The experimental biorefinery Biogreenfinery, unique in our country and a benchmark at the European level, positions the Canary Islands at the forefront of transportation decarbonization.

The new pilot plant for the production of biofuels, 100% renewable and self-sufficient, was presented at the ‘International Conference on Green Hydrogen and Synthetic Fuels’ taking place today and tomorrow in Gran Canaria, featuring distinguished speakers from the global energy industry.

The Canary Islands Institute of Technology (ITC) will soon launch this new infrastructure on the island of Gran Canaria, with an investment close to 6 million euros, to promote the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources.

The Minister of Universities, Science, and Innovation of the Government of the Canary Islands, Migdalia Machín, highlighted during the conference that this cutting-edge project emphasizes the importance of scientific and technological knowledge in addressing sustainability and regional development challenges.

The Canary Islands are advancing their goal of leading the decarbonization of transportation with the implementation of Biogreenfinery, the first 100% renewable biorefinery in the Canary Islands, a unique infrastructure unprecedented in the national and European landscape. Addressing the sustainable local production of clean fuel for transportation, mainly green hydrogen for road mobility and synthetic fuels for maritime and air navigation, is one of the major challenges undertaken by the Canary Islands Institute of Technology (ITC), under the Ministry of Universities, Science, and Innovation of the Government of the Canary Islands. This initiative aims to reduce the carbon footprint in transportation while paving the way for a promising energy industry that will support the development of the Archipelago and the creation of green jobs.

These new infrastructures dedicated to research and experimentation in renewable fuels, located at the ITC facilities in Pozo Izquierdo (Gran Canaria), were highlighted and visited during the first day of the ‘International Conference on Green Hydrogen and Synthetic Fuels,’ a forum of experts from the global new energy industry being held in Gran Canaria on October 18 and 19. The conference features representatives from a dozen member organizations of the International Energy Agency (IEA), from countries including the United States, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Argentina, France, Italy, and Germany, among others.

During the visit to the experimental plant, the Minister of Universities, Science, and Innovation of the Government of the Canary Islands, Migdalia Machín, emphasized the key role of scientific and technological knowledge, such as that generated by the ITC, in “boosting strategic areas of socio-economic value and in transferring advanced technologies that enrich the productive fabric and allow us to leverage the strengths and leadership capacity of the Archipelago.”

Meanwhile, the ITC’s Director of R&D, Gonzalo Piernavieja, highlighted the investment efforts aimed at making this project a reality, with a budget of 5.6 million euros, fully financed by the Government of the Canary Islands through the REACT-EU Fund, as part of the European Next Generation EU instrument. This research and experimentation platform aims to “strengthen our research and technological activity in energy transition, focusing on new generation synthetic fuels where renewable hydrogen plays a key role, and to validate new applications of this renewable resource in mobility.”

The biorefinery, which occupies an area of 2,000 m² located at the ITC facilities in Pozo Izquierdo, southeast of the island of Gran Canaria, operates in self-consumption mode, isolated from the grid, thanks to a hybrid system composed of a wind-photovoltaic plant and a biodiesel generator (produced at the same research center) that provides the renewable energy needed to produce green hydrogen, a precursor in the synthesis of future synthetic fuels. Specifically, this plant aims to test hydrogen production for use in land transportation (cars, buses, and other heavy vehicles), produce green ammonia for application in maritime transport, and develop future biofuels such as synthetic kerosene for use in air transport. All of this will be tested in scenarios where the gas facilities themselves can modulate energy consumption according to the available renewable resources.

Strategic relevance of the project

The project represents a major milestone that will contribute to the decarbonization of the transportation sector in the Canary Islands and accelerate the energy transition in the archipelago, with all the associated social, economic, environmental, and diversification benefits.

The plant is equipped with two electrolyzers (1 kgH2/h and 3 kgH2/h), a nitrogen generator (4.2 kgN2/h), a HABER-BOSCH reactor, gas storage systems, a dispenser for refueling hydrogen vehicles, two hydrogen-powered cars, and a hydrogen fuel cell bus. The bus will be operated by the intercity transportation company GLOBAL in Gran Canaria.

These facilities are complemented by the stand-alone renewable energy production system that powers the gas facilities, comprising a total photovoltaic capacity of 325 kW, a wind capacity of 100 kW, a battery bank of 100 kW/400 kWh, and a biodiesel generator of 200 kVA.