Sydney, 17 December (Argus) -- The federal Australian Renewable Energy Agency (Arena) has allocated A$14.1mn ($9mn) toward two studies for separate biofuel production projects.
Australian refiner and marketer Ampol's proposed Brisbane Renewable Fuels project will receive A$8mn toward its A$30.2mn pre-engineering study, Arena said on 17 December, while A$6.1mn will go to grains aggregator GrainCorp's sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) Oilseed Crushing Facility pre-deployment study.
Ampol's study will focus on developing more than 450mn litres/yr production capacity for SAF and renewable diesel at the company's 109,000 b/d Lytton refinery near the city of Brisbane. GrainCorp's plans for an oilseed crushing facility will produce 330,000 t/yr of canola seed oil, or about 12pc of the nation's 6.13mn t canola exports in the 12 months to 30 September, for use as SAF feedstock, Arena said.
Both Ampol and GrainCorp recently entered an initial agreement with London-based fund manager IFM Investors to explore options for building a renewable fuels business.
While Australia is a major exporter of feedstocks for biofuels such as canola and tallow, it imports most of its liquid fuels, with diesel and jet fuel imports averaging 520,000 b/d and 129,000 b/d respectively in the first nine months of 2024.
Fellow SAF aspirant Jet Zero received A$9mn from Arena in September, bringing the total outlay from the agency's A$30mn SAF funding initiative to just over A$23mn.