Date: 5 May 2026

Location: Room 0.D Albert Borschette Congress Center, Etterbeek, Belgium

Time: 12:00 – 18:00

Within the Clean Planet Directorate in DG RTD, Unit C2 – Clean Energy Transitions-
is organising a workshop on the way forward for advanced biofuels and RFNBOs.
This responds to the need to support implementing the SET Plan priority action on
Renewable Fuels and Bioenergy for the development and deployment of advanced
biofuels and RFNBOs technologies and value chains. While the SET Plan IWG is
currently being populated with more member countries, there are already 10 SET
Plan countries which support steadily research, innovation and market up-take of
advanced biofuels and RFNBOs. The European Technology and Innovation Platform
Bioenergy, which represents the relevant stakeholders of the sector, supports this
initiative.
The main objective is to promote a concerted action of the European Commission,
Member States, and market and finance sectors towards commercialization of
advanced biofuels and RFNBOs. The event will serve to firstly present the RTD’s
strategy based on studies on the potential and mobilization of industrial capacity
building and inform both EU policy and decision makers on the macroeconomic
and socioeconomic benefits in EU from the sector’s deployment. It will also present
the national commitments and readiness, the industry perspectives and the
business opportunities, and the financing available. The main foreseen outcome is
a way forward between all decision makers to enlarge the market of advanced
biofuels and RFNBOs in Europe.
The event will bring together all key actors from EU and Member State policy and
decision makers, industry and finance on the road to market for advanced biofuels
and RFNBOs. The perspective of European and Member State policy, the product
market outlook and the insights of the financing sector will be illustrated. The
business cases will be discussed for selected examples in a panel roundtable.
The initiative fits very well with the EU policies of Competitiveness Compass and
Clean Industrial Deal with underlying Strategic Transport Investment Plan and
Affordable Energy Action Plan -biogas tripartite, while it aids implementation of on
going R&I policy on SET Plan and EU policy on Ff55 and climate neutrality (RED,
REFuelEU aviation, FuelEU Maritime, CO2 standards revision) and NZIA under
which SET Plan is reporting.
This event provides the opportunity to inform the stakeholders through discussion
of designated business cases around sustainable value chains. This will facilitate
the debate about identifying framework conditions and action points for
accelerating market uptake of advanced biofuels and RFNBOs. Subsequently, the
event will feedback to the EU R&I policy and to its Strategic Energy Technology Plan
and Common Implementation and Investment Plans.

Agenda:

12:00 – 13.00 Welcome Lunch
13.00 – 13.10 Keynote speech: Krzysztof Kuik, Director RTD C, European Commission
13.10 –14:40 Session I – The Key-Players in the Advanced Biofuels and RFNBOs Value Chain:
Moderator: Beatrice Coda, HoU, RTD C.2, European Commission
13.10 –14.00 Part A – Technology and Market Status – EC R&I strategy
Outlook and mobilization of deployment of advanced biofuels & RFNBOs
− Strategy, studies overview, R&I support, Maria Georgiadou, Senior Expert, RTD
C.2, European Commission
− Study 2024, David Chiaramonti, Professor of POLITO/Chairman of CEM Biofuture
Platform
− Study 2026, Theodor Goumas, Chairman, EXERGIA
− Renewable Transport (2025), Paolo Frankl, Head Renewable Energy Division, IEA
14.00 – 14.40 Part B – EU Policy updates
− CAP as enabler, Dario Nardella, MEP, Coordinator Committee on Agriculture and Rural
Development, European Parliament
− RED II/Anex IX implementation, ENER, European Commission (tbc)
− Strategic Transport Investment Plan, Moumen Hamdouch, HoU, MOVE B.4
− GHG regulation, ETS mobility (air-water): Polona Gregorin, HoU, CLIMA B.4
14.40 – 15.10 Session II – National strategies and EU policy for the deployment of advanced biofuels
and RFNBOs:
Moderator: Franco Cotana, SET Plan IWG Renewable Fuels and Bioenergy cochair
− Italy, Giovanni Perrella, Senior Adviser, Energy Dept of Ministry of Environment and
Energy Security
− Finland, Timo Ritonummi, Deputy Director-General, Energy Dept of Ministry of
Economic Affairs and Employment
− Poland: Bartosz Arabik, Dep. Director, Innovation and Energy Efficiency Dept of Ministry
of Climate and Environment
15.10 – 15.30 Q&A
15:30 – 15:50 Coffee break

15.50 – 16.30 Session III – The Financing side – Public and private instruments and funds for scaling
up production:
Moderator: Theodor Goumas, EXERGIA
− A collective Financial Plan, Konstantinos Kalligeros, Financial Expert, EXERGIA
− INVESTEU, EBRD and IFIs, Filippo Munisteri dHoU, ECFIN D.5 and EBRD
board of Directors alternative member
− EAFRD and Farm Grants, Iman Boot, Senior Expert, AGRI B.1, (tbc)
− ERDF, REGIO (tbc)
16.30 – 17.30 Roundtable: Bridging the gap and the way forward for advanced biofuels:
Moderator: David Chiaramonti, Professor of POLITO/Chairman of CEM Biofuture Platform

Getting Europe ready for large scale deployment of advanced biofuels and RFNBOs. Views
from IVCs’ players. The following discussion groups covering specific value chains will debate
and report:
− AD to biomethane (IVC7):
Harmen Dekker, CEO, EBA
Stefano Bozzetto, CEO FemoGas
Andrea Gerini, Head Open Innovation, IVECO
Rapporteur: Dina Bacovsky, Scientific Adviser, BEST

− HVO/HEFA (IVC2):
Alexander Bachler, Chairman of Working Party on Bioenergy at CopaCogeca
Tiphaine Angla, Policy Advisor at FuelsEurope
Preeti Jain, Head R&I, IATA
Rapporteur: Giacomo Talluri, Senior Researcher, POLITO

− Gasification to MeOH (IVC8a):
Felicia Mester, Managing Director EU & IMO
Berta Cabello Calvo, Renewable Fuels Director, Repsol
Roberta Cenni, Head of Biofuels, Zero Carbon Shipping Mc-Kinney Moller Center Maersk
Rapporteur: George Vourliotakis, Head Energy Policy and Planning, EXERGIA

− Gasification to FT synthesis and FT-SPK (IVC 11a) and LC Ethanol and AtJ
(IVC5): ST1 Nordic Oy – SkyNRG – KLM Patrick Pitkänen, ST1 Nordic Oy, Venture Development Lead
Oskar Meijerink, Head of Corporate Development, SkyNRG
Ruben Alblas, Program Manager, Public Affairs KLM Royal Dutch Airlines
Rapporteur: Paolo Corvo, Partner and COO, BFPartners

17.30 – 17.50 Q&A
17:50 – 18:00 EC Closing