oil

The firm QNORM, located in the Scientific and Technologic Park of the Girona University (UdG), participates in a European project that aims to transform vegetal biomass into plastic. The project, which is called BioConSepT (bio-conversion and separation technology), has a budget of 13 million euros (MEUR), funded by the European Union. The project wants to use vegetal biomass (such as fats, oils and straw) and turn it into plastic in order to reduce the use of petrol.

A Scottish multinational has asked permission from the Spanish Ministry of Industry in order to look for hydrocarbons on the Catalan coast, in front of the Costa Brava and Maresme areas. This request has been made shortly after another company, Teredo Oils United, has been authorised to seek for fossil fuels in the Catalan counties of Ripollès, Garrotxa and Osona. Ecologist groups criticise the procedure due to their “serious impact on the marine ecosystems”. Allegations or other offers to carry out the project that can compete with the original one, may be presented over the next two months.

Shell and the charity Football Club Barcelona Foundation have decided to enter a partnership to run football programmes in support of youth in Iraq, Oman and Qatar. The programme, named ‘Futbol Net’ will be launched in 2013 by the FC Barcelona Foundation and will use sport to promote skills of teamwork, accountability and leadership in children between the ages of eight and seventeen.

The Russian company Lukoil has reached an agreement with the Catalan company Meroil to build 13 new oil tanks at Barcelona Port, which are able to store 360,000 cubic metres. Furthermore, Barcelona Port is the only Mediterranean port ready to host the largest and deepest oil tankers. The Catalan President, Artur Mas, unveiled the infrastructure and emphasised Catalonia is strengthening its position as “Europe’s gateway for goods coming from Asia and North Africa”. He also noted Catalonia’s attractive position for foreign investment. Barcelona Port is linked by international width standard railway with Central Europe and has the Zona Franca logistics and industrial district next to it.

The harvest of the millenarian olive oil dropped to one fifth compared to the previous season due to drought. This olive oil coming from 1,000 years old trees is a delicatessen from the Ebre Delta, in Southern Catalonia. Locals are pushing for UNESCO to declare the 4,500 trees a World Heritage.

The project’s aim is to design maritime platforms able to produce hydrogen, generated with the help of green energies. The platforms could be used to provide service to oil tankers or to fix even fish farming, among others potential uses.

The new mooring station to load and offload oil and other bulk liquids is designed for large ships. It will be the deepest of all the Western Mediterranean, including Northern Africa. 275-metre-long ships, weighting up to 175,000 tons and with a 15-metre-deep draft will be able to dock in Barcelona. Barcelona harbour aims at consolidating its leadership among all Mediterranean harbours regarding goods transportation, bulk and by container.

The family company Mallafré has captivated International attention and recognition with its gourmet olive oils, flavoured with thyme, rosemary, garlic, coffee or tangerine, among other ingredients. 70% of the production is exported, mainly to France, Germany and Italy, but also to Japan where Mallafré’s ginger flavoured olive oil is a major success.

According to the President of the Associació Territori del Sénia, the olive oil has a smooth and balanced flavour. 12,000 bottles of olive oil were produced this harvest. They will be sold in speciality stores.

An olive oil from the Cambrils Agricultural Cooperative has been recognised by France, the United States and Israel for its quality. The cooperative recently received three awards for their ‘Mestral’ olive oil, one of the most valued oils in the DO of Siurana. One of the awards was a result of an Israeli competition where around 189 varieties of olive oil from some 14 countries competed to win this mark of quality.