HONEYWELL INTRODUCES NEW, INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY THAT PRODUCES LOW-COST, HIGH QUALITY RENEWABLE FUELS FROM BIOMASS

Rhea-AI Summary

Honeywell (NASDAQ: HON) on October 28, 2025 introduced Biocrude Upgrading, a modular process technology that converts agricultural and forestry waste into ready-to-use renewable fuels including lower-carbon marine fuel, gasoline and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).

The technology produces biocrude at feedstock collection sites to cut transport costs, supports refining at major facilities, and offers higher energy density fuels that can extend vessel range without engine upgrades. Honeywell positions the process as complementary to its existing renewable fuels portfolio.

Insights

Energy technology strategist

Honeywell's modular Biocrude Upgrading tech aims to turn low-cost biomass into drop-in fuels for hard-to-abate sectors.

Honeywell offers a prefabricated, modular process that converts agricultural and forestry waste into biocrude and then into drop-in fuels such as marine fuel, gasoline, and sustainable aviation fuel. The business mechanism lowers feedstock transport by enabling conversion near collection sites and leverages existing major refining assets to finish fuels, reducing capital intensity compared with building full new refineries.

Key dependencies and risks include acceptance of biocrudes by large refiners, demonstrated fuel performance parity, and permitting and supply‑chain logistics for consistent biomass feedstock. The announcement claims higher energy density and modular delivery but provides no quantified yields, costs, or pilot results, so material commercial impact depends on those metrics.

Watch for concrete milestones: commercial pilot or first modular plant commissioning and verified fuel-spec certifications within the next 12–24 months. Those items will materially clarify capital efficiency and scalability.

Maritime fuel economist

The technology targets lower-carbon, cost-competitive marine fuel as a direct alternative to heavy fuel oil.

By positioning a drop-in marine fuel with higher energy density and lower lifecycle carbon intensity, the offering addresses a market need where ship operators avoid engine retrofits. The modular approach can shorten lead times and reduce upfront construction risk, which matters for ship operators and fuel suppliers seeking transitional solutions.

Risks include shipping-sector certification, bunker supply-chain adoption, and actual delivered cost versus heavy fuel oil. The release cites the maritime sector's ~3% share of global greenhouse gas emissions, framing demand drivers, but it supplies no cost or emissions-per-unit figures. Monitor announcements of first commercial supply contracts, fuel standard approvals, and reported delivered cost parity within 12–36 months.

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Oct. 28, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Honeywell (NASDAQ: HON) today introduced a breakthrough technology that converts agricultural and forestry waste into ready-to-use renewable fuels for hard-to-abate sectors, such as the maritime industry. The technology produces lower-carbon marine fuel, gasoline and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from inexpensive and abundant biomass sources like wood chips and crop residues.

For ship operators, these ready-to-use or "drop-in" fuels provide a cost-effective and lower-carbon alternative to traditional heavy fuel oil. With higher energy density than many current biofuel alternatives, this renewable marine fuel can extend a vessel's range without requiring costly engine upgrades.

"Honeywell continues to drive innovation in the areas that our customers need most," said Ken West, president of Honeywell Energy and Sustainability Solutions. "The maritime industry has a real need for renewable fuels that are immediately available and cost effective. Our Biocrude Upgrading processing technology can be delivered in modular form, offering savings from the point of installation through to refining and use." 

Plant and agricultural waste can be converted into lower carbon biocrude at the feedstock collection sites, which keeps transport costs low. Honeywell's new process technology enables biocrude to then be refined at major facilities to produce marine fuel, gasoline or SAF. This helps solve long-standing challenges with converting biocrudes into fuels with performance comparable to conventional fuel.

Biocrude Upgrading process technology can be delivered in the form of a prefabricated modular plant. As a result, Honeywell can help customers reduce risk and accelerate project timelines by simplifying site construction activity.

The introduction of Honeywell's Biocrude Upgrading process technology comes as shipping companies seek to reduce their carbon footprints due to customer demands and regulatory drivers. Since the 1960s, heavy fuel oil—residual products from the refining of gasoline, diesel, and kerosene—has been the principal energy source for the maritime sector and a main source of its roughly 3% contribution of global greenhouse gas emissions¹.

For more than a decade, Honeywell has provided process technologies for renewable and alternative fuels using various feedstocks. The new Biocrude Upgrading technology is complementary to its renewable fuels portfolio, which includes Ecofining^TM, Ethanol to Jet technology, Fischer-Tropsch (FT) Unicracking™ technology and UOP eFining™, a process that converts green hydrogen and carbon dioxide into e-fuels. Learn more about Honeywell's renewable fuels portfolio here: https://uop.honeywell.com/en/industry-solutions/renewable-fuels.

About Honeywell
Honeywell is an integrated operating company serving a broad range of industries and geographies around the world, with a portfolio that is underpinned by our Honeywell Accelerator operating system and Honeywell Forge platform. As a trusted partner, we help organizations solve the world's toughest, most complex challenges, providing actionable solutions and innovations for aerospace, building automation, industrial automation, process automation, and process technology, that help make the world smarter and safer as well as more secure and sustainable. For more news and information on Honeywell, please visit www.honeywell.com/newsroom.

Contact:

Media
Whitney Ellis
704-621-4354
whitney.ellis@honeywell.com

¹ https://www.energy.gov/eere/maritime-decarbonization

 

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SOURCE Honeywell

FAQ

What did Honeywell (HON) announce on October 28, 2025?

Honeywell announced Biocrude Upgrading, a modular technology to convert agricultural and forestry waste into drop-in renewable fuels for marine, gasoline and SAF use.

How does Honeywell's Biocrude Upgrading reduce costs for ship operators?

The process converts biocrude at feedstock collection sites to lower transport costs and produces ready-to-use fuels that avoid costly engine upgrades.

Will Honeywell's new technology work with existing refineries for SAF and marine fuel?

Yes; the company says biocrude produced by the process can be refined at major facilities to produce marine fuel, gasoline or SAF.

What feedstocks does Honeywell's Biocrude Upgrading use?

The technology uses inexpensive, abundant biomass such as wood chips and crop residues.

Does Honeywell offer the Biocrude Upgrading as a full-scale plant?

Honeywell says the technology can be delivered as a prefabricated modular plant to simplify construction and accelerate project timelines.

How does Honeywell position Biocrude Upgrading within its fuel technologies?

Honeywell describes the process as complementary to its renewable fuels portfolio, including Ecofining, Ethanol to Jet, Fischer-Tropsch Unicracking, and UOP eFining.