US court denies fuel waiver injunction
A US federal court today denied a request to block the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from issuing waivers that have slashed federal fuel blending requirements.
The Advanced Biofuels Association (ABFA) "has not satisfied the stringent requirements for an injunction pending court review," a three-judge panel of the DC Circuit Court of Appeals said.
EPA and the ABFA did not immediately comment on the decision.
ABFA requested the injunction in late April, citing still-redacted documents from a separate lawsuit challenging EPA's rapid increase in waivers of renewable fuel blending standards under former administrator Scott Pruitt. That lawsuit continues.
The association argued that EPA arbitrarily increased waivers to issue as many as possible. EPA has responded that the decisions were not a rulemaking that could be challenged in federal court and said it has followed the law to administer the program.
"Every gallon of renewable fuel obligation that is exempted represents renewable fuel that is unlikely to get produced, which means ABFA's members do not get paid, farmers receive lower prices, Congress' goal for a robust RFS program is diminished, and a gallon of traditional fuel — which has a far greater impact on climate change — is consumed," the association wrote.
RFS requires refiners, importers and other companies to each year ensure minimum volumes of renewables blend into the gasoline and diesel they add to the US transportation fuel supply. Companies prove compliance by acquiring renewable identification numbers (RINs), which represent each ethanol-equivalent gallon of renewables blended into conventional fuels. Obligated parties that do not blend their own fuel must acquire RINs from others.
Congress included exemptions for refineries smaller than 75,000 b/d that could demonstrate to the EPA and energy department that the program imposed a hardship. EPA issued few such waivers under President Barack Obama, using criteria since rejected by federal courts. But the waivers have surged under President Donald Trump's EPA administrators, to a record 40 applications still under review for the 2018 compliance year. One of those waivers was withdrawn over the past month. The 35 exemptions granted for 2017 waived the equivalent of 9.4pc of the 19.3bn USG of obligations for that year.
The waivers have increased the volume of unused, lingering RINs to levels that could render future exempted credits worthless. Obligated parties may only satisfy 20pc of their annual requirements with RINs carried over from previous years.
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UK publishes SAF mandate, targets 22pc by 2040
UK publishes SAF mandate, targets 22pc by 2040
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Indonesia's Pertamina to complete gasoline unit in Aug
Indonesia's Pertamina to complete gasoline unit in Aug
Singapore, 25 April (Argus) — Indonesian state-controlled refiner Pertamina aims to finish building its new 90,000 b/d residual fluid catalytic cracker (RFCC) in the Balikpapan refinery in August, the firm said. The RFCC is a gasoline production unit, which typically uses residual fuel as a feedstock. The unit will be able to produce propylene, LPG and 92R gasoline that will meet the Euro V specifications, said Pertamina last week, without disclosing further details such as the start-up date. The newly built RFCC unit will be the largest in Indonesia, with the second-largest being the 83,000 b/d RFCC in Balongan and the third-largest the 54,000 b/d RFCC in Cilacap. The new RFCC will also help reduce Indonesia's reliance on gasoline imports. Indonesia currently imports around 9mn-11mn bl/month of gasoline, making it the largest gasoline buyer in the Asia-Pacific. The new RFCC will increase Pertamina's gasoline production by a conservative estimate of 45,000 b/d or 1.3mn bl, or around 10pc of Pertamina's current import demand, according to estimates from an oil analyst. The installation of the new RFCC is part of Pertamina's Refinery Development Master Plan (RDMP), which will take place in two phases. The first phase includes revamping existing units at the Balikpapan refinery, such as the crude distillation unit, vacuum distillation unit, and hydrocracking unit. It also involves building new units, such as the aforementioned RFCC, a gasoline hydrotreater, diesel hydrotreater, and naphtha hydrotreater. The second phase includes building a new residue desulphurisation unit. The RDMP also includes expanding the capacity of the Balikpapan refinery from 260,000 b/d to 350,000 b/d, said Pertamina's chief executive officer Nicke Widyawati. The Balikpapan expansion is expected to be completed in May. By Aldric Chew Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Cepsa supplies HVO bunker fuel in Algeciras
Cepsa supplies HVO bunker fuel in Algeciras
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New ISO 8217 eyes wider scope for alternative fuels
New ISO 8217 eyes wider scope for alternative fuels
London, 24 April (Argus) — The 7th edition of ISO 8217, to be published in the second quarter of this year, will outline a broader integration of marine biodiesel blending, delegates heard at the International Bunker Conference (IBC) 2024 in Norway. Tim Wilson, principal specialist fuels of Lloyds Register's fuel oil bunkering analysis and advisory service (FOBAS), presented on the upcoming iteration of the ISO 8217 marine fuel specification standard, which will be released at IBC 2024. The new edition will incorporate specification standards for a wide range of fatty acid methyl ester (Fame)-based marine biodiesel blends up to B100, 100pc hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO), as well as synthetic and renewable marine fuels. This will also include additional clauses to cover a wider scope, and briefly touch on biodiesel specifications that do not entirely align with road biodiesel EN-14214 specifications. This follows the emergence of widening price spreads for marine biodiesel blends because of specification differences and the lack of a marine-specific standard for the blends. The new edition of ISO 8217 is also expected to remove the limit of 7pc Fame when blended with distillate marine fuels such as marine gasoil (MGO) which was in place in the previous ISO 8217:2017. Other changes to distillate marine biodiesel blends include changes to the minimum Cetane Index, oxidation stability alignment to be connected to either ISO 15751 for blends comprising 2pc or more of Fame biodiesel and ISO 12205 for blends comprising a Fame component of under 2pc. Cold-filter plugging point (CFPP) properties will be determined by the vessel's fuel storage tanks' heating capabilities and requirements will be set in place to report the CFPP for distillate marine biodiesel grades, according to the new edition of the marine fuel specification standard. Wilson said that a minimum kinematic viscosity at 50°C will be in place for various forms of residual bunker fuel oil along with a viscosity control alerting suppliers to inform buyers of the exact viscosity in the supplied fuel. He said they have seen delivered fuel viscosity come in at much lower levels than ordered by the buyers, which was the reasoning behind the viscosity control monitoring requirement. By Hussein Al-Khalisy Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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