Australia, Singapore to collaborate on SAF, biofuels

Market: Biofuels, Chemicals
09/10/25

Singapore and Australia plan to collaborate on sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and other biofuels, as part of a new agreement to work together on net-zero, defence and trade initiatives.

The two countries announced the upgrade to their Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP 2.0) in Canberra on 8 October at the 10th Singapore-Australia Annual Leaders' Meeting.

Singapore's trade and industry ministry and Enterprise Singapore signed an initial agreement with the state of Victoria to explore opportunities in the new energy sector focusing on SAF, zero-emission transport, renewable energy storage, hydrogen and offshore wind. The CSP 2.0 initiatives will be implemented over the next 10 years.

Singapore's biofuels industry is more developed than Australia's because it is home to Finnish refiner Neste's 1mn t/yr SAF plant. Singapore is also aiming to implement a SAF blending requirement starting in 2026, mandating 1pc SAF use on all departing flights, with plans to increase this to 3-5pc by 2030.

Australia produces multiple biofuel feedstocks through its primary industries including tallow. Singapore is a major importer, taking 296,000t of Australian tallow in 2024. Australia is aiming to boost biofuels via a A$1.1bn ($730mn) federal fund, to help meet its 2030 emissions reduction goals.

The two countries also finalised the Cross-Border Electricity Trade framework, developed in 2024 to improve regional electricity trading, energy security, and help meet each country's net-zero targets and international climate change obligations, Australia said. This could further Australia's SunCable project aiming to deliver solar power to Singapore via its flagship Australia-Asia Power Link project by 2035.

Singapore and Australia will also work on a joint standard for renewable energy certificates (RECs) so industries can meet their sustainability commitments.

By Grace Dudley

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14/11/25

Cop: 10 countries pledge to align transport with 1.5ºC

Belem, 14 November (Argus) — A group of 10 countries led by Chile called for a global effort to cut energy demand from the transport sector by 25pc by 2035, aligning it with the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. The coalition was formed at the UN Cop 30 climate summit, which is underway in Belem, northern Brazil. Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain are the other signatory countries so far. "We are committed to making transport a key pillar of climate action, agreeing a shared framework for resilient and low emissions transport systems", Chile's transport minister Carlos Abogabir told journalists at Cop 30. Cutting energy demand from transport — the second-largest emitting sector — allows for "a clear measurable direction towards a net zero scenario in the transport sector in 2050", he added. Chile is a natural leader for the coalition as it is a global leader in efforts to electrify its public transport fleet. The country's capital Santiago is the city with most electric buses outside of China, Abogabir said. It had around 3,000 electric buses in 2024, according to a report by Agora Verkehrswende, a non-governmental organisation focused on climate neutrality in transport. But it will have 4,400 by March, Abogabir added. The coalition will now work to create a roadmap to reach the pledge's goal and measure progress for future Cops, according to Slocat, a global partnership that promotes sustainable, low-carbon transport. Sustainable fuels, renewable sources Although the pledge will heavily rely on electrification, it also calls on countries to shift one-third of energy powering transport to sustainable biofuels and renewable sources. Brazil is the second-biggest biofuel producer globally, trailing only behind the US. But it will consider any route that both decarbonizes its fleet and drives national industry, Brazilian minister of cities Jader Barbalho Filho told Argus , mentioning specifically liquid nitrogen and biomethane. Including existing and expected projects, Brazil could have 2.4mn m³/d of biomethane capacity by 2027, data from hydrocarbons regulator ANP show. The shift to sustainable biofuels and renewables sources plays well into Brazil's Belem 4x pledge , which calls for a global effort to quadruple global output and use of sustainable fuels by 2035, Filho added. "The Chilean government looked for us [to present the transport pledge] exactly because we already have [Belem 4x]", he said. The Belem 4x pledge now has 23 country signatories, Cop 30 chief executive Ana Toni said today. By Lucas Parolin Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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EU deforestation law may be delayed further: IPOC

