AreaUnited States of America

Commodity GroupBiofuels

CommodityBiodiesel

Date01/11/2017

Policy CategoryRenewable energy

Policy InstrumentBiofuel policy

DescriptionAnnounced mandatory targets for renewable fuel production in 2018, entailing i) a fractional increase in total volume over 2017; ii) unchanged levels of non-advanced/conventional biofuels; and iii) a marginal rise for advanced biofuels (which include biomass-based diesel).

NotesFollowing consultations with lawmakers, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) decided to abandon its recent proposal to lower the mandatory targets for renewable fuel production in 2018 and 2019 (see MPPU Aug. & Oct.’17). The definitive targets announced for 2018 entail i) a fractional increase – compared to 2017 – in the total renewable fuels volume; ii) unchanged levels of non-advanced/conventional biofuels; and iii) a marginal rise for advanced biofuels. Under the ‘advanced biofuels’ category, volumes of biomass-based diesel have been set at 2.1 billion gallons for both 2018 and 2019 – which compares to 1.9 billion gallons in 2017. The country’s biodiesel industry criticized the final targets, arguing that these remain well below the sector’s production capacity.