Research and analysis

India / S Africa: using science to advance green fuel production

Published 9 September 2014

This research and analysis was withdrawn on 8 August 2016

This publication was archived on 5 August 2016. This article is no longer current. Please refer to Overseas Business Risk - South Africa.

0.1 This publication was archived on 5 August 2016.

This article is no longer current. Please refer to Overseas Business Risk - South Africa.

0.2 Summary

Application of green chemistry in biosciences an increasingly exciting approach. The UK’s strong academia-industry nexus positions us well to meet increasing demand for cleaner and more sustainable biofuels. Joint workshop organised by S&I networks of India and South Africa examines South-South opportunities; establishes new working group between Brazilian, Indian and Southern African researchers and highlights commercial opportunities.

0.3 Detail

On 22 August 2014, our Science and Innovation Networks (SIN) in South Africa and India teamed up to host a one-day workshop to explore the incorporation of green chemistry methodologies into the production of biofuels.

The workshop, co-hosted with the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC), was limited to 30 participants which included staff from SIN, the RCS and delegates from the UK (7), South Africa (4), India (9), Brazil (2), Ghana (1), Ethiopia (1) and Tanzania (1). The delegates came from universities and science councils, including the UK Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council. The workshop was held in Durban subsequent to the 5th International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry’s conference on Green Chemistry.

The workshop delegates discussed topics around green chemistry for biofuels production, including key research and commercialisation challenges for ‘clean’ production of biofuels; opportunities for international collaboration; strengths and research needs of the participating countries; and follow-up plans from this workshop.

The 2014 South African Bioeconomy Strategy provides an impetus for the production of biofuels, with a target for these to contribute to 5 % of GDP by 2015. Department of Energy rules dictate that petroleum manufacturers must increase the blending of biofuels with biodiesel by 5 % and bio-ethanol by 10 %, by October 2015. India’s National Biofuel policy was launched in September 2008 and it proposes a target of 20 % blending of biofuels, both for bio-diesel and bio-ethanol by 2017.

Workshop outcomes

Key conclusions included: the need for all relevant stakeholders (e.g. farmers, chemical industry) to work towards shared goals in producing biofuels- with sustainability goals addressed at feedstock, product and process levels, including water and power management; the need for corporate partners to be involved in ongoing and future research endeavours, and wider engagement with the next generation of biofuels enthusiasts to inject fresh ideas and energy towards sustaining momentum.

UK opportunities

The UK is well placed to support the efforts in implementing sustainability in biofuels production. Centres such as the Green Chemistry Centre of Excellence at the University of York and the European Bioenergy Research Institute at Aston University are already engaged in research linked to green chemistry and biofuels. The workshop facilitated the introduction of UK researchers to experts from India, Brazil, and Africa. This will be helpful in establishing future research collaborations and partnerships through match funding mechanisms at the bilateral and multilateral levels.

Starting in October 2015, mandatory blending of petrol and diesel with biofuels will come into effect in South Africa. UK companies could further benefit from the existing incentives in South Africa including a 50 % rebate on the general fuel levy for biodiesel manufacturers and a fuel tax exemption for bioethanol producers.

The group agreed that an international action group could help take forward some of the suggested initiatives and there was unanimous support for a follow-up meeting which the Brazilian delegates volunteered to host in São Paulo. The S&I Network will issue a comprehensive report on the workshop in late September.

0.4 Comment

The workshop opened a means for South-South collaborations and within Africa- increasing the potential for regional bids into the South African and Indian Newton Programmes. We were able to leverage RSC support and the participation of African, Brazilian and Indian delegates, making the workshop genuinely interesting to each country. The RSC agreed to support the follow-up meeting in Brazil and we will work with S&IN Brazil and UKTI to maximise UK dividends, including with the chemical industry and the UK Centre for Process Innovation (CPI) Catapult.

0.5 Disclaimer

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