Glossary
Short explanations of industry-specific terms

Arbitrage describes the strategy of making use of price differences for raw materials, intermediate products or end products in various markets or regions in order to reduce costs or maximise profits. This can be done by simultaneously buying in a cheaper market and selling or using in a more expensive market, or by relocating production to lower-cost regions to take advantage of price disparities. Arbitrage helps to stabilise prices on efficient markets by balancing out differences in supply and demand conditions.

The Regulations on the Implementation of the Federal Emissions Protection Act (Verordnungen zur Durchführung des Bundes-Immissionsschutzgesetzes – BImSchV) are legal instruments in the Federal Republic of Germany used primarily to provide protection against environmental damage from air pollution and excessive noise. They are issued on the basis of the Federal Emissions Protection Act by the Federal Ministry for the Environment.

Biodiesel is a biosynthetic fuel used in a manner similar to mineral diesel fuels. In Europe, it is usually created by the transesterification of rapeseed oil with methanol (rapeseed methyl ester). Biodiesel can be used as a mix with mineral diesel oil, or in modified engines in its pure form, known as B100.

In chemical terms bioethanol is an alcohol which is manufactured in a fermentation process from plants rich in starch and sucrose. Ethanol-based fuels are now used throughout the world as a source of biogenic energy for internal combustion engines. In Germany, filling stations offer E10 (with up to 10 percent)

From the start of 2015 the energetic quota has been replaced by the net greenhouse gas reduction (GHG) quota.

Liquid or gaseous fuels produced from biomass are known as “biofuels” – for example, bioethanol, biodiesel, biomethane and vegetable oil. They are primarily used for combustion engines in mobile and stationary applications.

The German Biofuel Sustainability Regulation (Biokraft-Nachhaltigkeitsverordnung – Biokraft-NachV) and the German Biomass Electricity Sustainability Regulation (Biomassestrom-Nachhaltigkeitsverordnung – BioSt-NachV) together transpose the EU Renewable Energy Directive 2009/28/EC and the EU directive 2018/2001 into German law.

Biomass refers to stored solar energy in the form of energy crops, wood or residues such as straw, biowaste or manure. Electricity, heat and fuel can be obtained from solid, liquid and gaseous biomass.

The term biomethane refers to biogas processed to the standard of natural gas. As part of the natural gas processing the raw gases, produced by fermentation and saturated with steam, are largely purified from water, CO₂ and hydrogen sulphide before being conditioned and compressed and fed into the natural gas network. The chemical structure of biomethane is identical to natural gas, and in addition to being used to generate electricity and heat it can also be used as a biofuel (CNG) for natural gas-powered vehicles or used in the chemical industry.

The biorefinery concept developed by Verbio is based on the closed loop circuits system and the use of whole plants in the biofuel production process. Combining biomethane, bioethanol, animal foodstuff and manure production enables 40 percent higher energy yield from raw materials used compared to existing bioethanol plants, with energy consumption approximately 40 percent lower in these integrated production plants. Additionally, the biofuels manufactured generate CO₂ savings of up to 90 percent compared to petrol over the entire value-added chain.

The German Federal Agency for Agriculture and Food (Bundesanstalt für Landwirtschaft und Ernährung – BLE) is a German Federal authority. The BLE is responsible for implementing national policies, it is supervised by the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (Bundesministerium für Ernährung und Landwirtschaft – BMEL).

A brownfield investment is when existing production facilities are purchased or leased. In contrast to brownfield investments, a greenfield investment involves the construction of new property, plant and equipment on previously undeveloped land – a “greenfield site”, so to speak.

By-products are products that can be marketed and sold but are in fact manufactured as a technical side-effect of a different, primary production process, or which result from the use of intelligent technologies to enable better use of raw materials. At Verbio, by-products include feedstock, fertiliser, phytosterols and pharmaceutical glycerin which are generated during the manufacturing of biodiesel and bioethanol/biomethane.

CO₂ is produced by the combustion of carbon-based material. It serves as a starter material for the creation of plant biomass using photosynthesis. The combustion of biomass only releases as much CO₂ as was previously captured during the growth cycle. Carbon dioxide is the most significant greenhouse gas.

The Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), founded in 1848, is the oldest futures exchange in the world and part of the CME Group.

According to the definitions provided in the Clean Air Act, a “cellulosic biofuel” is a renewable fuel derived from any cellulosic, hemicellulose, or lignin that is derived from renewable biomass and that has lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions that are at least 60 percent less than the baseline lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions. RINs (Renewable Identification Numbers) are credits that are used to fulfil the RVO requirements and which serve as the “currency” for the RFS programme. D3-RINs, also known as cellulosic RINs, are used as credits for “cellulosic biofuels”. These include, for example, biomethane manufactured from straw.

CFC-11 (trichlorofluoromethane), is one of the most common chlorofluorocarbon compounds that endanger the ozone layer and are considered greenhouse gases. The ozone depletion potential is measured as the equivalent of the ozone-depleting gas CFC-11; the reference unit is therefore in kilos of CFC-11 equivalent.

Natural gas as a fuel, in gas form, is injected into natural gas vehicles under high pressure in special pressure tanks. In comparison with petrol and diesel, natural gas has the advantage of burning more cleanly, a higher octane rating and a higher energy content. The combustion of CNG is almost free of fine particulate matter and nitrogen oxide. In Germany CNG fuel benefits from tax incentives.

The CO₂ footprint is a measure of how much carbon dioxide (CO₂) a person, organization, or product releases into the atmosphere during its activities or lifetime. As CO₂ is a major greenhouse gas, knowing our CO₂ footprint helps us to understand how we contribute to climate change.

The CO₂ footprint is measured in tonnes of CO₂ equivalent. All greenhouse gases are taken into account and converted to their effect as CO₂.

The handprint was created in contrast to the CO₂ footprint, which measures the negative impact on the climate. The CO₂ handprint measures the positive contribution of a person, organization, or product to reducing CO₂ emissions. Verbio makes a positive contribution to CO₂ reduction, for example through our climate-friendly biofuels, which help to avoid emissions in the transportation sector.

The term for raw materials or goods traded on a commodities exchange. These include non-metallic commodities such as cocoa, sugar, grain etc. as well as metallic commodities that are traded on a corresponding exchange.

The CSRD (Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive) is the European Commission’s directive which requires enterprises to publish information on the sustainability of their business activities and subject this information to an external audit (verification).

The German Corporate Governance Code (Deutscher Corporate Governance Kodex – DCGK) presents essential statutory regulations concerning the management and supervision of German listed companies, and contains internationally and nationally recognised standards of good and responsible corporate governance in the form of recommendations and suggestions.

Dried distiller grain with solubles is a starch-based grain product which results from the operation of a bioethanol production plant. It is created after drying stillage, a by-product created during the production process. The dried stillage can be pelleted after the drying process. The storable feed produced in this way is known as DDGS.

Decarbonisation refers to shifts in the economy, particularly in relation to energy use, which have the goal of further reducing fossil CO₂ emissions. To achieve this, actions and processes which emit CO₂ are replaced with processes that minimise or compensate for these emissions. Decarbonisation is a key tool for climate protection and a main pillar of the transition to sustainable energy. The long-term goal is a carbon-neutral economy.

The German Accounting Standards Committee (Deutsches Rechnungslegungs Standards Committee e. V. – DRSC) was founded as a standards developing organisation in 1998 and has since functioned as the supporting organisation for expert committees. The core tasks of the DRSC are the development of recommendations for the implementation of consolidated accounting standards, advisory activities related to planned changes to accounting legislation at the national and EU levels, preparing interpretations of international accounting standards in accordance with § 315a (1) of the German Commercial Code (Handelsgesetzbuch – HGB), and improving the quality of accounting.

Sustainability due diligence is the process by which a company identifies and prevents actual and potential impacts of its activities on the environment and people, and explains how it deals with such impacts. Due diligence is an ongoing practice that responds to or can initiate change. The result of the sustainability audit is incorporated into the assessment of a company’s material impacts, risks and opportunities.

E10 is a petrol fuel which contains 10 percent (by volume) bioethanol and 90 percent (by volume) petrol. This fuel has been available at filling stations in Germany since January 1, 2011.

