Italian engineering concern Biochemtex has won the European Biomass Industry Association (EUBIA) award 2014 for its work in bringing lignocellulosic ethanol production to industrial scale. The award was presented during the European Biomass Conference and Exhibition in Hamburg, Germany, on June 23.
Since 2000, EUBIA has awarded this annual prize to the European company which has made the greatest contribution to supporting biomass development at commercial and industrial level. This year’s winner is a leader in the development of technologies and bio-chemical processes based on the exclusive use of non-food biomass.
Biochemtex has invested EUR 150 million in the development of its Proesa process, which is used to produce bio-fuels and chemical intermediates and has been demonstrated on an industrial scale at the Crescentino bioerfinery in Italy. The Crescentino plant, which was awarded funding under the New Entrants’ Reserve (NER)300 first call, is the first plant in the world to produce second generation bioethanol on an industrial scale.
Biochemtex has also recently advanced a new MOGHI technology to convert lignin into bio-aromatics and other bio-chemicals, largely used as chemical intermediates or fuel in industry. Like Proesa, MOGHI is technological development based on lignocellulosic biomass sources that do not compete with the food chain.