14/11/25

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14/11/25

EU deforestation law may be delayed further: IPOC

Singapore, 14 November (Argus) — The European Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) will likely face a second delay this year, said Anri Hadi, Indonesian ambassador to the EU at the 21st Indonesian palm oil conference (IPOC) on 13 November. A 12 November EU vote on whether to extend a six-month grace period for penalties and measures to be applied on medium to large firms — initiated last month — was inconclusive without a majority vote on the proposal, said Hadi. For medium and large enterprises, the EUDR will take effect on 30 December 2025, but a six-month grace period would apply on its enforcement, and for micro and small operators, the EUDR would apply from 30 December 2026 if this proposal were to be accepted. If member states do not agree to a grace period by 15 December, the EUDR would take effect on 30 December 2025 for large and medium companies and on 30 June 2026 for micro and small enterprises. Some member states instead voted to delay enforcement of the EUDR altogether by another year, to December 2026 for medium and large firms and June 2027 for small and micro firms. Under this proposal, there would be no grace period for enforcing the regulation after starting in 2026, Hadi said. Palm oil and some byproducts such as glycerol with 95pc or above purity are listed in Annex I of the EUDR, meaning exporters will have to submit traceability data to relevant government authorities under the EUDR to gain access to the EU market. Sustainability and enforcement guidelines still unclear Hadi called for sustainability standards such as the Indonesian sustainable palm oil (ISPO) certification to be recognised under the EUDR and for government-aligned guidance regarding geolocation data sharing requirements. But providing sustainability data to facilitate EUDR compliance is considered illegal under Indonesian law, said Indonesian vice minister of foreign affairs Arif Havas Oegroseno. Citing Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) licensing within the timber industry as an example, he said Indonesia could set up a similar licensing unit to provide relevant data to government authorities in the EU while retaining sustainability data domestically. Under proposed traceability requirements, smallholder farmers would be unable to comply with the regulations, Oegroseno added. Farmers subsequently selling product to larger mills would also impact the supply chain as these mills may export palm oil into Europe. By Malcolm Goh Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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Australia’s Jet Zero, Townsville port sign biofuels MoU

14/11/25

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14/11/25

Australia’s Jet Zero, Townsville port sign biofuels MoU

Sydney, 14 November (Argus) — Australian bioenergy developer Jet Zero and the Port of Townsville have signed an initial agreement to assess the feasibility of developing new biofuel storage and blending infrastructure at Queensland's third-largest port. The biofuels firm and port operator will explore design and construction options for a potential liquid storage facility to support the movement, blending, import and export of sustainable fuels from Jet Zero's nearby proposed Project Ulysses , Jet Zero said on 13 November. Project Ulysses will produce 113mn litres/yr sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and renewable diesel (RD) using the alcohol-to-jet method at north Queensland's Townsville State Development Area, 2km south of the Port of Townsville. Jet Zero recently completed front-end engineering and design with alcohol-to-jet technology provider LanzaJet. The project could produce one-sixth of the domestic airline industry's 2030 SAF commitment, but a date for first output has not been disclosed. Project Ulysses aims to meet mandated and voluntary demand for SAF and RD in the aviation and marine sectors, and the Port of Townsville will play a critical role in facilitating trade and supporting regional industry growth, the companies said. By Grace Dudley Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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API pitches revamp of biofuel exemptions: Update