ECOWAS is an international organisation of (currently) 12 national states in West Africa, and one of the 8 regional economic communities in Africa.

The term “emission” can cover any type of discharge of solid, fluid or gaseous material as well as noise, smells, rays or vibrations into the environment. Mostly this term is used to refer to pollutants (exhaust gases, exhaust fumes, wastewater, solid or fluid waste, electro-smog, radioactivity etc.) produced by industrial activity.

The abbreviation ESG stands for "Environmental, Social, and Governance." These criteria are used to assess a company's sustainable and ethical practices and are crucial for corporate management as well as investment decisions. ESG encompasses three key areas: environmental aspects, social responsibility, and corporate governance, all of which are important for evaluating a company's sustainability.

The European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) regulate the details of sustainability reporting by companies in the European Union. The European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) was commissioned by the European Commission to develop the ESRS.

Ethanol, also called ethyl alcohol, belongs to the alcohol family and is in a narrow sense a synonym for alcohol. Ethanol is the main product of alcoholic fermentation and the primary component of spirits and potable alcohol. It is used as a fuel additive (bioethanol) and on its own as a fuel, as well as in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries.

Ethenolysis is a chemical process in which terminal olefins are degraded. In chemical terms, it is a cross metathesis.

The Euro Interbank Offered Rate (EURIBOR) is a reference interest rate for time deposits in euros in the interbank business, which has been calculated on bank working days since January 1, 1999 for terms of one, two and three weeks and twelve monthly terms of one month to twelve months.

Euronext is an international stock exchange which combines the Amsterdam, Brussels, Dublin, Lisbon, Milan, Oslo and Paris stock markets. It has its headquarters in Amsterdam. The shares of the operating company Euronext N.V. are traded on all of the stock markets that it operates.

Fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) is manufactured by transesterification of fats or oils (triglyceride) with methanol. Today, fatty acid methyl ester is primarily used to manufacture biodiesel and can be used in its pure form as fuel, or combined in any quantity with conventional diesel fuels. The most common fatty acid methyls used in biodiesel production are soya oil methyl esters (SME, primarily used in North and South America and imported into Europe), rapeseed methyl ester (RME; primarily used in central Europe), palm oil methyl ester (PME) and methyl ester obtained from animal fats (FME).

First generation biofuels are all fuels produced from either oil-yielding crops or plants containing starch and sucrose. Oil-yielding crops are processed by pressing and subsequent esterication to create diesel fuels. A typical example is biodiesel. Bioethanol is produced by fermentation of plants containing starch and sucrose, such as grain, sugar beet or sugar cane.

Fossil energy is obtained from fuels which were created from waste products from dead plants and animals in geological prehistoric times. These materials include brown coal, black coal, peat, natural gas and crude oil. Fossil fuels include natural gas/CNG as well as diesel and petrol, which are manufactured from crude oil.

The Greenhouse Gas Protocol is a private, transnational set of standards for accounting and reporting on greenhouse gas emissions for use by companies and increasingly for the public sector (carbon accounting).

Since January 1, 2015 Germany has been the first country in the world to institute a so-called GHG quota for biofuels. Fulfilment of the quota is based exclusively on a maximum level of CO₂ savings.

For the year 2025 the GHG quota to be met in Germany has been 10.6 percent, and is set to rise to 25 percent by 2030. In order to reach this goal, the oil industry must use biofuels.

In addition to methane, nitrogen dioxide and CFCs, carbon dioxide is the most important anthropogenic greenhouse gas. The rise in the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is responsible for climate change. The main cause of CO₂ emissions is industry, followed by the property sector (space heating, electric appliances etc.) and the transport sector.

Greenwashing refers to attempts by organizations to achieve a “green image” through communication, marketing and individual measures without having systematically anchored corresponding measures in their operational business.

The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) is a recognised provider of guidelines for the preparation of sustainability reports by large companies, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), governments and non-governmental organisations. The GRI guidelines are intended to support sustainable development worldwide and at the same time provide companies, governments, investors, employees and the interested public with comparable decision-making and orientation aids.

The term hydrogenated or hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) describes vegetable oils which are converted to hydrocarbons by means of a catalytic reaction with hydrogen (hydrogenation). In this process the properties of vegetable oils are processed to create fossil fuels (in particular diesel fuels), enabling them to be used as additives or as substitutes for fossil fuels.

