Renewable Feedstocks
The raw materials in fuel production that enable customers to reduce emissions while maintaining strong performance and high reliability.
By integrating sustainable raw materials into our existing refining processes, we significantly lower the carbon intensity of our fuels while consistently maintaining and often even enhancing their performance.
For you as our customer, this means you can reduce your own emissions footprint without making any tradeoffs. You benefit from fuels that support your sustainability targets while still delivering the reliability, engine efficiency, and operational consistency you depend on every day.
Different types of renewable feedstocks
OMV has mainly processed 1st and 2nd generation feedstocks but, we have also been exploring advanced sources as cashew nutshell liquid and algae, which represent innovative biofuel options with potential enviromental benefits.
Renewable feedstocks are considered renewable because they come from natural resources that can be replenished in a short period of time. Generally, we distinguish between “food-based”, “waste-based” and “advanced” renewable feedstocks or cluster them into three generations:
Conventional/ food-based oils made from food crops like rapeseed, sunflower, and soybean.
Non-conventional/waste-based oils which come from waste and leftovers, such as used cooking oils, animal fats etc. They use materials that would otherwise be thrown away.
Biomass derived primarily from microalgae and other microorganisms, often cultivated in non-arable land settings.
HVO vs. FAME
Commonly either HVO (Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil) or FAME (Fatty Acid Methyl Ester) are used as renewable feedstocks to replace part of the crude oil in fuels.
The significant difference between those two bio components is their chemical composition and production method.
While FAME is produced via a transesterification process (which is cost-effective and simple), HVO is produced via a hydrotreatment process. Because of that process, HVO is not prone to absorbing water, which improves the storability.
* Compared to the fossil reference value of EU RED II (2018/2001) (RED = Renewable Energy Directive)
HVO is chemically identical to conventional diesel, and its characteristics are very comparable to conventional fossil diesel. This means that, if the vehicle manufacturer approved HVO as fuel for their engine portfolio, it can be used as 100% alternative to fossil diesel.
Since HVO is lighter than fossil diesel, it does, however not meet the requirements of the EN590 diesel standard, yet 100% HVO meets the EN15940 standard requirements (which is widely accepted by equipment manufacturers).
Advantages of HVO
- Superior storage stability: No water absorption - lower risk of microbial contamination
- Excellent cold weather performance: Suitable for very low temperatures
- High cetane number: Enables cleaner and more efficient combustion
FAME is chemically different to conventional diesel but when mixing a maximum of up to 7% to fossil fuel, the specifications are still within the EN590 diesel standard.
Advantages of FAME
- Good lubricity behaviour: Protecting engine components
- Lower production cost: Transesterification is simpler and cheaper than hydrotreatment
- Broad availability: Widely used in standard blends (e.g., B7) across the EU
Did you know?
Customers can dispose of their used cooking oil at 130 OMV filling stations across Austria. The collected oil is then processed into high quality bio diesel - thus a waste product becomes a valuable energy source.