US biofuel output capacity rose last year on renewable diesel rush, EIA says
By Shariq Khan and Liz Hampton
Aug 15 (Reuters) -Five new renewable diesel production plants opened last year, boosting U.S. output of the drop-in diesel substitute and other emerging biofuels by 44% to 282,000 barrels-per-day (bpd), U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) data showed on Thursday.
Two renewable diesel plants opened in both the U.S. Gulf Coast and West Coast, while one facility opened on the East Coast, taking the countrywide total to 22,according to the EIA data. West Coast capacity was two and a half times higher at the start of this year than last, at 82,000 bpd.
U.S. fuel makers have rushed to add renewable diesel facilities to their portfolios in recent years, seeking ways to survive the transition away from their petroleum-based products. Renewable diesel is more expensive to make, and its production and imports have been heavily subsidized by the federalgovernment and some state-level governments.
However, that rush has forced some biodiesel producers out of the market, as that older-generation biofuel can only be used on blending into renewable diesel, and attracts lower financial incentives.
Three biofuel plants shuttered over the past year, one each on the East Coast, West Coast and in the Midwest, the EIA data showed. Analysts expect more biodiesel plants to shutter if they don't get more government support.
However, biodiesel output capacity was largely unchanged at approximately 136,000 barrels per day, according to the EIA data.
In terms of ethanol output, one plant shuttered on the East Coast but a larger facility opened on the Gulf Coast, boosting output capacity by 2% to 1.18 million bpd from the 187 plants in operation at the start of this year.
Reporting by Liz Hampton in Denver, editing by Deepa Babington
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