Bolivia will build the Biodiesel-1 Plant with high-tech equipment manufactured in Europe, Asia and Brazil

By YPFB

This is a machine translation of the original press release issued in Spanish

UCOM-MHE-YPFB-12-09-2022.- The Biodiesel Plant-1 will be built with advanced technology equipment that will be manufactured in Europe, Asia, Brazil and other countries in order to reduce imports and subsidies for diesel.

The delivery of the Order to Proceed, between representatives of YPFB Refining and the Desmet Ballestra company, will make the implementation of the complex feasible. The event was highlighted with the participation of the President of the Plurinational State of Bolivia, Luis Arce Catacora.

"We started the celebration, which we have as the National Government for our department of Santa Cruz, launching the order to proceed to manufacture the equipment for the Biodiesel-1 Plant in this YPFB Refining infrastructure. Today we are starting little by little and, gradually, to stop depending on imports and have a more sovereign production," said Arce.

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 for 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 plant will generate a chain of labor and will generate income, helping the economic reactivation,” said the authority.

The Biodiesel-1 Plant will be made up of the Raw Material Pre-treatment Unit and the Biodiesel Production Unit, which will consist of more than 131 pieces of equipment, including a nano pre-treatment reactor and three special reactors designed and manufactured by the technologist Desmet Ballestra with an experience of more than 120 biodiesel plants around the world and another significant amount in South America.

The contract not only includes the final design and supply of around 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 with 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 Jerome de Bertoult, legal representative of the Desmet Ballestra company.

Desmet Ballestra is a leading company dedicated to the engineering and supply of installations 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 project referred to the "Implementation of Biofuel Plants", the same one that is contemplated 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 a 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 is going to generate 1,500 barrels per day of product that, mixed with fossil fuel, is going to give us an environmentally friendly product, a product that is going to reduce the subsidy of hydrocarbons. and will allow greater income for the country,” said the president of YPFB, Armin Dorgathen Tapia.

Bolivia aims to produce a cleaner and more environmentally friendly fuel. Biofuels of plant origin and used oils (UCO) have a low content of pollutants and the new product will help reduce imports and state subsidies for diesel.