Opportunities for
Renewable Propane
Propane Education & Research
Council

• Renewable Propane (U.S.) is obtained using renewable or bio-based
feedstock and is a drop-in replacement for conventional propane.
• Both, conventional and renewable propane, are mostly composed of propane
and some butane/isobutane.
• Not all biobased feedstocks yield renewable propane and/or are sustainable.
• Currently, on a commercial scale, renewable propane is produced as a
byproduct of renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel.
• Predominantly produced by Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) process. Also
commonly called as Hydroprocessed Esters and Fatty Acids (HEFA).
Feedstock is fats, oils, and grease.
• Several other methods are in research and pilot scale, but HVO is the large-
scale commercial process (highest technology readiness level).
What is Renewable Propane?

Basics of HEFA Process
Source: NREL and Abhari, et al. Process for producing jet fuel and LPG from renewable sources. 7,846,323 B2, 2010
5 – 6 wt% Propane
8 wt% C3 + C4
• Isomerize
• Crack
• Hydrogenate
double bonds
• Deoxygenate
• Potential yield of propane ~ 5-8% (wt.%) depending on the end-product (Renewable
Diesel (RD) or Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF))
Used cooking oil (e.g., soybean) Fossil or green Fossil or green

US Domestic Production
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
2016 2017 2018 2019
U.S. Renewable Propane Production
million gallons
Source: WPGA

US Domestic Production projected to reach ~20 M gallons in 2022
Source: https://www.ugicorp.com/news-releases/news-release-details/ugi-and-global-clean-energy-announce-partnership-distribute

• Over 790M Gal/y RD/SAF production in service →~40M gallons RP potential
• Claimed growth of RD/SAF in 3-5 years ~ 5.5B Gal/y → ~277M gallons RP potential
• Highest capacity in Louisiana area > 2.5B Gal/y , California > 1.8B Gal/y
• None on the east coast
Commercial HEFA Production of RD and SAF - USA
Company Location Existing
Gal/y
Additional
Gal/y
Technology
1 Renewable Energy Group Geismar, LA 90M 250M Expanding 2023
2 Diamond Green – Valero Norco, LA 290M 400M Expanding 2021 Ecofining
3 Marathon Dickinson, ND 180M HydroFlex
4 NextChem/ Saola Energy Garnett, KA 5M
5 BP Cherry Point Birch Bay, WA 42M
6 World Energy Paramount, CA 35M 230M Expanding 2023
7 Sinclair/HollyFrontier Sinclair, WY 150M 240M
8 CVR Wynnewood Wynnewood, OK 100M Under construction HydroFlex
9 Diamond Green – Valero Port Arthur, TX 470M Under construction 2024
10 Emerald Biofuels Port Arthur, TX 110M Under construction
11 Green Fuels Port of Columbia, LA 32M Planning 2025
12 Holly Cheyenne, Wy 90M Planning 2022
13 Marathon Martinez, CA 730M Converting 2023 HydroFlex
14 Next Renewables Columbia River, OR 750M Planned 2024
15 Phillips 66 Rodeo, CA 650M Planning 2024
16 Ryze Renewables Las Vegas, NV 100M Planning
17 Ryze Renewables Reno, NV 50M Planning
18 St Josheph Renewable Fuels Newton, IL 90M Planning
19 Bakersfield Renewable Fuels Bakersfield, CA 230M Converting 2022 HydroFlex
20 HollyFrontier Artesia, NM 110M Converting 2022
21 Grön Fuels Baton Rouge, LA 900M Planning 2030
Total 792M 5,532M
Biofuels Digest, Feb. 2021. https://www.biofuelsdigest.com/bdigest/2021/02/08/50-renewable-diesel-projects-and-the-technologies-behind-them/10/ , Biodiesel Magazine, Jan. 2021.