The Intercontinental Currency Exchange (ICE), or Intercontinental Exchange for short, is an exchange operator based in Atlanta, USA, which specialises in the electronic trading of options and futures in electricity, energy and agricultural commodities as well as in emissions.

The abbreviation ISCC stands for the International Sustainability & Carbon Certification. It is a globally recognised system for the certification of sustainability and greenhouse gas emissions. The certification takes into account ecological and social aspects of biomass production.

The Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) is a guideline aimed at increasing the proportion of fuels with lower carbon intensity in transportation and reducing carbon dioxide emissions. In California, the LCFS is an important measure for meeting greenhouse gas emission reduction targets.

LNG, like CNG, is made from fossil natural gas and can be used to fuel passenger vehicles, heavy goods vehicles, buses and ships using combustion engines designed for CNG technology. For shipping purposes, natural gas is converted to liquid form under high pressure and cold temperatures. LNG can be used as a fuel in particular for shipping and heavy goods vehicles transportation over long distances as converting it into liquid form increases the volume which can be held in tanks, which extends the fuel range significantly compared to CNG.

The French International Financial Futures Exchange (Marché à Terme International de France – MATIF) is a European futures exchange founded in Paris in 1986. Since then the MATIF has become a part of NYSE Euronext. Futures for wheat, maize and rapeseed are traded on the MATIF, among other commodities. Rapeseed meal, rapeseed oil and urea and ammonium nitrate solution (UAN), a liquid fertiliser, can also be traded. The MATIF is the most important leading exchange and the reference trading platform for German and European farmers.

Metathesis is one of the most important reactions in organic chemistry. With the help of specific catalysts, it makes it possible to synthesise new molecule combinations and, as a result, create new chemical raw materials and active ingredients. The scientists Yves Chauvin, Richard Schrock and Robert Grubbs were awarded a Nobel Prize in Chemistry for groundbreaking discoveries in this subject.

The term multi-feedstock describes a production facility which can be used with a range of raw materials. Verbio plants operated on the basis of raw materials used to create bioethanol and biodiesel are multi-feedstock capable, using the best priced materials available in the market at the time.

Multiple compression refers to a situation in which a company’s profits rise without a corresponding rise in its share price, or in which a company’s profits fall but the share price falls disproportionately, leading to a reduction in valuation multiples such as the price/earnings ratio.

The multisite procedure is a sampling procedure that allows a representative picture to be obtained from a small number of selected audit sites.

The NACE code is the classification of economic activities in the European Union (EU).

Net zero is a climate target for companies with the objective of achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by a specific date. It is similar to a climate neutrality target, but in some aspects it is more ambitious. Net zero means achieving a balance between the volume of emissions created and the volume of emissions withdrawn from the atmosphere in order to reduce global warming.

The New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) is the world’s largest futures commodities exchange.

Olefin is a generic term used in particular in the petrochemical industry for all acyclic and cyclic hydrocarbons with one or more carbon-carbon double bond, with the exception of aromatic compounds.

Also known as off-market trading, this refers to transactions between market participants conducted outside of stock or other markets.

Pharmaceutical glycerin refers to a product synthesised by the purification and distillation of raw glycerin. It is used in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. Glycerin is a by-product of biodiesel production.

Protein isolate is an isolated protein which is obtained by separating the protein from protein concentrate.

Rapeseed methyl ester (also referred to as rapeseed oil methyl ester) is a mixture of methyl esters consisting of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids with 16 to 18 carbon atoms. Through the chemical reaction of refined rapeseed oil with methanol, rapeseed methyl ester is obtained as a clear, low-viscosity, flammable liquid that is insoluble in water.

The REACH Regulation is an EU chemicals regulation that came into force on June 1, 2007. REACH is the abbreviation for Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals.

REDcert provides certification systems for sustainable biomass, biofuels and liquid biofuels (REDcert-EU).

Refining is a technical process for cleaning, processing, separating and/or concentrating raw materials, foodstuffs and technical products.

