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US gasoline, aromatics tighten on diesel focus
US gasoline, aromatics tighten on diesel focus
Houston, 17 September (Argus) — US oil refineries are focusing the highest run rates in 22 years on diesel production as two wars increase overseas demand, a move that has tightened domestic supplies of gasoline and aromatic blending components. Prices for aromatics blended into gasoline stand at multi-year highs, with the ethylbenzene (EB) assessment reaching levels reaching a record-high of 503¢/USG on 8 September . EB feedstock benzene and toluene and xylenes prices all reached four-year highs in September. Benzene peaked at 547¢/USG on 15 September and toluene and xylenes both peaked at 564¢/USG on 16 September, Argus data show. The rise in aromatics prices has been driven by increased blending of low-octane, light-naphtha into US gasoline supplies, as blending naphtha boosts demand for high-octane aromatic blendstocks to raise gasoline's octane rating to retail specifications. Naphtha blending demand is rising because of high gasoline prices that have increased gasoline's premium to naphtha, known as the naphtha-gasoline spread, into September, bucking seasonal trends. The spread normally narrows after peak high-octane blending demand in June ( see chart ). But the naphtha-gasoline spread widened to 157¢/USG in September, up by 22¢/USG from June, Argus data show. The unseasonably wide naphtha-gasoline spread can be traced to higher gasoline prices, rather than a particularly weak naphtha market that caused supply builds in prior years. The naphtha-gasoline spread stands above levels seen during the fall of 2022 and 2023, when falling naphtha exports boosted US supplies. Naphtha exports in 2022 and 2023 were 258,000 b/d and 281,000 b/d, respectively, while naphtha exports so far this year have averaged 402,000 b/d. Also contributing to this year's unseasonably high prices for aromatics blendstocks toluene, xylenes and EB are plant turnarounds at two aromatics producers in September and October that have tightened supplies further. The US has also received fewer aromatics imports than in the past four years because of feedstock supply issues in Asia-Pacific that have capped refinery run rates in the region. That has forced Asian petrochemical producers to prioritize supplying their regional trading partners, even with open arbitrage opportunities to the US in spite of import tariffs. Focus on diesel Aromatics demand for gasoline blending has also been supported by US refiners' decision to prioritize diesel production, tightening supplies of gasoline and blending components. With the harvest season boosting domestic diesel demand and wars in Ukraine and the Mideast Gulf creating supply constraints that have boosted export demand, the Nymex ultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD) contract settled at a record high this week. Refiners' focus on diesel at the expense of gasoline has outweighed the seasonal shift to winter-grade gasoline, which this year was allowed to begin on 1 September, two weeks earlier than usual. The shift to winter specifications permits lower cost, higher-vapor pressure blendstocks like butane to enter the gasoline blend pool, which typically reduces demand for aromatic blendstocks. Gasoline prices also remain unseasonably high. Conventional 87-grade gasoline prices stand $1.68/USG higher than year-earlier levels and $0.97/USG higher than the five-year rolling average for the month of September, Argus data show. Meanwhile, premium 93-grade gasoline prices, which include additional high-octane blendstocks, stand $1.83/USG higher than a year earlier and $0.98/USG higher than the five-year rolling average for September. Higher gasoline prices stem from the overseas conflicts that have reduced inventories and increased global crude prices. Gasoline inventories totaled 207.7mn bl and motor gasoline blending components totaled 193.1mn bl in the week ended 11 September, down from a year earlier by 9.9mn bl and 9.6mn bl, respectively, according to US Energy Information Administration (EIA) data. Inventories of gasoline and blendstocks are poised to tighten further, pushing prices higher, as refiners prioritizing diesel production. Meanwhile, crude prices have surged since the start of the US-Iran war, with WTI Houston crude closing at $107.78/bl on 15 September and crude prices peaking this year on 6 April at $119.66/bl, Argus data show. Refinery rates at 22-year highs US refiners are running all out to capture record high margins, particularly for diesel. Refinery operating rates have averaged 97.3pc so far in September, the highest average monthly rate since June 2004 and well above the roughly 90-95pc range of recent years, EIA data show. As US refinery run rates increase, so has diesel output. ULSD production last week was up by 7.7pc from a year earlier at 5.04mn b/d, according to EIA data. In August, ULSD production rose to 5.01mn b/d, the highest output since December 2025. US diesel production has climbed since the beginning of the Mideast Gulf war to help meet European demand for fuels typically sourced from the Middle East and Russia. US Gulf coast ULSD exports to Europe climbed to 590,000 b/d in the week ended 11 September, up by 490,000 b/d from the prior week, according to Vortexa vessel-tracking data, and the highest exports to the continent in Vortexa records dating to January 2016. Record high US diesel exports have contributed to a draw down in inventories, which totaled 107.9mn bl in the week ended 11 September, down by 16.8mn bl from the year prior. US refiners in September usually build diesel stocks ahead of seasonal turnarounds, when they shift away from maximum diesel yields. If diesel inventories remain low in October, gasoline and aromatic blendstock prices could gain further support. With tight diesel and gasoline inventories and aromatic chemical prices near multi-year highs, the market has little room for disruption. Any major refinery outage or major Gulf coast storm could quickly drive fuel and aromatic petrochemical prices higher. By Jake Caldwell, Blake Del Papa and Hunter Fite Naphtha - Conventional 87 grade gasoline spread ¢/USG Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Indonesia to continue 50pc biodiesel blend in 2027
Indonesia to continue 50pc biodiesel blend in 2027
