Indian state-owned refiner Hindustan Petroleum (HPCL) has reissued its tender to procure used cooking oil (UCO) for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production, replacing the fixed-price structure used in its earlier tender with a price variation formula incorporating Argus UCO assessments.
The formula assigns a 25pc weighting to the monthly average Argus RED bulk UCO fob strait of Malacca assessment, 25pc to the monthly average Argus RED UCO cif Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) assessment and 50pc to India's wholesale price index for the manufacture of vegetable and animal oils and fats.
Under the tender, HPCL will buy 52,000t of ISCC Corsia-certified pre-treated UCO over a one-year period. The pre-treated UCO must meet specifications including a maximum of 3ppm phosphorous, 10ppm total metals excluding phosphorus, 30ppm total chloride, 100ppm sulphur, no moisture, 0.05pc insoluble impurities, 1pc unsaponifiable and 5pc free fatty acids.
The tender calls for aggregate deliveries of 4,000-5,000 t/month through release orders issued by HPCL, with volumes subject to adjustment at the refiner's discretion. Suppliers must complete deliveries within 30 days of each release order, while unloading frequency could rise to two to three tankers a day as SAF production ramps up.
Bids close on 13 November, and HPCL will evaluate offers on 14 November.
