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Foreword 

Data from International Grain Council (IGC), as reported by Germany’s Union for the
Promotion of Plants and Protein (UFOP), show that global biodiesel and hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) production has recorded a 11% increase in 2023, reaching 71.5mln tonnes. The countries with the largest production volumes are USA, Brazil and Indonesia all three combined accounting for almost 60% of total global production; 25% higher in comparison to a decade earlier. In 2024, biodiesel production is expected to reach a high of 76.3mln tonnes, exceeding the previous year’s output by 7%.

The reported increase in U.S.-based production is thought to have been mainly driven by federal and state policies aimed at reducing emissions, such as the Renewable Fuel Standard and the California Low-Carbon Fuel Standard. However, this has inevitably caused significant shifts in domestic and global feedstock trade. The country has intensified imports of animal fats and vegetable oils to use as feedstocks for renewable diesel production, as well as to backfill other feedstocks like soybean oil that have been diverted to renewable diesel. Domestically, soybean processing (i.e., crushing) capacities have expanded to produce more oil, which were rendered possible by profits from high soybean oil prices and strong crush margins. However, the U.S. is still unable to compete with cheaper Brazilian soybean oil and decreased demand from China are dampening export potential.

Concerns have recently been raised both in Europe and the U.S. over the amount of used cooking oil (UCO) required to meet current demands for SAF and biodiesel production. T&E reports that ‘European countries consumed 8 times more UCO than they collected and 4 times more than their maximum potential in 2023’...

Other news this month includes:

Policy

• What could happen if the UK lost RED II recognition?

Markets

• HutanBio seed round advances to £3 million with investment from UKI2S
• EBRD to lend €60 million for its first wartime biofuels finance in Ukraine
• More...

Research and Development

• Research finds the public are enthusiastic about sustainable aviation fuel
• World’s first in-flight study of commercial aircraft using 100% sustainable aviation fuel show significant non-CO₂ emission reductions
• New Studies: Low Carbon Fuels, FFVs more effective at reducing GHG emissions than de facto EV mandates

Bioethanol

• EU renewable ethanol sets new record for GHG reduction
• Verbio starts expansion to build second biorefinery in North America
• Remaining positive with bioethanol

Biodiesel

• UK Fuels network expanded to include 45 HVO sites
• XPO Logistics continues to reduce the environmental impact of the Tour de France
• More...

Aviation and Shipping Biofuel

• Emirates begins operating with SAF at London Heathrow Airport
• LanzaJet announces first-of-a-kind $20 million investment from global airport  operator groupe ADP
• More...

Other biofuels

• Blue World completes successful testing of 200 kW maritime fuel cell system to run on green methanol

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Events