Singapore, 17 September (Argus) — Indonesia will continue implementing a 50pc biodiesel-fossil diesel blend (B50) target in 2027, the country's ministry of energy and mineral resources (ESDM) said at the sixth palm biodiesel conference in Bali today. But the government will also consider adding 10pc of hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) into the diesel pool, on top of 50pc biodiesel next year, ESDM director general Eniya Listiani Dewi said. Indonesia currently requires 5pc of HVO to be blended into the diesel fuel pool with a cetane number (CN) of 51. Domestic fuel sales for CN51 gasoil were at 1.1mn kilolitres, followed by 1.3mn kl for CN48 and 520,000kl for CN53 gasoil in 2025, according to ESDM data. A ramp up to 10pc HVO blend for the entire diesel fuel pool appears ambitious, since the country currently lacks any dedicated HEFA production. State-controlled Pertamina can co-process up to 45,000 t/yr of HVO at its Dumai refinery, but domestically produced neat HVO is only planned to come to market in 2030, when it plans to bring a HEFA plant on line with roughly 890,000 t/yr total HVO and SAF production at its Plaju refinery in South Sumatra. The plant has not yet reached final investment decision, according to Argus records. Indonesia will also set a minimum one-year period for further infrastructure and supply chain upgrades before targeting a higher biodiesel blend percentage, Dewi added. The country moved to B50 in July . HVO is chemically identical to fossil diesel and can be used as a drop-in fuel without additional modifications to on-road vehicle engines, in contrast to biodiesel which requires further testing to ensure stable fuel use. By Malcolm Goh and Lauren Moffitt Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Italy scraps road tax to counter fuel price surge
Italy scraps road tax to counter fuel price surge
Milan, 17 September (Argus) — Italy approved a decree scrapping road tax for about 14.5mn cars and motorcycles in an effort to offset rising energy prices, the government said. The exemption applies to vehicles with an engine power of up to 80kW, which covers around 70pc of Italy's car stock, with one vehicle per person eligible. The measure will apply in 2027 alone, but the government said it intends to abolish the tax permanently through measures in its next budget. Prime minister Giorgia Meloni said that with no end in sight to the US-Iran war and fuel prices constantly rising, it no longer made sense to tackle the problem at the pump. "We have chosen a structural measure rather than an emergency measure," she said late on Wednesday. Rome has approved 15 packages since March to temper fuel price rises, mainly by offering discounts at the pump that have cost the state more than €2.3bn ($2.65bn). The latest decree includes a 12.2¢/litre discount on diesel fuel from 18-25 September followed by a 6.1¢/l discount from 26 September to 5 October. Diesel prices have risen by more than those of gasoline this year, because of a Russian ban on diesel exports and the effects of the US-Iran war on availability from the Mideast Gulf. Scrapping the 2027 vehicle road tax will cost €2.36bn, according to a draft version of the Italian decree. Government sources said unused EU Recovery fund money, including loans and grants will partly cover the cost. The new one-off diesel discounts will cost €111.8mn, the sources said. Rome's move is one of several by European governments to help consumers with rising fuel costs. Germany plans measures to ease what chancellor Friedrich Merz described as "too big a burden", Spain has made a series of cuts to its fuel taxes, and the UK fuel retailers' association has called on the government not to raise fuel duty at the start of 2027. By Stephen Jewkes Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Australia's biofuels mandate should come earlier: Lobby
Australia's biofuels mandate should come earlier: Lobby
Melbourne, 17 September (Argus) — Australia's proposed biofuels mandate should initially focus on fuels already produced domestically and could begin as early as 2027, according to industry lobby group Bioenergy Australia. Some elements of the federal mandate could be introduced ahead of the government's planned 2029 start date, Bioenergy Australia chief executive Shahana McKenzie told the Australian Renderers Association Symposium in Melbourne on 16 September. Under the proposed mandate, fuel suppliers, refiners and importers would need to replace a rising share of the diesel, petrol and jet fuel they supply with eligible low-carbon liquid fuels (LCLF) from 2029 before transitioning to a carbon intensity-based system from 2035. Australia currently has no national biofuels mandate, but New South Wales and Queensland states operate ethanol-blending mandates, although these are not strictly enforced. Australia could begin by mandating fuels already available in the domestic market, such as ethanol and biodiesel, while allowing newer fuels including sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), renewable diesel (RD) and e-fuels more time to scale up before being incorporated around 2030, she said. The Australian government launched consultation last month on the LCLF mandate . The government is considering a target of 750mn-1.9bn litres by 2030, rising to 3.45bn-8.9bn litres by 2035. The consultation period closed earlier this week. McKenzie said Australia should ultimately mandate all eligible renewable fuels, but argued existing ethanol and biodiesel production could provide an early foundation for the policy. This approach would support capacity growth while recognising Australian feedstocks, encouraging domestic processing and ensuring imported fuels are held to equivalent sustainability standards. Australia's biodiesel production capacity is around 100mn litres/yr, while ethanol production was about 175mn litres in 2022 against nameplate capacity of roughly 440mn l/yr, according to Bioenergy Australia. At full capacity, domestic ethanol production could supply about 2.8pc of Australia's gasoline demand, while biodiesel capacity could meet around 0.3pc of diesel consumption, based on Australian Petroleum Statistics (APS) fuel sales data for August 2025-July 2026. Australia's ethanol-blended gasoline sales totalled 1.69bn litres in August 2025-July 2026, equivalent to 11pc of total automotive gasoline consumption of 15.58bn litres, according to APS data. Assuming the blend was predominantly E10, the actual ethanol volume consumed would be around 168.6mn litres, or just over 1pc of total gasoline sales. Australia currently has no commercial SAF or RD production, although several projects have been proposed. One of the most advanced is Jet Zero's 113mn l/yr Project Ulysses alcohol-to-jet facility in Townsville, which is in the front-end engineering and design (FEED) stage. By Grace Dudley Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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