Sustainability

The world of biofuel

Van den Bosch is keen to play its part in reducing CO2 emissions too. There are even great opportunities available in certain market segments: welcome to the world of biofuel.

By biofuel, we mean fuels made from biomass, such as sunflower oil, rapeseed oil and palm oil. Biodiesel and Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) are the best-known biofuels (in addition to bioethanol, biogas and biobutanol). Use of biofuel reduces CO2, particulate and sulphur emissions. After all, no fossil fuels, such as petroleum, natural gas or coal, are burned.

First and second generation

The vegetable oil market is not new: factories have been mixing raw materials such as crude sunflower and palm oil with fuel for almost 30 years. These are referred to as 'first-generation' vegetable oils: ones used purely as a feedstock for biofuel. But fuel prices are rising, as is the demand for more sustainable solutions. This is why market players are now also working with 'second-generation' vegetable oils and fats. These are oils and fats that have already been used once. A good example is deep-frying oil (Used Cooking Oil). It’s no longer good enough for frying, but it’s still usable as fuel.

Van den Bosch runs on HVO too
As well as transporting raw materials for biofuel production, we have several vehicles in our fleet – including our trucks in Sweden – that run on Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil. We are also constantly exploring ways to make our transport more sustainable, such as when purchasing new trucks, or by working together with customers on initiatives like joint investments in more sustainable mileage.

Potential

So where does Van den Bosch’s potential now lie? Well, mainly in transporting the raw materials for biodiesel and HVO. Commercial Manager Frank van Kroonenburg explains that biofuel plants are popping up like mushrooms. Traditional oil companies are also heavily represented in this growing sector, because they can convert their fossil refineries to produce HVO. After all, biofuel is what we call a ‘drop-in fuel’: a synthetic and fully interchangeable substitute for conventional fuels such as petrol, aviation fuel and diesel. This means that trucks with modern engines can run on pure biodiesel or HVO without any modification. “And with the emergence of all those biofuel plants, the demand for raw materials is increasing. We’re meeting this demand by transporting more and more animal fats, vegetable fatty acids and UCO to the biofuel plants."

Intermodal transport

Van den Bosch organises the transport of biofuel feedstock using an intermodal system, which has its advantages, according to Van Kroonenburg. "Intermodal transport leads to fewer kilometres on the road, and more by water and rail – where the average payload is a lot higher – which means we transport less air. That’s why we’ve invested in large tank containers offering a capacity of 32,000 to 35,000 litres, with good insulation plus steam pipes to bring the load to the right temperature. All in all, transporting biofuel feedstock is commercially interesting for our company. It indirectly contributes to reducing CO2, particulate and sulphur emissions, besides being an efficient, sustainable transport model. What’s not to like?"