- Dutch rebates for B30-VLSFO surpass $200/mt
- Singapore’s biofuel sales rose by 26% in October
Once a week, bunker intelligence platform ENGINE will publish a snapshot of biofuel bunker prices in the world’s two biggest bunkering hubs. The following is the latest snapshot:
Singapore
Singapore’s B24-VLSFO UCOME price has dropped by $20/mt, while its B24-LSMGO UCOME price has come down by $10/mt. A bigger $35/mt decline in the underlying ENGINE VLSFO price has driven a more significant drop in the B24-VLSFO benchmark.
An increase in the underlying Chinese UCOME price has prevented both biofuel benchmarks from dropping further. The PRIMA Markets-assessed UCOME FOB China in bulk benchmark rose by $25/mt over the week, surpassing $1,000/mt to reach $1,010/mt.
Gains in domestic UCO prices have pushed the Chinese UCOME FOB benchmark higher, PRIMA said.
In October, suppliers in Singapore sold about 139,000 mt of bio-blended bunkers, marking a 26% increase from the previous month and surpassing the previous record sales of 111,000 mt in September.
Biofuel premiums in Singapore have widened by $12–15/mt over the past week. B24-VLSFO UCOME blends are now priced at a $135/mt premium over pure VLSFO, while B24-LSMGO UCOME comes at a $112/mt premium over pure LSMGO.
Rotterdam
Bio-bunker prices have declined significantly in the past week. Rotterdam’s B30-VLSFO HBE price has dropped by $54/mt, while its B30-LSMGO HBE price has decreased by $59/mt. Bigger Dutch rebates have exerted downward pressure on both biofuel benchmarks. This could also boost biofuel demand in the port.
The Dutch HBE A ticket price for 2024 was assessed by PRIMA at €22.50/GJ ($23.73/GJ) on Friday, up from €14.90/GJ ($15.71/GJ) a week ago. This sharp increase boosts the theoretical rebate for B30-VLSFO HBE blends sold in Dutch ports to $210/mt, compared to $142/mt a week ago.
The rebate for B30-VLSFO HBE has now climbed to a multi-month high, significantly up from $90/mt in April. This increase makes bunkering of palm oil mill effluent methyl ester (POMEME) biofuel blends even more lucrative in Dutch ports, as these blends are eligible for advanced biofuel rebates according to Dutch regulations.
Declining values of pure VLSFO (-$10/mt) and pure LSMGO (-$17/mt) have added further downward pressure on both HBE biofuel benchmarks.
In contrast to the B30-VLSFO HBE price, Rotterdam’s B30-VLSFO UCOME price has risen by $14/mt amid a $68/mt increase in the underlying PRIMA ARA UCOME FOB price. As a result, the B30-VLSFO UCOME premium over B30-VLSFO HBE has widened from $137/mt to a staggering $205/mt now.
Used cooking oil methyl ester (UCOME) based biofuel blends do not qualify for Dutch biofuel rebates, making them less attractive for bunkering than POMEME-based biofuels.
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Source: Engine
