From 2018 to 2020, there were many renewable diesel project announcements, and renewable diesel established itself as a new campaign in the oil refining sector. Many industry players focused on leveraging government incentives from the national Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) and California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) by processing triglyceride feedstocks to produce renewable diesel. In 2021, conversations among refiners shifted from the prospects of renewable diesel to sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). This market shift is driven primarily by interest from airlines and lobbying groups to decarbonize the aviation sector via the use of future SAF credits. Many studies have been commissioned on existing or planned renewable diesel facilities to evaluate what additional capital investment would be required to produce low, medium and/or high quantities of SAF coproduct.
Meanwhile, an elephant in the room surfaced, summarized by this question: How will we provide the feedstock? Those invested into the renewable fuels market are already familiar with the limited volume of triglyceride feedstock available today. Now they must more seriously consider alternative feedstocks to meet the growing demand for renewable fuels.