Idemitsu completes biofuel trial for bunkering vessels
Japanese refiner Idemitsu has completed a test of mixed biofuel using fatty acid methyl ester (Fame) for bunkering vessels in the Hokkaido area ahead of commercial use.
Idemitsu carried out a trial for 10 months starting in September 2023, using a 24pc Fame mixture of used cooking oil collected from convenience stores in Hokkaido with existing marine fuel oil. The mixed biofuel can be used in the same applications as existing marine fuel oil without any changes to equipment specifications or operating conditions in cold climates, Idemitsu said.
Mixed biofuel is able to cut 20pc of carbon dioxide compared with existing marine fuel oil. But there has been difficulty in using it in sub-zero temperatures, which results in solidification and oxidation.
Idemitsu will increase use of the bio-mixed marine fuel to areas other than Hokkaido, in its effort to achieve the country's 2050 decarbonisation goal.
Related news posts
Citgo auction result delayed amid last-minute motions
Citgo auction result delayed amid last-minute motions
Houston, 18 September (Argus) — The US court-appointed special master overseeing the auction of US refiner Citgo plans to object to a last-minute motion from the Venezuelan government to delay the sale process by four months. The Republic of Venezuela and state-owned oil company PdV filed a motion on Tuesday seeking a four-month pause in the sale of its refining subsidiary Citgo, which is being auctioned off to satisfy debts owed by PdV. Special master Robert Pincus said in a court filing today that he intends to object to Venezuela's motion for a pause. The last-minute motion from Venezuela comes days after the US District Court for the District of Delaware was expected to announce results of the winning bidder. The court asked for a second extension to the auction process in August, delaying announcing a successful bidder to on or about 16 September with a sale hearing on 7 November. But Pincus is now dealing with last-minute legal challenges filed last week outside of the Delaware courts by so-called "alter ego" claimants seeking to "circumvent" the Delaware court's sales process and "jump the line" for enforcing claims against PdV, the special master said in a filing last week. Bidders for Citgo's 804,000 b/d of refining capacity, terminals, retail fuel stations and other plants expect the assets to be sold free and clear of future claims by PdV creditors. Unresolved legal liabilities could lower the value bidders are willing to pay for Citgo, decreasing the pool of money available to those owed by PdV. By Nathan Risser Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Advanced Fame marine biodiesel blends hit 9-month low
Advanced Fame marine biodiesel blends hit 9-month low
London, 18 September (Argus) — Some marine biodiesel blend prices in northwest Europe hit a year-to-date low on 17 September, owing to soft fundamentals and easing values in underlying markets. Argus assessed the prices of B30 and B100 Advanced fatty acid methyl ester (Fame) 0 dob ARA — which include a deduction of the value of Dutch renewable fuel tickets (HBE-G) — at $674.01/t and $993.87/t, respectively. At these levels, the two blends were at their lowest outright price since 29 December last year — right before values rose sharply following the halving of the Dutch HBE-G multiplier for maritime blending at the start of the year. Prices have slipped on the back lacklustre demand for marine biodiesel blends in recent months. The price of EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) allowances, for which Advanced Fame marine biodiesel blends receive a zero emission factor, have averaged $70.56/t so far this year, compared with $93.43/t in the same period last year. Consequently, the expansion of EU ETS into the shipping sector has done little to financially incentivise the uptake of marine biodiesel blends this year. On the other hand, voluntary demand for marine biodiesel blends has been steady from shipowners seeking to deliver proof of sustainability (PoS) documentation to their customers to offset the latter's scope 3 emissions. But this may have shifted geographically in recent months in favour of Singapore over ARA. Soft fundamentals in the marine biodiesel blend market has been compounded by pressure on prices in underlying crude and biodiesel markets. The front-month Ice Brent crude futures and gasoil futures contracts hit a near three-year low at 16:30 BST on 10 September. This in turn weighed on values of very-low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) and marine gasoil (MGO), and the former makes up 70pc of the B30 Advanced Fame dob ARA blend. VLSFO dob ARA prices have averaged $505.58/t so far in September, compared with $533.38/t on 1-18 August, having hit $483/t on 10 September, the lowest level since August 2021. Meanwhile, in the underlying biodiesel market, Advanced Fame 0 fob ARA prices were at the second-lowest level on record on 17 September, with the price marked at parity to used cooking oil methyl ester (Ucome) for the first time. Several market participants have said that low prices for German greenhouse gas (GHG) quota tickets, which can be traded on the market to meet the country's emissions reduction mandate, have discouraged buyers from physically blending advanced biodiesel, as tickets are a cheaper option. The current year GHG other ticket price hit a new historic low of $85/t CO2 equivalent (CO2e) on 13 September, down by $115/t compared with the same time last year and by $378/t compared with two years ago. Provisional EU anti-dumping duties on Chinese-origin biodiesel that came into force on 16 August have also turned European buyers away from advanced product made in China, which used to be one of the main sources of advanced biodiesel in Europe. By Hussein Al-Khalisy and Simone Burgin Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
