In 2022, renewable diesel (RD) utilization (based on product supplied) surpassed biodiesel (BD) use. For Q1 of 2023, RD has extended the gap. This is not surprising given the rapid expansion of RD capacity in the past couple of years.

What also was expected, but perhaps still slightly surprising when looking deeper, is the regional growth in RD demand. With the growth of RD, in 2022 petroleum diesel consumption in the western U.S. (California, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, and Nevada) was its lowest since 2002, and is trending lower as RD use expands. For the first four months of 2023, petroleum diesel use in the west has continued to decline. Note, this region has California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard, and Oregon’s and Washin...