SOURCE: U.S. EPA
September 19, 2024
BY Erin Voegele
The U.S. EPA on Sept. 19 released updated small refinery exemption (SRE) data, reporting that two new SRE petitions were filed under the Renewable Fuel Standard during the past month. A total of 50 SRE petitions are now pending, up from 48 that were pending as of mid-August.
Both newly filed SRE petitions were filed by Hunt Refining Co. on Sept. 16 seeking waivers of renewable volume obligations (RVOs) for its refinery in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. One of the SRE petitions seeks a waiver of compliance year 2024 RVOs and the other seeks a wavier of compliance year 2025 RVOs.
As of Sept. 19, the 50 pending SRE petitions include one for compliance year 2017, seven for compliance year 2018, six for compliance year 2019, six for compliance year 2020, two for compliance year 2021, three for compliance year 2022, 13 for compliance year 2023, nine for compliance year 2024, and three for compliance year 2025.
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The EPA’s online SRE data dashboard also includes data on small refineries that have opted into the agency’s alternative renewable identification number (RIN) retirement schedule for the 2020 compliance year. According to the EPA’s online data dashboard, 17 small refineries are participating in the alternative RIN retirement schedule, with the total renewable volume obligation (RVO) for those refineries at 880 million RINs. A total of 540 million RINs have been retired under the alternative retirement schedule as of Sept. 19. The total outstanding RVO is currently at 340 million RINs, according to EPA’s data dashboard.
Additional data is available on the EPA website.
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More than 1.76 billion renewable identification numbers (RINs) were generated under the Renewable Fuel Standard in January, down from 1.91 billion generated during the same period of 2024, according to data released by the U.S. EPA on Feb. 20.
The U.S. EPA on Feb. 20 released updated small refinery exemption (SRE) data showing that 13 previously denied SRE petitions for Renewable Fuel Standard compliance years 2021 and 2022 are being reconsidered. No new SRE petitions were filed.
A coalition of biofuel, agriculture, fuel retailer and petroleum trade groups on Feb. 19 sent a letter to U.S. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin urging the agency to set robust, timely, multiyear RFS RVOs for 2026 and beyond.
OMV Petrom has announced the start of construction for a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and renewable diesel (HVO) production unit at the Petrobrazi refinery in Romania. The new facility will have an annual capacity of 250,000 tons.
CVR Energy Inc. released fourth quarter financial results on Feb. 18, reporting reduced renewable diesel production. The company also said it is pausing development of SAF capacity pending clarity on government subsidies.