Repsol has 600 petrol stations supplying 100% renewable fuel in the Iberian Peninsula, including 550 in Spain and 50 in Portugal.
This achievement fulfils the target set by Repsol in its 2024-’27 strategic update to reach 600 stations using 100% renewable Nexa diesel by the end of the year.
The energy company plans to expand further, aiming for 1,500 stations offering 100% renewable fuel by the end of 2025.
Indonesia’s Chief Economy Minister said on Friday that the country will continue to work on the implementation of the B40 biodiesel programme from January 1 next year, compared to the B35 currently used in Indonesia.
Minister Airlangga Hartarto said the implementation of B40 was Indonesia’s ‘concrete contribution’ to the world as it could reduce carbon dioxide emissions by about 40 million tonnes.
The Indonesian Palm Oil Fund Agency will be able to finance the difference between the cost of palm oil-based biofuels and fossil fuels.
According to previous estimates by the Association of Indonesian Biofuel Producers (APROBI), B40 will increase Indonesia’s palm oil use for biodiesel to 13.9 million tonnes, compared to an estimated 11 million tonnes needed this year.
Buses at IOV Ilmenau in Germany were successfully run and tested with pure biodiesel fatty acid methyl ester (FAME).
A project initiated by AGQM Biodiesel examined IOV Ilmenau’s fleet of B100 buses, focusing on the buses’ engine oils and analysing them in depth. The results were encouraging and satisfactory.
Pakistan Petroleum and Retail Operations Public Company Limited (PTTOR) has announced the adjustment of the proportion of biodiesel in regular high speed diesel from B7 to B5.
The adjustment is in response to the Energy Policy Management Committee’s decision to link the prevailing price of crude oil to domestic palm oil stocks and the new policy has come into effect from 21 November.
China’s ministry of finance and the state administration of taxation announced Nov. 15 that starting Dec. 1, the 13 percent export-tax rebate on used cooking oil (UCO) would be discontinued.
Leading biobased diesel producers in China have long advocated for this change, arguing that the tax rebate undermines the country’s interests by favoring UCO exports over domestic consumption.
It appears that this policy aims to facilitate the shift from export-oriented biobased diesel production to a domestic focus that could be used within China’s circular economy, reduce low-value feedstock exports, and promote higher-value SAF exports.
UCO prices adjust dramatically
The policy announcement triggered immediate changes in UCO prices.
On the procurement side, waste-oil prices dropped significantly.
In North China, export-quality brown grease, which averaged approximately USD$940 per metric ton on Nov. 15, fell 11 percent to around USD$843 per ton by Nov. 18.
Gutter-oil prices in East China also fell, declining by 6 percent to about USD$691 per ton.
On the sales side, leading Chinese UCO producers set initial December and January contract prices at USD$1,000 to USD$1,050 a ton, representing an increase of USD$100 to USD$150 per ton over previous rates.
Industry sources noted that FOB China UCO offers were rescinded, with new offers priced at least USD$150 per ton higher.
This change poses challenges for UCO traders, who rely heavily on the rebate for profitability.
The estimated rebate loss for exporters ranges from USD$109 to USD$117 per ton.
Analysts anticipate significant price volatility in the coming months, leading to potential industry consolidation as smaller traders are acquired by larger firms.
Motivations behind policy shift
The primary objective of this policy appears to support the domestic biobased diesel industry by ensuring a more stable supply of UCO feedstock.
Exporting UCO has long been seen as low-value trade, exacerbating price competition among Chinese exporters on the international market.
Additionally, the policy seemingly seeks to ease fiscal pressures on the government amid an economic slowdown and address concerns of dumping accusations from trading partners.
There are also reports that Chinese authorities are investigating abuses within the rebate system, where importers allegedly mixed palm-oil acid with UCO to claim tax rebates fraudulently.
Opportunities for Chinese biobased diesel producers
Ending the UCO export-tax rebate signals a shift towards retaining more UCO within China, which may foreshadow the introduction of SAF mandates and other biofuel-supportive measures.
While nearly 40 countries have SAF mandates, China currently does not.
The policy change should lead to a lower and more stable domestic UCO supply, encouraging producers to expand capacity or increase utilization rates.
Cost savings from this policy could enable more significant domestic investments in research and development of related downstream industries, improving competitiveness.
Additionally, challenges exist in the UCO-collection infrastructure.
EU Transport & Environment and the International Council on Clean Transportation conducted studies that estimated UCO-collection rates ranging from 57 percent to 80 percent.
These studies revealed that collection levels surpassed Chinese UCO exports and biofuel use during the periods analyzed (years 2019 and 2023).
When applying these UCO-collection rates to the supply-potential estimates from the USDA’s Economic Research Service and Foreign Agricultural Service, the projected collection volume ranges from 8.7 to 12.2 billion pounds.
Therefore, the maximum potential for UCO collection and for further expansion of biobased diesel production capacity is enormous.
The government’s supportive measures for domestic biobased diesel, highlighted in the 2024 Biofuels Annual (CH2024-0100), include the recent SAF pilot launched Sept. 18 by the National Development and Reform Commission and the Civil Aviation Administration of China.
This initiative involves 12 flights by major airlines incorporating SAF.
Potential long-term impacts
This shift could reduce fiscal pressure and spur domestic biobased diesel growth, particularly enhancing SAF’s competitiveness on the global stage.
This could, however, provoke the EU to reconsider its current exclusion of Chinese SAF from antidumping measures.