Renewable energies such as solar power, wind energy or hydroelectric power are – in contrast to fossil fuels – available in unlimited amounts. The renewable energy available for use is classified into heat, electricity and fuel.

The Renewable Energy Directive (RED) is a central element of European energy policy aimed at promoting the use of renewable energy sources. The third version, known as RED III, was adopted on October 18, 2023, and came into force on November 20, 2023. It replaces the previous directive (EU) 2018/2001 (RED II) and sets new, more ambitious targets for the expansion of renewable energy within the EU. Member states were expected to transpose the directive into national law by May 2025. In Germany, a draft for this has been available since mid-June 2025.

The RED III Directive (EU 2023/2413) aims to increase the share of renewable energy in the EU to at least 42.5% by 2030 and to accelerate permitting procedures for renewable energy projects.

The Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) is a US American Federal program in which fuels used for transport purposes sold in the USA must contain a minimum volume of fuels from renewable sources.

Renewable Identification Numbers are credits that certify compliance with the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) in the United States. They are assigned to batches of biofuels to track their production, use and trade.

The RVOs are the volume obligations for producers of renewable fuels, issued by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the United States.

Scope 1 emissions are emissions from sources which are directly under the responsibility of an enterprise or controlled by it. These include emissions from energy sources at the premises of the enterprise, such as natural gas, fuels, coolants, as well as emissions from the use of heating boilers and ovens. They are under the responsibility of an enterprise or controlled by it. Scope 1 emissions also include emissions from an enterprise’s vehicle fleet (e.g. passenger vehicles, delivery vehicles, heavy goods vehicles, helicopters for hospitals).

Scope 2 emissions are indirect greenhouse gas emissions from energy that is procured by an enterprise – for example, electricity, steam, district heating and cooling which are generated outside the enterprise but are consumed by it. For example, if electricity purchased by a utility is generated by a third-party entity, the resulting emissions are considered indirect emissions.

Scope 3 emissions are all other indirect emissions that occur in the value-added chain of the reporting company.

The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are political objectives of the United Nations (UN) that are intended to ensure worldwide sustainable development at an economic, social and ecological level.

Second generation biofuels use surplus or waste plants that are not used for food production and are not created by intensive agricultural production. In contrast to conventional biofuels, these have the added advantage that no additional agricultural land is required, greenhouse gas emissions are significantly lower compared to conventional biofuels, and they do not compete with the production of foodstuffs.

Sterols (also Phytosterols or Phytosterines) is the name given to a group of chemical compounds that are part of the sterol category and which are found in plants. Phytosterols are fat-accompanying substances that, among other things, are used as dietary supplements and have the effect of reducing cholesterol levels in humans.

The concept of sustainability describes the use of a regenerative system in such a way that the main properties of the system are preserved, and in which stocks are replenished in a natural manner.

Biofuels which are used to achieve the objectives of the Renewable Energy Directive and biofuels benefiting from national support schemes must fulfil certain criteria in order to prove their ecological sustainability. These criteria are referred to as sustainability criteria. Examples of sustainability criteria are the minimum reduction targets set for greenhouse gases and the protection of areas with high biological diversity. The criteria are catalogued in the Biofuel Sustainability Regulations.

Tocopherols are fat-soluble vitamins (vitamin E and vitamin E-like substances) consisting of a chroman ring and an isoprenoid side chain. Tocopherols are used in the foodstuff industry, among other things.

UER describes the reduction of all emissions generated along the fuel production value chain in the raw material extraction, transportation and processing production stages. In January 2018 the German government issued the UER Regulation (Upstream-Emissionsminderungs-Verordnung – UERV) which enables upstream emission reductions to be counted from the 2020 commitment year. This means that the reduction of these emissions can be credited as greenhouse gas savings on fossil fuels brought to market in Germany, even if they are produced in a completely different geographical location in the world and a reduction has an impact on the climate at that location. UERs will no longer be accepted from 2025. According to this, oil companies are no longer allowed to fulfill their legal climate protection requirements with CO2 reduction projects abroad.

The UN Global Compact (United Nations Global Compact) is a worldwide agreement between companies and the UNO to provide a framework to make globalisation more social and environmentally friendly. For this purpose the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) issued ten principles for the social and environmentally friendly shaping of globalisation.