Insa Oil building Bulgaria’s first bioethanol plant

Bulgarian oil company Insa Oil plans to finish its bioethanol plant by the end of 2026. The company claims the plant under construction will be the country’s first to produce renewable fuel from biomass.

The construction of the Insa Spirit plant began in June 2022 and is already in an advanced phase, according to an announcement by Insa Oil. Bioethanol is a renewable fuel produced primarily from grains and often blended with gasoline.

The plant, estimated to cost EUR 56 million, spans about 45,000 square meters. It includes production facilities and a high-tech laboratory.

The biorefinery will produce ethyl alcohol, part of which will be converted into bioethanol for the Bulgarian energy market.

The plant’s capacity is 41,000 liters of ethyl alcohol per day

The plant’s capacity is 41,000 liters of ethyl alcohol per day, the company said, adding that the facility is expected to be operational in the second half of 2026.

Bulgaria has set the minimum required amount of bioethanol to be added to gasoline at 9%. It is regulated by the European Directive on the Promotion of the Use of Energy from Renewable Sources and the Renewable Energy Law, which came into force in the first half of this year.

“Our ambition is to turn Bulgaria into a regional factor for bioethanol production. We believe that this investment will be important for our economy and will increase our energy independence, while also taking care of environmental protection,” said Insa Oil manager Georgi Samuilov.

The plant uses technology from India

Following the launch of Insa Spirit, the company plans to develop technologies for second-generation bioethanol produced from biomass.

The technology for the plant was developed by India-based PRAJ.

The equipment was supplied by leading producers such as Bühler Group (Germany), Alfa Laval (Sweden), Bosch (Germany), Siemens (Germany), Hydro-Thermal (USA), and Solar Turbines (USA), according to Insa Oil.