European Union (EU) imports of biodiesel from China fell by 91% in July compared to the previous month following the European Commission (EC)’s introduction of anti-dumping duties, according to Eurostat data reported by Palm Oil Magazine.
According to the analysis, Chinese biodiesel exports to the EU dropped from 109,457 tonnes in June to 9,835 tonnes in July – the lowest level since April 2021.
In July, the EU imposed temporary anti-dumping duties ranging from 12.8% to 36.4% on biodiesel and hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) imports from China, the 27 September report said citing Quantum Commodity Intelligence data.
However, China’s export data did not correspond with EU import figures, with China reporting exports of 74,343 tonnes in May and 43,412 tonnes in June, Palm Oil Magazine wrote.
The discrepancies had raised concerns about potential gaps in sustainable certification, which traders claimed could be used to bypass anti-dumping duties, the report said.
Welcoming the drop in biodiesel imports from China, European Biodiesel Board (EBB) general secretary Xavier Noyon, who had pushed for the introduction of the tariff, was quoted as saying: “The latest import data showed that the trade was successful and delivering relief for EU industries. But the potential to avoid duties would still be our concern.”
The EBB had identified the ‘gap’ in the regulation, such as the application of incoming process and the mass balance between biodiesel storage in T1 and T2, Noyon added.
He said the EBB would deliver evidence to legislators about the potential to avoid duties and would contact the authority at the national and EU level to follow up the issue.
Although biodiesel imports from China fell in the period, total EU biodiesel imports also dropped by 15.3% to 190.546 tonnes in July, the lowest level since March 2024. This drop was partly due to increasing biodiesel imports from Malaysia totalling 46,526 tonnes, the highest volume since November 2023, the report said.
Imports from South Korea, Switzerland and the UK totalled 12,000 tonnes, 26,853 tonnes and 30,831 tonnes respectively, while imports from Argentina dropped by 18.1% to 34,504 tonnes.
Meanwhile, EU biodiesel exports more than doubled in July, by about 117.198 tonnes, with exports to the USA totalling 60,160 tonnes, more than half of the EU’s total exports.
Exports to the UK also increased to 39,033 tonnes, while shipments to Spain and the Netherlands also increased.
