Petrom buys used oil from a Bulgarian company for the SAF/HVO plant being built at Petrobazi

OMV Petrom SA has signed a supply contract with Astra Bioplants Ltd for the purchase of pre-treated used oil, the energy company said in a statement.

The contract is for a period of five years, with the possibility of extension for another three years, with deliveries to begin in 2028. The pre-treated used oil is a raw material for the production of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) that will be processed in the SAF/HVO plant under construction at the Petrobrazi refinery. The price is based on a formula indexed to an international quotation, Petrom said.

The maximum total quantity of the contract is 0.6 million tons, with an estimated value of over 700 million euros at current market prices.

“Taking into account the pre-treated vegetable oil purchase contract signed in June 2024, OMV Petrom has secured more than 80% of the raw material for the first 8 years of production at the SAF/HVO plant under construction,” the company says.

Astra Bioplants Ltd is a Bulgarian company, the largest biodiesel producer in the region and a long-standing partner of OMV Petrom.

OMV Petrom started construction works in March on the sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and renewable diesel (HVO) production unit at Petrobrazi, an investment of 750 million euros and a capacity of 250,000 tons per year, from 2028.

Of the total investment of 750 million euros, 560 million euros are for the construction of the SAF-HVO unit, and 190 million euros for two green hydrogen production facilities.

SAF and HVO are sustainable fuels produced by processing renewable raw materials, such as waste vegetable oils and animal fats. Through advanced refining processes, using green hydrogen, these materials are transformed to have characteristics similar to conventional kerosene and diesel. The use of these fuels allows a significant reduction in CO2 emissions compared to traditional fossil fuels (for example, by at least 65% in the case of SAF and HVO).