Southeast Asia runs the largest crude glycerine stream in the world, because it runs the largest palm biodiesel industry: Indonesia alone allocated 15.6 million kilolitres of biodiesel for 2025, up from around 13 million the year before, under a mandate that reached B40 at the start of 2025. Palm-based crude typically carries 80 % glycerol and above, with potassium or sodium catalyst salts setting the ash figure, and the region also hosts the world's densest refining base -- Wilmar, Musim Mas, KLK OLEO, IOI Oleochemical and Ecogreen all refine glycerine there -- plus a distinct waste-based stream from China's export biodiesel plants. The export file is the same worldwide: the five numbers (glycerol, water, ash, MONG, methanol), the CN classification (crude under 1520 00 00, pure glycerol at 95 % plus under 2905 45 00), the ISCC chain where Annex IX Part A compliance value is claimed, and heated logistics against a 17.8 °C solidification point.
- 1Collection or rendering
- 2Pretreatment
- 3Certified trade
- 4Producer: HVO, SAF or FAME
- 5Fuel in the tank
The value is created at step three: without the certification the same molecule is worth what tallow was worth twenty years ago.
The shared export file, in one table
Whatever the country, a European glycerine buyer screens an Asian offer on the same file -- and distance makes the screening harder, not softer.
| Step | What it is | Where it goes wrong |
|---|---|---|
| 1. The five-number specification | Glycerol (80 % min refiner basis), water, ash, MONG per ISO 2464, methanol below 0.5 %. | Purity quoted alone -- the oldest discount in the book. |
| 2. Classification and CN code | CN 1520 00 00 for crude; 2905 45 00 at roughly 95 % glycerol and above. | Refined material declared on the crude line, or the reverse. |
| 3. The ISCC EU chain | Certified links from the Asian plant through storage, trader and importer, with point-of-origin declarations. | Crude glycerine is Annex IX Part A(i) and counts twice its energy content -- only through a chain that exists. |
| 4. Freight | Heated or insulated ISO tanks of 20 to 26 tonnes and bulk parcels; drummed container lots for smaller streams. | The solidification point is 17.8 °C: the booking needs heat before it needs a rate. |
| 5. Documents and payment | COA per batch, SDS with methanol and pH, origin documentation, certification chain; documentary terms on first business. | An undeclared feedstock switch between offer and loading. |
What actually differs per country
| Origin | The glycerine it makes | What the buyer sees |
|---|---|---|
| Indonesia | The world's largest palm biodiesel programme: 15.6 million kilolitres allocated for 2025 under B40, up from around 13 million in 2024. Crude glycerine at 80 % plus follows arithmetically. | Volume and continuity; the specification and the certificate decide the price band. |
| Malaysia | Palm biodiesel plus one of the world's densest oleochemical refining bases -- KLK OLEO and IOI Oleochemical refine glycerine here. | Both a crude seller and a refined competitor: origin matters on both sides of that line. |
| Singapore and the trading houses | Wilmar and Musim Mas run regional glycerine and oleochemical operations across the Singapore--Indonesia--Malaysia triangle. | The merchant layer: much Asian crude moves through it before it reaches a refiner. |
| China | Waste-based biodiesel for export: its glycerine co-product carries a waste-origin story instead of a palm one. | Origin documentation is the whole offer; the analysis still decides the band. |
| Thailand, India and the rest | Palm and vegetable-oil biodiesel programmes at smaller scale, plus growing oleochemical demand. | Aggregation country: consistent streams reach the buyers one-off parcels cannot. |
Why Asian offers get screened harder -- and how to benefit
European buyers re-test Asian cargoes more often than European ones, ask for the origin file earlier, and discount harder when any of it is vague. That is the cost of distance and of the bad cargoes that came before yours.
The flip side: an Asian stream that arrives with the five numbers, a clean ISCC chain and steady monthly volume competes with the best origins there are. The screening that punishes vague offers pays the streams that pass it.
