Workshop: Innovating Liquid Biofuels for the Transport Sector

The workshop took place along the lines of the International Congress of Sustainability and Scientific Fair organised by the National Institute of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (INER) of Ecuador. The main purpose of this Congress was to enhance scientific research in energy efficiency and renewable energy by promoting scientific papers, encouraging connection between national and international institutes and research centres in Latin America and the Caribbean and facilitating access to scientific knowledge to the industry, enterprises and start-ups.

The workshop “Innovating Liquid Biofuels for the Transport Sector”, co-organised by IRENA and INER, provided a platform for a regional discussion on current and projected market trends, as well as research and development (R&D) resulting in the latest breakthroughs and potential of advanced biofuels in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). IRENA presented the preliminary findings from the ongoing ‘IRENA’s Innovation Technology Outlook for Advanced Biofuels’, a global technology outlook for advanced liquid biofuels for transport from 2015 to 2045, which focuses on the role of innovation on advanced production pathways which have not yet reached large scale commercialisation. Several institutions, including the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (EMBRAPA) and the Latin American Energy Organisation (OLADE), amongst others, participated in the workshop by presenting lectures. More than 270 regional experts and representatives at the ministerial level benefited from the workshop.

During the Congress, IRENA also presented the findings from its study on Cooperative R&D for the LAC region. On the side lines of the event, an initiative to create a cooperative network of R&D centres in the LAC region was discussed and next steps in the process were agreed. Overall, 23 lecturers from 11 different nationalities participated in the International Congress of Sustainability and Scientific Fair, which was estimated to have visited by 2500 guests.

Below please find the agenda, the presentations and a summary report of the workshop.

Summary Report

Agenda