In the long term, the policy is expected to curb speculative-trading practices involving palm-oil imports repackaged as UCO.
As a result, palm-oil imports are projected to decline, revealing China’s true UCO-supply capacity.
Some traders are already accelerating palm-oil sales.Over time, waste-collection operations may begin directly supplying feedstock to biobased diesel and SAF plants, bypassing intermediary traders.
Under the Waste Framework Directive (WFD), the collection of biowaste will be mandatory in EU Member States from 1 January 2024 onwards. However, current biowaste collection in the EU-27 (plus Norway and the UK) is only 5,112,788 metric tonnes per year, which is 26% below the theoretical potential.
The vast majority of biowaste (garden and food waste) could be a valuable feedstock for bio-based industries and biomanufacturing, but is currently unutilised, which represents a missed opportunity. A focus on biowaste could alleviate Europe’s food waste problem and stimulate sustainable growth. This is particularly important as the EU prioritises strategic autonomy, competitiveness, circularity and green transition.
The Bio-based Industry Coalition (BIC) is Europe’s leading industry association, placing circularity, innovation and sustainability at the centre of Europe’s bioeconomy. Together with Zero Waste Europe (ZWE), the BIC has produced the second edition of a report identifying the untapped potential for valorisation of biowaste in Europe. Bio-waste Generation in the EU: Current Capture Levels and Future Potential is available today on the BIC website. The first edition of the report, four years ago, showed capture rates at 16 per cent of theoretical potential, while current data shows an improvement of less than 10 per cent.
The report includes country factsheets, provides examples of how the biobased industry is contributing to meeting this waste challenge, and cites best practices in waste management at the municipal level.
Solarig announced on 22 November that it is moving forward with the development of a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) project that will produce more than 400,000 tonnes of SAF per year in Spain.
Specifically, Solarig announced on 22 November the development of an SAF project in Teruel.The project, called Turboleta SAF, will have an annual SAF production capacity of more than 75,000 tonnes, equivalent to 33,000 flights between Zaragoza and London (based on a 50% SAF blend).
Construction of the plant, which will be located on approximately 10 hectares of land in the Platea Industrial Park in Teruel, is scheduled to begin in 2027 and is expected to be operational by 2030.
Danish shipping company Norden announced on 26 November that it has entered into an agreement with Meta on sustainable marine fuels, with the aim of advancing the decarbonisation of the maritime industry.
In an environment of limited biofuel supply, Norden’s emission reduction solutions offer a way to decarbonise maritime cargo.
The emissions reduction solution followed by Norden, known as ‘book and claim’, works by burning biofuels on Norden-operated vessels and then allocating the emissions reductions to third parties using a ‘book and claim’ chain of custody system. Norden uses a voluntary system of Smart Freight Centres.
Norden uses the Voluntary Market Based Measurement (VBM) framework of the Smart Freight Centre for logistics emissions accounting and reporting as the basis for transferring the environmental attributes (emission reductions) of the biofuels used in its operations to its customers, which Norden says provides a high degree of transparency and assurance.
The UK SAF mandate has been signed into law and will come into effect on New Year’s Day.
The SAF obligation will start at 2 per cent of the UK’s total aviation fuel requirements and increase linearly to 10 per cent by 2030 and then to 22 per cent by 2040.
From 2040, the obligation will remain at 22 per cent until SAF supply becomes more certain.
The mandate will encourage innovation in advanced fuels that produce greater emission reductions and diversification of feedstocks to reduce dependence on scarce resources by including the following in the mandate:
– A cap on the feedstock used in the Hydrogenated Ester and Fatty Acid (HEFA) process, but not until other types of SAF are also commercially viable to recognise the important role that HEFA SAF will play in the 2020s. Under this provision, HEFA supply would not be constrained in the first two years, falling to 71 per cent in 2030 and still contributing 35 per cent in 2040.
– A separate obligation for power-to-liquid fuels from 2028 would amount to 3.5 per cent of total aviation fuel requirements by 2040.
The provision will include buyout mechanisms for both the primary obligation and the power-to-liquid obligation to incentivise supply while protecting consumers in the event that suppliers are unable to secure SAF supplies.
These will be set at £4.70 (€5.60) and £5 (€6) per litre of fuel respectively. This provides a significant incentive for fuel suppliers to supply SAF to the market rather than pay buyout fees. They also set a maximum price for the scheme, so emissions reductions were achieved at an acceptable cost.
The scheme includes a review mechanism to help minimise the impact on passenger fares.
We will also work closely with the Government to secure the supply of feedstock to ensure it is used in a sustainable and efficient way.
This year, Malaysian biodiesel exports are expected to reach their highest level since 2019, while production and consumption are expected to remain unchanged, according to the USDA’s latest forecast.
Biodiesel production in Malaysia is expected to remain flat at 1.58 billion litres in 2024 as the country is likely to remain at the B10 blend rate as the B20 and B30 mandatory targets have yet to be met. The country’s recent proposal to limit fuel subsidies in the 2025 budget is expected to reduce consumption slightly in the short term, while changes to the palm oil export tax structure may incentivise more downstream production, such as biofuels. The country hopes to further utilise local palm products for biofuel production, culminating in an investment in a sustainable aviation fuel refinery in Johor, which is scheduled to be operational by 2028. There is currently no fuel ethanol market in Malaysia due to the abundance of palm feedstock.