Australian biodiesel industry hit hard by low fossil diesel prices and shifting policies

In Australia, a combination of low fossil fuel prices and shifting government policies have helped to sink the country’s biodiesel industry, leaving many producers large and small in the lurch. Most of the country’s biodiesel is produced from UCO or waste tallow, but without the benefits of excise duty exemptions or blending mandates regulating demand with a view to the long term, companies have gone into receivership or out of the business completely. With demand for biodiesel in the US and Europe continuing to drive up prices for tallow, it’s become uncompetitive for the domestic industry to use the fats for biodiesel feedstock.