Canadian Clean Fuel Standard is Opportunity for All North American Refiners

A recent article in Hydrocarbon Processing highlighted Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government intentions to present the initial regulations for its Clean Fuel Standard (CFS) this year, aiming to cut 30 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.

The CFS program is targeting liquid, gaseous and solid fuels, with regulations for liquid fuel to be finalized in late 2021 and enforcement beginning in 2022. This program covers all 10 Canadian provinces and sets the baseline for additional provincial programs. For example, British Columbia has a Low Carbon Fuel Standard similar to California to incentivize fuel emission reductions.

In response, US oil refiners are moving aggressively to supply renewable fuels, in particular, renewable diesel, to the Canadian market before their Canadian refining counterparts can modify their own facilities. Due to extended regulatory review processes, Canadian refiners face longer timeframes for project development than their US counterparts. These delays put them at a disadvantage and potentially cause them to miss out on a tremendous opportunity in the rapidly growing renewable fuels market.

Honeywell UOP offers the Ecofining processing technology for the conversion of vegetable oils, animal fats and used cooking oils to renewable diesel and jet fuel. With more renewable diesel units in commercial production than any other technology provider, UOP has shown how it can help refining customers quickly revamp operations for the production of renewable fuels. Timeframe from start to finish for revamp to renewable diesel can be completed in less than 12 months, depending on available refinery equipment and desired product slate.