EPA already at work on 2026-forward RFS rules
EPA already at work on 2026-forward RFS rules
Monterey, 17 September (Argus) — The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has started work on the second set of rules for the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), expected to span multiple years beginning in 2026, a spokesperson said today. The rule will likely establish renewable volume targets for multiple years under the RFS, although the exact timeframe has not been confirmed, EPA deputy office director Ben Hengst said today at the Argus North American Biofuels, LCFS and Carbon Summit in Monterey, California. Work on the incoming rule was originally not expected to begin until early 2025. Updated analysis, especially regarding advanced biofuels and feedstocks, will inform new rulemaking, as well as the inclusion of regulatory changes intended to improve the program's implementation, Hengst said. Unprecedented growth in US biofuels imports led overall advanced biofuel supply in 2023 to far surpass EPA projections. But biomass-based diesel volumes for the current rules were based on projected growth in North American feedstock supply — not international availability nor the nameplate capacities of US refineries, Hengst said. There were also large increases in imported feedstocks for biofuel production, namely in used cooking oil and tallow. But the potential for an upset in global trade flows remains an agency concern. Domestic policy in some countries could boost offshore consumption of feedstocks and finished fuels that have arrived to the US market in recent years, while the US policy environment itself remains vulnerable to change. The EPA is also navigating recent adverse judgments against its interpretation of the Small Refinery Exemption program and is prioritizing the development of options that would comply with court orders. There was no clarity provided on eRINs as the EPA continues to consider its options. By Jasmine Davis Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
US regulatory clarity vital to sustain biofuels growth
US regulatory clarity vital to sustain biofuels growth
Monterey, 17 September (Argus) — Clarity from both US state and federal regulators regarding the rules and incentives for biofuels production is essential to ensure continued growth to achieve underlying carbon-reduction targets, industry stakeholders said today. A lack of guidance for incentive programs and qualifications for 2025 and beyond is already hindering trade and investment in key US biofuels markets, panelists said today at the Argus North American Biofuels, LCFS and Carbon Summit in Monterey, California. The current biodiesel tax credit (BTC) is scheduled to give way to the Inflation Reduction Act's Clean Fuels Production Credit (CFPC) in January, while narrowed proposed targets and credit qualifications in state Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) programs has effectively left key portions of the biofuels market in a holding pattern. Alignment and certainty between regulatory bodies on what will be incentivized and credited in the future will be an essential component of business and investment decisions in the industry, necessary to reach ambitious carbon-reduction targets within the next decade. "The fact that we don't have clarity mid-September for a tax credit going into effect on 1 January, is really hard to believe," said Kurt Kovarik, vice president of federal affairs for Clean Fuels Alliance America. "No one knows the rules of the road with respect to 45Z." Panelists echoed opposition to proposed California caps on crop-based renewable feedstocks that discussed on Monday at the conference during sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) discussions. "If the goal is to remove carbon, the extent to which we can base it on science and not pick winners and losers is in everyone's interests," Kovarik said. "All you're going to end up doing is limiting the driving out of carbon." But speakers today further warned of the potential for a duplication of efforts by parties trying to satisfy both state LCFS programs and the federal Renewable Fuel Standard program. Proposed requirements may also require an unprecedented level of collaboration between segments of the US renewables supply chain. Those requirements could be more disruptive than the feedstock cap itself and potentially have the greatest limiting effect on fuel supply into California, said Don Gilstrap, Chevron's manager of fuels regulations. With that goal in mind, declining carbon intensity targets are already providing the necessary incentive for producers to pivot away from crop-based renewable feedstocks, Gilstrap said. But panelists were optimistic about rising interest in replicating LCFS-style focuses on carbon intensity — an approach they theorized would "unleash innovation" across both the finished fuels and feedstocks segments of the industry. By Jasmine Davis Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Business intelligence reports
Get concise, trustworthy and unbiased analysis of the latest trends and developments in oil and energy markets. These reports are specially created for decision makers who don’t have time to track markets day-by-day, minute-by-minute.
Learn more