Liquified Petroleum Gas is primarily composed of propane, butane, propylene, butylene and iso butane. If the propane in LPG is sourced from renewable sources, then, LPG is called renewable LPG or Bio-LPG. Several production processes are explored for production of Bio LPG, out of which only one is commercialised. Bio-LPG or bio-propane is commercially produced as a by-product in the production process of Biodiesel/Hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) produced from the hydrotreatment of biological oils and fats. The feedstock for hydrotreated vegetable oil (bio-based fuel) comes from rapseed oil, sunflower oil, soyabean and palm oil, animal fats etc.
Neste in Finland is the largest producer of bio-propane currently. Neste commercialised the first large scale production facility of a capacity 40 kilo tons per year of renewable propane in Netherlands in 2022 to supply it to SHV energy. SHV Energy will sell this renewable LPG as Bio LPG to customers across Europe for transportation applications. ENI, an Italian oil major is the second largest producer of bio-propane in the world. Other production processes through green hydrogen and atmospheric CO2 are currently being explored.Bio propane is a clean burning fuel used in household cooking, heating and cooling, as a Autogas fuel and in production processes in agricultural, commercial and industrial sectors. Basically, it can replace propane in all its applications. Bio propane exhibits properties and composition similar to petroleum-based propane and can be used as a fuel in the same appliances without modifying which were used for conventional propane.
California is currently a major user of renewable propane due to incentives provided by the state legislation for the use of renewable fuels. UK is also currently using Bio LPG. In support of UK’s target of net zero future by 2050, Liquid Gas UK (a trade association of renewable liquid gas industry in UK) in 2019, lunched their ambition to transition to 100% renewables by 2040. UK currently invested Euros 100 Million in Bio LPG and it is also planning to invest Euros 600 Million into the LPG industry in the next 5 years. The members of Liquid Gas UK are currently exploring and investing on different production methods of Bio-LPG. The bioeconomy Consultants of UK, (NNFCC), conducted a feasibility study on complete switch to Bio-LPG by 2040 and the results came out to be positive.
Renewable LPG based vehicles releases lesser harmful air pollutants and reduces emissions of greenhouse gases by 70-80%. Therefore, it is a better option than petroleum-based LPG. In an article named Renewable Propane: A Cleaner Energy Source, it is mentioned that around 200 KT/per year of renewable propane is currently produced globally. According to a recent study, carbon footprint of R-LPG is up to 94% lower than of conventional LPG. The market of R-LPG is currently at a developing phase.
The market is expected to witness a huge demand in the future due to its application as a fuel in transportation industry. Bio-propane is estimated to be an effective solution for decarbonisation of trucks and buses as engines running on bio-propane are estimated to reduce carbon emission by 80% and NOx emissions are also minimised. London Electric Vehicle company, a subsidiary of Geely Holding Group (a leading manufacturer of automobiles in China) adopted bio-propane in their TX taxi and VN5 vans to reduce carbon emissions by 99% in 2023.
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