Waste to Biofuels in Canada: Enerkem and the Varennes Biorefinery Plan

Waste to biofuels in Canada has a long running story in Enerkem, the Montreal company that turns non-recyclable municipal waste into biofuels and chemicals. Its path shows both the promise and the difficulty of the idea.

The Edmonton plant

Enerkem inaugurated its Edmonton plant in June 2014. It was designed to make up to 38 million litres a year of biofuel from non-recyclable municipal solid waste, starting with biomethanol, with partners the City of Edmonton and Alberta Innovates. The company’s current project page lists Edmonton as being decommissioned, so it should not be described as running.

Waste to biofuels Canada: the Varennes plan

The Varennes Carbon Recycling project in Quebec is a 1.2 billion Canadian dollar facility with a 277 million dollar loan from the Canada Infrastructure Bank. It is a joint venture of Shell, Suncor, Proman and the Government of Quebec. The plan was to convert over 200,000 tonnes a year of non-recyclable waste and residual biomass into up to 130 million litres a year of biofuels, cutting greenhouse gas by more than 170,000 tonnes a year, with about 100 permanent jobs.

What is unclear

The bank expected commercial output in 2025, but we found no page confirming that the plant is operating, so it should be described as planned or under development unless confirmed. A project in Tarragona, Spain, with Repsol is described as pending a final investment decision.

Why it matters

Landfills hold huge amounts of material that cannot be recycled. Turning it into fuel and chemicals would avoid methane and reduce landfill demand. Big projects like this take years, and the right way to follow them is by checking the operating status.

Sources: Renewable Carbon News, June 2014; Canada Infrastructure Bank, March 27, 2023; Enerkem projects page. Figures marked as company reported come from the company itself.