Facing the challenges in North America

This has been a challenging year for the US biodiesel industry with domestic production running about 70% down on 2024 levels, albeit with some upsides for producers to celebrate concerning the sector’s longer-term future. Tax changes and policy uncertainties are seen by industry leaders as making life difficult for producers, especially small ones, particularly due to the switch from the sector’s previous blender credit base to the 45Z domestic producer credit which has applied since January 1, 2025. Unlike under the blender credit, the 45Z regulation does not apply to imported fuels, including fuels made in the US with imported used cooking oil. While the policy change is designed to deliver positive domestic benefits, implementation guidance and enabling legislation have both been slow to emerge. An immediate impact of this on the US market has been a significant year-on-year decline in biodiesel consumption, due to the impact of falling imports. Looking at the domestic market for biodiesel, renewable diesel and...