Rotterdam's B30-VLSFO premium over conventional VLSFO has widened by $85/mt in a week, reaching $255/mt, driven by an unusual split: the biofuel blend gained $12/mt while conventional VLSFO at the Dutch port dropped $73/mt.

The divergence lands at an awkward moment for owners weighing compliance fuel economics in Europe's largest bunkering hub. A wider premium raises the cost of running biofuel blends precisely when conventional fuel is getting cheaper.

What is holding Rotterdam's biofuel prices down?

Dutch suppliers can generate ZRE A tickets when they sell low-carbon fuels, and these tradeable instruments take the edge off biofuel prices in Rotterdam. Belgium has no equivalent mechanism, which keeps Rotterdam relatively competitive for blended bunkers.

Even so, the ticket price itself has slipped: from €175/mtCO2e ($199/mtCO2e) last Thursday to €172.5/mtCO2e ($195/mtCO2e) today. That softening has not been enough to offset the widening premium at the stem level.

How did distillate blends move?

Rotterdam's B30-LSMGO (POMEME) price fell $94/mt to $1,398/mt, pressured mainly by a $143/mt drop in the port's conventional LSMGO price. Because the conventional grade fell harder than the blend, the B30-LSMGO premium actually widened by $49/mt, to $70/mt.

Rotterdam's B100 was assessed at $1,273/mt today, down $89/mt from last week.

Feedstock indicators also moved sharply lower. Prima Markets' ARA UCOME and POMEME barge prices — both gauges of sourcing costs — slumped $139/mt each over the week, to $1,856/mt and $1,926/mt respectively. UCOME now sits at a $70/mt discount to POMEME on a barge basis, a signal that European feedstock costs are easing faster than finished biofuel bunkers.

Why is Singapore moving the other way?

Asia tells a different story. Singapore's B30-VLSFO (UCOME) price dropped $86/mt in the past week to $1,019/mt, while conventional VLSFO at the port declined only $34/mt. That narrowed the city-state's biofuel premium by $52/mt, to $172/mt.

Feedstock costs played a role here too. Prima Markets' China UCOME cargo assessment — a key input for Singapore's B30-VLSFO blend — fell $15/mt to $1,215/mt, weighing on the finished blend.

The result is a widening gap between the two hubs' biofuel economics: Rotterdam's premium is climbing while Singapore's contracts, and the absolute price gap in B30-VLSFO between the ports now stands at roughly $236/mt in Singapore's favour before local ticket effects.

Is demand following the price signals?

Volume data suggests uptake is growing regardless of the premium swings. ENGINE recorded 77 B100 samples in Rotterdam between January and August, up 126% from a year earlier, lifting B100's share of the port's biofuel samples to 23% from 12%.

For shipowners, that growth means B100 stems are becoming more routine in Rotterdam, while the ZRE A mechanism continues to cushion — for now — the price pain that Belgian suppliers must pass on in full.

What comes next?

If UCOME feedstock prices keep sliding at the current pace, finished biofuel premiums in Rotterdam should eventually follow, while Singapore's premium trajectory hinges on China UCOME cargo values and the slower decline in conventional VLSFO at the port.