Biofuels. Eni with BF for a national agro-industrial supply chain.
An important collaboration agreement was recently signed between BF and Eni. A collaboration agreement to evaluate the development of crops suitable for energy production in Italy, recovering degraded, abandoned or polluted land, without competing with the food chain
“The alliance between Eni and BF is consolidated with the Italy Project, which demonstrates the indispensable role of agriculture in the diversification of energy sources. In addition to the joint venture’s research and development activities at our company in Sardinia, today we are launching a new initiative that involves the study and subsequent use of the first 2,000 national hectares of land used for oil crops. The project will make it possible to valorize abandoned areas of the country, recovering them and placing them in a virtuous circuit that at the same time will give Italian agricultural entrepreneurs new opportunities to differentiate their activities,” said Federico Vecchioni, CEO of BF Spa.
“Today we are strengthening our collaboration with BF on a project that has great potential for the country because it aims to regenerate marginal areas, such as those that are contaminated or degraded, and at the same time promotes rural development and integration with the energy industry that supports the decarbonization of transport,” said Claudio Descalzi, CEO of Eni.
The agreement includes an initial study phase to assess the sustainability and competitiveness of an agro-industrial supply chain to be jointly developed that aims to rehabilitate identified marginal areas in the country through the development of sustainable agronomic practices. A pilot phase aimed at growing seeds, such as safflower and brassica from which to extract vegetable oil to be delivered to Eni’s biorefineries for subsequent processing into biofuels, is to be launched in early 2023.
Agricultural production will respond to the voluntary ISCC (International Sustainability & Carbon Certification) certification scheme to guarantee the sustainability and traceability requirements of the products in accordance with the relevant European legislation.