million litres a year of diesel. At our current estimates, we could export all of that to Europe and make money. That's not what we want to do. We want to make renewable diesel for West Australians.

— Angelo DabalaCEO of Renewable.Bio on the potential for local biofuel production in Esperance.

Renewable.Bio currently aims to produce 60 million liters of biodiesel annually at its Esperance facility and is planning further expansion. The company has long-term ambitions to reach 200 million liters of production by 2035. Dabala believes the infrastructure is in place for Esperance to become a major fuel producer, with regulatory approvals being the primary hurdle.

Curtin University senior research fellow Julian Clifton highlights Esperance's "huge, untapped" potential, not only from canola but also from wood and straw by-products. He emphasizes the ability to convert these sources into "drop-in fuels", low-carbon liquid fuels that can directly replace gasoline or diesel. This development could significantly boost Australia's domestic biofuel production, which currently stands at about 175 million liters annually.

One of the key things here … is the fact that we can convert these into what we call drop-in fuels … liquid low-carbon fuels that can be directly substituted for petrol or diesel

— Julian CliftonCurtin University senior research fellow Julian Clifton on the potential of biofuel sources in Western Australia.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by ABC Australia. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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