July US biodiesel imports plunge

U.S. biomass-based diesel imports fell precipitously in July from June, according to the latest figures from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. July imports of biomass-based diesel totaled roughly 14.2 million gallons, down from June’s 28.6 million gallons.

Indonesian biodiesel made up the majority of July’s imports, coming in at slightly more than 8.5 million gallons. Imports from Germany totaled 3.15 million gallons, while Norway and Canada together shipped about 2.5 million gallons to the U.S.

U.S. biodiesel exports also fell from June, although not by quite as much. The EIA data shows a total of 17.9 million gallons of exports in July, although the administration only explicitly lists roughly 16.4 million gallons of biomass-based diesel destined to specific countries. These figures are down from nearly 25 million gallons in June. More than 11 million gallons of U.S. exports went north to Canada, while close to 4.5 million gallons was shipped to Gibraltar. Taiwan received 630,000 gallons of U.S. biodiesel, while Australia was sent 168,000 gallons.

Imports of other renewable diesel fell in July over June. The U.S. imported 15.3 million gallons of other renewable diesel in July versus nearly 22 million gallons in June. More than 10.6 million gallons came from Singapore while 4.7 million gallons originated in Finland.

The EIA defines “biomass-based diesel” as “biodiesel and other renewable diesel fuel or diesel fuel blending components derived from biomass, but excluding renewable diesel fuel coprocessed with petroleum feedstocks.” It defines “other renewable diesel” as “diesel fuel and diesel fuel blending components produced from renewable sources that are coprocessed with petroleum feedstocks and meet requirements of advanced biofuels.”