Cepsa and PreZero Spain sign important partnership agreement to recover waste for the production of biomethane and other biofuels

• The agreement provides for the joint development of plants for the production of biomethane from organic waste. The first plant, with an expected capacity of up to 100 GWh, will be located at the Cepsa plant in Huelva and will be used to produce renewable energy for the Andalusian Green Hydrogen Valley and the Company’s new second-generation biofuel plant.
• Under this agreement, Cepsa and PreZero Spain will collaborate in developing initiatives aimed at recovering waste and transforming it into raw materials for the production of 2G biofuels and circular chemical products
• The partnership also includes the analysis of solutions to decarbonize PreZero Spain’s private land fleet of over 750 vehicles

Cepsa and PreZero Spain have signed a strategic partnership that will enable both companies to achieve their decarbonization goals. Under the agreement, PreZero Spain will supply biomethane from some of its projects to Cepsa, and the two companies will jointly develop biomethane plants. In addition, Cepsa and PreZero Spain will work on the recovery of waste to produce second-generation biofuels and closed-loop chemical products, and on the decarbonization of the land fleet operated by PreZero in Spain and Portugal.

Carlos Barrasa, Executive Vice President Commercial & Clean Energies at Cepsa, said: “This alliance with PreZero will allow us to expand access to circular raw materials to produce alternative energy sources that facilitate the energy transition, such as green hydrogen and second-generation biofuels. Together, we will develop a sustainable alternative to the treatment of municipal and industrial waste, recovering this waste to produce renewable energy, thus promoting a circular and decarbonized economy.”

Gonzalo Cañete, CEO of PreZero in Spain and Portugal, added: “This agreement stems from Spain’s huge potential to develop biomethane as a renewable natural gas, as well as the need to align with other EU countries in achieving circular economy and decarbonization goals. To achieve this, together with public-private cooperation, we need to strengthen cooperation between private companies, as demonstrated by the promising partnership we are announcing today.”

The two companies are already making progress on the development of a biomethane plant in the province of Huelva. This new plant, with an annual capacity of up to 100 GWh, which would cover the heating needs of around 20,000 homes, will be one of the largest installations of this renewable energy in Spain and will be used to produce green hydrogen and renewable fuels. The plant will be built at the Cepsa plant in Palos de la Frontera, where the company has an Energy Park and is already building the largest 2G biofuel plant in southern Europe to produce sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and renewable diesel. It also plans to develop a 1 GW green hydrogen plant, as part of the Andalusian Green Hydrogen Valley, in the Energy Park, where it also has a chemical plant.

In addition, PreZero — which produced 75% of all biomethane produced in Spain in 2023 — will supply Cepsa with this renewable gas on a preferential basis in projects that PreZero and Cepsa consider strategic for both parties, enabling the energy company and its customers to decarbonize industrial processes. Over its life cycle, this renewable gas can reduce CO₂ emissions up to 90% compared to natural gas and has the same properties as the latter, meaning it can be stored or fed into the current gas transmission network without having to develop new infrastructure. The agreement will also allow Cepsa to obtain biogenic CO₂ from PreZero Spain’s plants producing biomethane for the production of synthetic fuels.

Under this partnership, PreZero will recover other organic waste or used cooking oils, which Cepsa will use to produce second-generation biofuels, facilitating the immediate decarbonization of hard-to-electrify sectors such as heavy road, marine or air transport. PreZero will also process plastic waste, including single-use plastics, to provide Cepsa with a feedstock that the energy company can then use to develop circular chemical products. The two companies will explore the joint development of pyrolysis plants to process this type of non-recyclable plastic waste.

In addition, Cepsa will explore solutions to decarbonize PreZero’s private fleet, including by providing biofuels or charging electric vehicles.

Committed to decarbonisation and the circular economy

The production of renewable fuels is in line with the REPowerEU initiative aimed at reducing CO emissions₂ emissions and dependence on fossil fuels, and contribute to several Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda: Goal 7 (Affordable and clean energy), Goal 8 (Decent work and economic growth), Goal 12 (Responsible consumption and production) and Goal 13 (Climate action).

As part of its Positive Motion 2030 strategy, Cepsa is developing an ecosystem to accelerate the decarbonization of its business and that of its customers through the production of green molecules such as renewable hydrogen and its derivatives, as well as 2G biofuels including biomethane, PBS or 100% renewable diesel.

Meanwhile, PreZero Spain, which currently generates more energy than it consumes, aims to become carbon neutral by 2050, reducing greenhouse gas emissions across all its operations. To this end, it has defined a sustainability strategy based on the use of recycled raw materials, the generation of green energy, the optimization of waste collection routes and loads, and the implementation of energy efficiency measures, among other actions.