Restricting the export of "gutter oil" is also a means to develop a green economy
Recently, the head of a leading aerospace company in China said that China should restrict the export of "gutter oil". According to reports, the European Transport and Environment Federation (T E) released a report saying that with the surge in demand for imported "gutter oil" in Europe and the United States, the supply of China, the world's largest exporter of "gutter oil", will soon be exhausted. Not much waste cooking oil remained in China last year. The "gutter oil" as kitchen waste is completely unable to keep up with the supply.
"Waste oil" means waste edible oil. The "gutter oil" that everyone calls for contains such huge economic value and ecological value. This is a real case of scientific and technological progress changing production methods. Data shows that the market price of waste edible oil is about 6000 yuan/ton. After the Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) process, waste edible oil can be converted into sustainable aviation fuel, and its value has also increased to approximately 18,000 yuan/ton. More importantly, sustainable aviation fuels can reduce the production of condensation wake ice crystals that cause climate warming and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50%-80%.
Based on the recovery of the global civil aviation industry and the promotion of "double carbon" actions by countries around the world,"gutter oil" has become an already foreseeable high-value means of production. As the world's largest civil aviation market, my country needs to consume a large amount of aviation fuel every year, which also means that it shoulders a corresponding proportion of the responsibility of reducing carbon emissions. The use of sustainable aviation fuels in the civil aviation industry is a general trend, which also shows that a huge market related to waste edible oil is about to form and will promote the development of the biomanufacturing industry.
At present, biomanufacturing, commercial aerospace, low-altitude economy, etc. are all strategic emerging industries. They are new industries and new driving forces based on cutting-edge technologies of scientific and technological innovation that the country pays great attention to and supports for development. This year's government work report pointed out that we must actively create new growth engines such as biomanufacturing. The Civil Aviation Administration of my country issued the "14th Five-Year Plan for Civil Aviation Green Development", which clearly stated that by 2025, the consumption of bio-aviation fuel will reach the target of more than 20,000 tons, and plans to consume a total of 50,000 tons of bio-aviation fuel during the "14th Five-Year Plan" period.
The market has broad prospects, is a green and low-carbon industry, and has positive social effects. It should be said that biomanufacturing industries such as sustainable aviation fuels need urgent attention. At present, my country's first bio-aviation fuel plant with an annual output of 100,000 tons has been successfully produced on a large scale at Zhenhai Refining and Chemical Company. Although the raw material for sustainable aviation fuel is not a kind of waste edible oil, the relatively low cost of waste edible oil and the comprehensive social benefits generated by its recycling and reuse are greater. Relying on waste edible oil for sustainable aviation fuel conversion is the best solution at present.
From the perspective of global demand, a gap in waste edible oil has emerged. In order to protect high-value production materials, as the world's largest exporter of "gutter oil", it is necessary to conduct professional research and judgment. After all, in a certain sense, helping to build a beautiful China and develop a green economy is inseparable from the development of biomanufacturing. Exporting large quantities of spent edible oil is not beneficial to converting sustainable aviation fuels. At this moment, retaining "gutter oil" also retains green GDP, thereby helping my country achieve the "double carbon" goal.
