October 17, 2024

U.S. capacity to produce biofuels increased 7% in 2023

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Capacity to produce biofuels increased 7% in the United States during 2023, reaching 24 billion gallons per year (gal/y) at the start of 2024, led by a 44% increase in a category we call renewable diesel and other biofuels. Other biofuels includes renewable heating oil, renewable jet fuel (also known as sustainable aviation fuel), and renewable naphtha and gasoline.

Given continued state and federal tax incentives, regulatory policies, plant expansions, and projected new plant construction, we expect U.S. biofuels production capacity to continue increasing.

Capacity gains by fuel
Capacity at U.S. producers of renewable diesel and other biofuels totaled 4.3 billion gal/y in January 2024, 1.3 billion gallons more per year than in 2023. Fuel ethanol—primarily produced from corn kernel starch and blended with gasoline—accounts for most of U.S. biofuels production capacity. U.S. fuel ethanol production capacity increased about 2% between January 2023 and January 2024, reaching 18.0 billion gal/y. U.S. biodiesel production capacity stayed essentially flat, totaling 2.1 billion gal/y in January 2024.

Biofuel production capacity by state
Most U.S. biofuels production capacity is located in Iowa, with more than 5.4 billion gal/y. Fourteen states located largely in the Midwest, the Gulf Coast, and the West Coast regions account for 90% of U.S. biofuels production capacity.

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New plants
In January 2024, biofuels producers in 22 states reported adding renewable diesel and other biofuels capacity, compared with 17 states in 2023. New plants started producing renewable diesel and other biofuels in Alabama, California, Louisiana, Pennsylvania, and Washington.

Louisiana in the Gulf Coast region and California in the West Coast region each have more than 1 billion gallons of renewable diesel and other biofuels production capacity. These two regions represent more than 80% of U.S. renewable diesel and other biofuels production capacity.

Biodiesel capacity increased by 3.8 million gal/y between January 2023 and January 2024. Even though there were new reporting plants, located in Florida and Kentucky, there were also plant closures in Georgia, Iowa, Oregon, and South Carolina.

Fuel ethanol production capacity
Fuel ethanol production capacity increased by 2% in the United States between January 2023 and January 2024. The Midwestern states of Iowa, Nebraska, Illinois, South Dakota, Minnesota, and Indiana each have more than 1.4 billion gallons of fuel ethanol production capacity. This Midwest region has considerable corn production, which is the primary feedstock for fuel ethanol production.

We updated the following reports in August:

• 2024 Biodiesel Plant Production Capacity Report
• 2024 Fuel Ethanol Plant Production Capacity Report
• 2024 Renewable Diesel Fuel and Other Biofuels Plant Production Capacity Report

These reports contain the most up-to-date estimates of plant production capacity for the U.S. biofuels industry. The reports include biofuels production capacity for operating plants as of January 1, 2024, with the names of the reporting plants organized by state and region.

Principal contributor: Chris Buckner