By YPFB
This is an automatic translation of the original press release published in Spanish
UCOM-MHE-YPFB-12-09-2022.- Biodiesel Plant-1 will be built with state-of-the-art equipment that will be manufactured in Europe, Asia, Brazil and other countries to reduce imports and subsidies for diesel.
The delivery of the order to proceed, between representatives of YPFB Refining and the company Desmet Ballestra, will make the implementation of the complex possible. The event was highlighted by the participation of the President of the Plurinational State of Bolivia, Luis Arce Catacora.
“We started the celebration, which we have as a national government for our department of Santa Cruz, by issuing the order to proceed with the manufacture of equipment for the biodiesel plant-1 in this YPFB refining infrastructure Today we are starting little by little and, gradually, to stop depending on imports and to have a more sovereign production,” Arce said.
For his part, Minister Molina indicated that the plant will have a production capacity of 1,500 barrels per day and stressed that this project will promote agricultural production, since the raw materials of this plant are of plant origin.
“This project is not only a boost for import substitution, but also for the revitalization of the regional economy. This factory will generate a chain of work and generate income, helping in economic recovery,” the authority said.
The biodiesel plant-1 will consist of the raw material pretreatment unit and the biodiesel production unit, which will consist of more than 131 pieces of equipment, including a nano pretreatment reactor and three special reactors designed and manufactured by the technologist Desmet Ballestra with experience from over 120 biodiesel plants worldwide and another significant amount in South America.
The contract not only includes the final design and supply of approximately 130 pieces of equipment, but also provides technical assistance for operator training activities, pre-commissioning, commissioning, start-up and performance testing. , among others.
Yacimientos Petroliferos Fiscales Bolivianos (YPFB) advances in the implementation activities of the biofuel plant and announces the strategic alliance with the largest manufacturer of biofuel plants.
CONTRACT
The contract was signed by the general manager of YPFB Refinación SA, Omar Alarcón Saigua, and Jérôme de Bertoult, legal representative of the company Desmet Ballestra.
Desmet Ballestra is a leading company dedicated to the engineering and supply of plants and equipment for biodiesel, oils and fats. It also provides services to the animal feed industry, surfactant detergents and related chemical industries. It also provides advice to the oleochemical industries.
The contract is part of the “Implementation of biofuel plants” project, the same one that is envisaged in the Economic and Social Development Plan 2021-2025 “Rebuilding the economy to live well, towards industrialization with substitution of imports”.
The estimated investment for the entire project, which includes Biodiesel Plant 1, Biodiesel Plant 2 and HVO, is US$387 million with production of 12,000 barrels per day. The first plant to be built is Biodiesel-1 at a cost of US$40 million, with an estimated production of 1,500 barrels per day.
“This first biodiesel plant will generate 1,500 barrels per day of product which, mixed with fossil fuel, will give us an environmentally friendly product, a product which will reduce the hydrocarbon subsidy. and will increase the income of the country,” said YPFB President Armin Dorgathen Tapia.
Bolivia aims to produce a cleaner and more environmentally friendly fuel. Plant-based biofuels and waste oil (UCO) have low pollutant content and the new product will help reduce imports and state subsidies for diesel.