Delaware refinery owner, Italian oil giant to partner on bio-refinery in Louisiana

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Delaware City refinery owner  PBF Energy  and Eni Sustainable Mobility have entered into definitive agreements to partner in a 50-50 renewable diesel fuel joint venture at PBF’s  bio-refinery near  New Orleans, LA. Eni, based in Rome, is one of the world’s  10 largest oil companies.

The venture  will be known as St. Bernard  Renewables LLC . The refinery will tap into the growing market for fuels derived from waste vegetable oil and other bio-liquids, rather than fossil fuels. Refiners are hedging their bets on renewables in the expected transition away from fossil fuels.

The venture  will own the renewable diesel project currently under construction at PBF’s Chalmette refinery. Subject to  customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals, Eni will contribute capital totaling $835 million, excluding working capital, plus up to an additional $50 million   subject to the achievement of project milestones. 

PBF will continue to manage the project  and will serve as  operator once construction is complete.

The partnership will leverage the experience and expertise of Eni Sustainable Mobility and PBF.  Eni brings its experience in biorefining that led to the world’s first conversion of a refinery into a biorefinery in Porto Marghera (Venice, Italy) in 2014, and to the second converted biorefinery that has been operating in  Gela (Sicily) since 2019. 

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The company also provides its worldwide knowledge in supplying sustainable feedstock sourcing for HVO, mainly based on oily waste and residues, and raw materials that do not compete with the food chain, coupled with access to international markets beyond PBF’s footprint in the United States. 

PBF has  experience in large capital project execution and fuels manufacturing as well as access to the California renewables market through its  logistics assets. 

.Commenting on the announced partnership with Eni Sustainable Mobility, PBF President Matthew Lucey said, “We’re excited to enter this strategic partnership with Eni Sustainable Mobility, a global leader in biorefining. The St. Bernard Renewables project will benefit greatly from PBF and Eni’s complementary strengths and expertise. The project will utilize existing processing infrastructure and diverse inbound and outbound logistics and is ideally situated to support growing demand for low-carbon fuels.” Mr. Lucey continued, “Our partnership with Eni signals a major milestone for PBF and demonstrates our commitment to contributing diversified sources of energy to the global mix while lowering the carbon intensity of our operations and the products we manufacture.”

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