13/11/25

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13/11/25

API pitches revamp of biofuel exemptions: Update

Updates throughout New York, 13 November (Argus) — The American Petroleum Institute (API) is pitching the White House and biofuel groups on a total revamp of how the US exempts oil companies from a program that requires biofuel blending, according to three people familiar with the lobbying group's work. API recently withdrew its support for a bill that would authorize 15pc ethanol gasoline (E15) year-round on its frustrations with changes to biofuel policy this year that oil companies see as too friendly to farmers and to some small refining competitors. The US for instance recently granted small oil refiners generous hardship waivers from a biofuel blend mandate and proposed requiring larger companies to blend more biofuels in future years as an offset. API's pitch — shared at a White House meeting this week — would require that companies seeking program exemptions must show that economic hardship stems directly from the biofuel program, a more stringent requirement than today, according to two of the people familiar with the group's work. Exemptions would also be restricted to companies with limited collective refining capacity, cutting off larger enterprises like Delek and Par Pacific that own multiple small units that qualify now. Smaller companies like Ergon and Kern Oil could still request waivers, but the total pool of potentially exempted gas and diesel volumes would be far lower. The oil group then wants the US to prohibit hiking other oil companies' blend requirements to offset those exemptions, a tougher sell to biofuel and crop groups that fear unchecked program waivers curb demand for their products. Larger merchant refiners that do not qualify for small refinery relief have also long pushed lawmakers for updates to the program and would not benefit from this proposal. API's idea is to pass legislation pairing updates to the small refinery exemption program with year-round authorization of E15, generally prohibited in the summer without emergency waivers because of summertime fuel volatility restrictions that do not apply to typical 10pc ethanol gasoline. That's a top priority for ethanol companies, otherwise at risk from an increasingly efficient and electric light-duty vehicle fleet. Congress last year nearly passed narrower E15 legislation, which API supported at the time but no longer does without more changes. Courts have struck down past attempts by federal officials to authorize E15 without emergency declarations and to drastically restrict biofuel exemption eligibility, likely limiting what President Donald Trump's administration can do without new legislation. API made the pitch to the White House this week, the sources familiar with API's work said. The White House is hosting other groups for meetings on fuel policy, including another one on Thursday on E15 that featured biofuel groups. Officials from across Trump's administration, including the US Department of Agriculture, have attended. "Administration officials hosted listening sessions with biofuel groups, agriculture and oil refiners to discuss their proposals on year-round E15", a source familiar with the matter said. It is not clear that biofuel advocates, insistent that the Trump administration entirely offset the impact of recent refinery exemptions, are open to the attempted compromise. The ethanol group Renewable Fuels Association declined to comment on E15 talks. Regulatory tweaks to boost ethanol supply would also do little on their own to help producers of other biofuels like renewable diesel. API declined to elaborate on what was discussed at any meetings with the Trump administration. "We appreciate the administration's leadership in bringing stakeholders together to advance a practical solution on E15 and small refinery exemption reform", API said. "We look forward to continuing to work together to advance a framework that supports fuel choice, strengthens the refining and agricultural sectors, and helps ensure a stable, reliable supply for American consumers." Under the Renewable Fuel Standard, the US requires oil refiners and importers to annually blend different types of biofuels or buy credits from those that do. The administration is late setting new biofuel quotas for 2026 but is expected to do so in the coming months, kicking off a flurry of last-minute lobbying about future volumes, exemptions and potential cuts to credits from foreign fuels and feedstocks. By Cole Martin Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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Forest ownership helps Brazilian rosin makers cut costs

13/11/25

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13/11/25

Forest ownership helps Brazilian rosin makers cut costs

Sao Paulo, 13 November (Argus) — Brazilian gum rosin and gum turpentine producers sourcing pine oleoresin from their own forests are better positioned to navigate weaker rosin markets, participants said at the Brazilian Pine Chemicals Meeting in Sao Paulo on 13 November. Rising pine oleoresin prices and softening gum rosin demand at key markets such as Portugal have squeezed margins, participants said. Factories in Brazil often buy the raw material in the spot market from third-party producers. The percentage of pine oleoresin sourced from third-party pine trees versus the factories' own forests can vary. Fewer players have sizeable forest assets, and most rely on third-party volumes. Argus assessed Brazilian elliottii pine oleoresin prices on 4 November at 5,100-5,230 Brazilian reals/t ($965-990/t) at the forest for cash payments. With gum rosin prices at $1,030-1,150/t fob Brazil port, margins are tight and in some cases negative. Access to in-house oleoresin at slightly lower cost can ease margin pressure, a seller said. Gum rosin, a co-product of pine oleoresin distillation, is a key feedstock for rosin esters production in Portugal and Spain. By Leonardo Siqueira Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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Australia, Singapore to collaborate on SAF, biofuels

Related news posts

Cop: 10 countries pledge to align transport with 1.5ºC

Cop: 10 countries pledge to align transport with 1.5ºC

EU deforestation law may be delayed further: IPOC

EU deforestation law may be delayed further: IPOC

Australia’s Jet Zero, Townsville port sign biofuels MoU

Australia’s Jet Zero, Townsville port sign biofuels MoU

API pitches revamp of biofuel exemptions: Update

API pitches revamp of biofuel exemptions: Update

Forest ownership helps Brazilian rosin makers cut costs

Forest ownership helps Brazilian rosin makers cut costs

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