Neste Oil has announced that although vegetable oil sourced from palm oil is currently among the most widely and commercially available biofuel feedstocks, its proprietary technology for producing NExBTL renewable diesel can potentially use a wide range of raw material feedstocks. The company also revealed that it is looking into viable feedstock alternatives.
The EU has set a target for biofuels to represent 10% of road transport fuel consumption by 2020 as a part of the global effort to combat climate change, a target that is supported by Neste Oil. However, there are concerns that increased demand for vegetable oil may lead to rain forest devastation. As a result, the company is planning to invest in R&D to explore alternative feedstocks, including waste wood and non-food plant oils.
Neste Oil said that it was the first oil company to join the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil, a body with critical interests in rainforest conservation and protecting the habitat of threatened species. Neste Oil added that it commits fully to sustainable sourcing of feedstocks for the production of the NExBTL renewable diesel.
Neste Oil’s view is that renewable diesel is part of the solution to improving fuel efficiency and reducing the detrimental environmental effects of traffic. Better fuels allow more efficient engines and lower fuel consumption. Better quality fuels, such as NExBTL diesel, also permit the reduction of exhaust gases, Neste Oil said.