Enerkem’s Edmonton facility gets ISCC certification for biomethanol production

MONTREAL — Enerkem Inc. has obtained certification from the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) system for biomethanol production at its Alberta Biofuels full-scale facility in Edmonton.

The plant is the first ISCC certified in the world to convert municipal solid waste into biomethanol.

Biofuels used in Europe, such as biomethanol and ethanol, must prove, through third-party certification under an approved certification scheme such as ISCC EU, that they comply with stringent criteria in terms of greenhouse gas savings, sustainability and traceability of the entire supply chain and are compliant with the European Renewable Energy Directive (RED).

Under the RED Directive, all EU countries must ensure that at least 10% of their transport fuels come from renewable sources by 2020. The RED Directive also gives waste-based biofuels such as Enerkem’s methanol and ethanol to count double towards this 10% requirement.

Enerkem is a producer of biofuels and renewable chemicals based in Montreal.