The Roundtable on Sustainable Biofuels (RSB) and software company Bioledger released a case study on the potential of a blockchain database to support traceability of biofuel and its feedstocks and overcome the vulnerabilities identified in securing the supply of sustainable renewables.

The report summarizes the results of a project which ran between January and November 2020. The project was made possible by a grant from the ISEAL Innovations Fund, which is supported by the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO).

For the study, a blockchain database that enables verifiable proof of origin, secure consignment creation, process simplification, audit efficiency, data integrity, and central governance was prototyped and trialed with project partners to process a total of 1,927,906 liters of feedstock, accurately representing real-life commercial and operational processes.

To evaluate the efficiency and suitability of the database, the prototype was piloted by four partners involved in the production and distribution of fuels made from used cooking oil (UCO). These partners were Greenergy (UK), Europe’s largest waste-based biodiesel producer; Rexon Energy (Singapore), an exporter of UCO to the EU; Bensons Products (UK), a UCO collector; and Valley Proteins (USA), a UCO collector and exporter.

By piloting the approach with such a diverse group of partners, the project was able to identify recommendations and observations to build out a full database to be used by industry globally to improve transparency and control in certified sustainable biofuel supply chains.

This blockchain prototype was recommended by industry stakeholders as one of the most comprehensive, credible and robust biofuel databases available to the European Commission, which is looking to develop a Union Database as part of EU RED II implementation.

Bioledger is utilizing the lessons gained from the pilot project to provide a new blockchain database for the biofuels market, and RSB and Bioledger are committed to building upon the lessons learnt through this project and making such a database—based on the principles of transparency, sustainability, and good governance—a reality.

Other key stakeholders who provided support and contributions to the project are the MVO (Dutch Oils and Fats Industry), the EWABA (European Waste-to-Advanced Biofuels Association), the EBB (European Biodiesel Board), the European Commission, Peterson Control Union, SCS Global Services, and Oracle Consulting Services.

RSB is an international, multi-stakeholder, independent organization that supports the development of the global bioeconomy through sustainability solutions, certification, innovation and collaborative partnerships.

Bioledger Ltd. is a software development company formed by biofuel industry stakeholders in response to the risk of fraud and noncompliance in the certified sustainable biofuels market in 2019.