Renewable Propane Customers

Recent Buzz – National and International

• EPA Renewable Identification Number (RINs) under Renewable Fuel Standard
Program
• Renewable propane derived from Fats Oils and Grease (FOG) eligible for D-5 RIN.
• Replace fossil fuel present in transportation fuel, heating oil or jet fuel
• California’s LCFS
• 9 pathways were approved by CARB for renewable propane produced by REG.
• Carbon intensity varies by feedstock, ranging from 20.5 (U.S. sourced cooking oil) to 43.5
gCO2eq/MJ (Asia Pacific sourced animal fat or tallow).
• CARB set price cap is $200/metric ton CO2eq reduction.
• On-road transportation/forklift markets.
• Oregon’s Clean Fuels Program has its own carbon clearance market. Credit price is
about $125.7/metric ton of CO2eq reduction. Requires carbon intensity reduction by
10% by 2025 in the statewide fuel pool from 2015 levels.
• Washington’s LCFS to commence in January 2023. Requires fuel suppliers to
gradually reduce the carbon intensity of transportation fuels to 20 percent below 2017
levels by 2038.
Renewable Fuel Standards (RFS)/Low Carbon Fuel Standards
(LCFS)

Carbon Intensity (gCO2eq/MJ) of Conventional Propane vs. Electrical Grid
Carbon intensity is the total lifecycle carbon footprint of an energy carrier
from source to point of use

83.19
33
26
20.5
26.5
37.5 38.5
43.5
27 28.5
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Fossil Distilled corn oil NA sourced used
cooking oil
US sourced non-
rendered used
cooking oil
SA sourced used
cooking oil
NA sourced
animal fat
(tallow)
SA sourced
animal fat
(tallow)
Asia pacific
sourced animal
fat (tallow)
Sanimax
Montreal animal
fat (tallow)
Sanimax USA
animal fat
(tallow)
Carbon
Intensity
(gCO2eq/MJ)
Feedstock Source
Propane/LPG (Conventional and renewable) Carbon Intensities
Renewable Propane – CARB Provisional Carbon Intensities
Carbon intensity can be 4X lower than conventional propane.
Source: CARB

• Real-world on-road testing conducted by University of California – Riverside on a
delivery truck (2018 Ford F750, Ford 6.8L engine) – PERC sponsored project.
• 6 stops and ~20 miles of driving – 3 tests per fuel
• Differences in NOx, CO2, CO, Hydrocarbon emissions were found to be statistically
insignificant considering real-world driving conditions (driver behavior, traffic etc.).
Renewable Propane vs. Conventional Propane Performance
Testing
Fuel mile CO2 (g/mi) CO (g/mi) NO (g/mi) NO2 (g/mi) NOx (g/mi) THC (g/mi)
LPG 19.922 1873.568 3.717 0.093 0.006 0.099 0.043
RLPG 20.590 1820.853 3.382 0.100 0.001 0.101 0.036
Fuel gal CO2 (g/gal) CO (g/gal) NO (g/gal) NO2 (g/gal) NOx (g/gal) THC (g/gal)
LPG 4.960 7525.115 14.838 0.371 0.025 0.397 0.173
RLPG 4.981 7527.809 13.995 0.415 0.004 0.419 0.150
Fuel hour CO2 (g/hour) CO (g/hour) NO (g/hour) NO2 (g/hour) NOx (g/hour) THC (g/hour)
LPG 1.177 31713.386 62.713 1.570 0.106 1.676 0.731
RLPG 1.240 30260.053 56.369 1.670 0.025 1.686 0.602
Fuel day CO2 (g/day) CO (g/day) NO (g/day) NO2 (g/day) NOx (g/day) THC (g/day)
LPG 1.000 37322.727 73.592 1.842 0.125 1.967 0.858
RLPG 1.000 37493.742 69.703 2.065 0.021 2.086 0.745
Fuel bhp-hr CO2 (g/bhp-hr) CO (g/bhp-hr) NO (g/bhp-hr) NO2 (g/bhp-hr) NOx (g/bhp-hr) THC (g/bhp-hr)
LPG 68.982 553.671 1.092 0.027 0.002 0.029 0.013
RLPG 74.907 491.186 0.913 0.027 0.000 0.027 0.010
A true drop-in replacement !

PERC Resources
https://propane.com/about-propane/renewable-propane/

Carbon-Neutral Cocktail – The Future?
Conventional
~30% by mass
Renewable (NA Sourced used cooking oil)
~50% by mass
Renewable (Dairy gas based)
~20% by mass
80 gCO2eq/MJ 20.5 gCO2eq/MJ -278 gCO2eq/MJ
~0 gCO2eq/MJ