Biofuel Bunker Snapshot: Rotterdam’s B30-VLSFO discount to Antwerp’s blend widens

Rotterdam’s B30-VLSFO discount widens to Antwerp’s blend price

Few suppliers are working to restart biofuel supplies in Singapore

Netherlands’ RED III legislation passes through Senate

Europe

Rotterdam’s B30-VLSFO (POMEME) price has declined in the past week. A drop in the Dutch port’s conventional VLSFO price has probably weighed on the blend’s price.

Meanwhile, B30-VLSFO (UCOME) price in the neighbouring Belgian port of Antwerp has shown a rise, despite a strong slide in the port’s conventional VLSFO price.

Prima Markets-assessed POMEME and UCOME barge prices have both gained $19/mt.

Rotterdam’s blend has increased its price discount to Antwerp by around $60/mt in a single week to close to around $200/mt.

Bunker suppliers in Rotterdam can generate ZRE A tickets by selling low GHG intensity biofuel under the country’s new RED III transposition mechanism. The price of these ZRE A tickets have dipped to €130/mtCO2e from €138/mtCO2e last week.

Such a subsidy mechanism is absent in Belgium, which explains the higher price in Antwerp.

Additionally, Rotterdam’s B30-LSMGO price has dropped $12/mt over the week, while the Dutch port’s conventional LSMGO price has surged $66/mt higher. This has narrowed the bio-blend’s premium over conventional LSMGO by around $78/mt to just somewhere around $30/mt.

Gibraltar’s B30-VLSFO (UCOME) price has increased $80/mt over the last week, while conventional VLSFO bunkering price has inched only $10/mt higher. This has widened the blend’s premium over conventional VLSFO by around $70/mt in the last week to around $270/mt.

Lead times of 7-10 days is recommended for getting biofuel deliveries in both the ARA and the Gibraltar Strait, a trader said.

Congestions caused by rough weather last week have now cleared, port agent MH Bland said.

B30-VLSFO (UCOME) bunkers in Portugal’s Lisbon are at a discount of around $145/mt to Gibraltar, widening from a discount of just $48/mt seen last week.

B30-LSMGO bunkers in Lisbon cost around $170/mt cheaper compared to the Rotterdam’s B30-LSMGO blend.

Asia

A few suppliers are working towards restarting biofuel supplies in Singapore, a trader said, in a sign that biofuel supplies could resume after suppliers halted supplies to take advantage of VLSFO’s high prices.

Singapore’s B30-VLSFO (UCOME) price has edged around $23/mt higher in the last week, while the conventional VLSFO price has just edged $7/mt higher.

Prima-assessed UCOME China barge price, which is closely related to Singapore’s biofuel blend price, has surged around $75/mt since last week.

Bunkering B30-VLSFO (UCOME) in China’s Hong Kong can cost around $986/mt, around $250/mt cheaper than Singapore.

Supply is regular in Hong Kong, a trader said. Meanwhile, biofuel is not available readily in Zhoushan as there is no steady demand, the trader added.

In other news

The Dutch Senate has approved a national legislation that domestically transposes the European Union’s Renewable Energy Directive (RED III) in Netherlands. This was the last legislative test for the bill before it is ratified and becomes national law.

The bill, which has replaced the old HBE rebates system with the new ERE system since the beginning of the year, was designed to apply retroactively if passed after 1 January 2026.

By Nachiket Tekawade

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