Aemetis India completes $103 mil in biodiesel deliveries, secures $58 mil for 2025

Aemetis said Dec. 4 that its Indian subsidiary, Universal Biofuels, successfully delivered $103 million worth of biodiesel to three government-owned Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs).

The deliveries were made under cost-plus supply agreements for the one-year marketing period ending Sept. 30, 2024.

In addition, Aemetis has received an initial $58 million allocation from the OMCs for biodiesel supply in the current marketing year ending Sept. 30, 2025.

According to the companies, the deliveries of biodiesel are set to begin in December 2024, following the issuance of the first allocation in late November.

"Pricing for these deliveries will follow a cost-plus pricing model, a formula that proved successful in the previous year, with multiple tenders expected to be issued by the OMCs for 2025 biodiesel supply," Aemetis said.

Universal Biofuels has recently completed a major upgrade to its biodiesel plant, significantly expanding the production capacity of its proprietary process that converts waste and byproducts into low-carbon biodiesel.

The company operates an 80 million gallon/year biodiesel plant in India producing distilled biodiesel and refined glycerin for customers in India and Europe.

This expansion aims to meet the growing demand for biodiesel as part of India's National Biofuels Policy, which aims for a 5% biodiesel blend in the country's fuel supply.

Eric McAfee, Chairman and CEO of Aemetis, said: "Universal Biofuels has now successfully completed deliveries under the third set of cost-plus contracts with OMCs, reinforcing our commitment to producing high-quality renewable fuels. Our recent plant upgrades have increased our production capacity, improved profitability, and supported the ongoing IPO process for Universal Biofuels."

Currently, India blends biodiesel at around 1% in its petroleum diesel, but the biodiesel market is expected to grow significantly.

According to market sources and reports, various projections indicate the market could expand to a $5-billion industry, increasing from 250 million gallons/year to 1.25 billion gallons annually. This growth is driven by both the cost-plus contract model and ongoing investments in biodiesel production capacity.

Platts, part of S&P Global Commodity Insights assessed Biodiesel FOB Southeast Asia down $5/mt from Dec. 3 at $1,292/mt on Dec. 4, tracking Bursa.