Palm origin deserves one honest note: buyers price palm, soy, tallow and waste-based glycerine differently at the same purity, and some ask palm-linked streams extra questions. The answer is documentation, not price concessions -- see our EUDR page for where that line runs.
Frequently asked questions
How much glycerine does Indonesia make?
Indonesia allocated 15.6 million kilolitres of biodiesel for 2025 under B40, up from around 13 million kilolitres in 2024, and roughly a tenth of biodiesel tonnage arrives as crude glycerine. It is the largest single crude glycerine stream in the world.
What is palm glycerine?
The crude glycerine co-product of palm-based biodiesel: typically 80 % glycerol and above, with potassium or sodium catalyst salts setting the ash figure, water around 10 to 15 %, and MONG per the ISO 2464 calculation. The molecule is identical to any other glycerine; the origin story is what differs.
Can Asian crude glycerine go into European animal feed?
Where it meets entry 13.8.1 of the feed material catalogue, Regulation (EU) No 68/2013: methanol up to 0.5 %, salts to 7.5 %, MONG to 4 %, with sodium and potassium declared above 1.5 % and nickel above 20 ppm. Many palm crudes clear those lines easily.
Does palm glycerine fall under the deforestation rules?
Crude glycerine itself is not one of the regulated commodities, but palm-linked streams attract extra buyer questions, and products made directly from regulated commodities are in scope of the EUDR with geolocation and due diligence. Our EUDR page sets out where that line runs -- the practical answer is a documented origin file either way.
What CN code does Asian glycerine use into Europe?
Crude glycerine under CN 1520 00 00; pure glycerol at roughly 95 % and above under 2905 45 00. The classification fixes duty and statistics treatment and should be settled with the customs agent before the first shipment.
Can Asian glycerine claim the Annex IX double counting?
Crude glycerine is Annex IX Part A at point (i) of Directive (EU) 2018/2001 and counts twice its energy content toward the transport targets -- through an ISCC EU chain from the Asian plant to the European importer. The certificate is what converts the listing into price.
Who refines glycerine in Asia?
The region hosts the world's densest refining base: Wilmar, Musim Mas, KLK OLEO, IOI Oleochemical and Ecogreen all run glycerine and oleochemical operations there, publicly known. For a crude seller that is both the nearest buyer group and the competition for refined sales.
Is waste-based glycerine from China different?
Chemically no, commercially yes: China's export biodiesel runs on used cooking oil, so its glycerine co-product carries a waste-origin documentation story instead of a palm one. Buyers price origin as well as purity, and the analysis still decides the band.
What price does Asian glycerine fetch in Europe?
We do not publish price assessments. Send the five numbers, the monthly volume and the discharge region, and the answer follows the specification rather than the distance discount a buyer might otherwise assume.
Can a small Asian producer export directly?
Below programme volumes, usually not alone -- aggregation into a consistent, certified stream is the standard route. One-off tanks sell into schedule holes at whatever those pay.
Do you buy the cargo yourselves?
No. We are a broker: the contract runs principal to principal and our fee does not sit in your payment flow. See why use a broker.
Market news
Recent headlines from across the feedstock and renewable fuel sector. Nothing specific to this market has come through the wires lately, so this is the wider view. The links go to the publisher; we do not host or edit their reporting, and a headline here is not our endorsement of it. Scroll for more.
- Neste and United Airlines extend SAF agreement
- WELTEC BIOPOWER begins construction of 60GW Spanish biomethane plant
- U.S. ethanol exports set new records
- FedEx expanding SAF procurement across five US airports in 2027
- Pertamina seeks ethanol import excise exemption
- Senate advances bill to allow year-round E15
- The Digest’s 2026 Multi-Slide Guide to Regional SAF Distribution
- Research and innovation projects supporting the Circular Economy Act Focus area : extended producer responsibility
- Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation: Stakeholder consultation on the methods for defining classes of performance and labels
- Research and innovation projects supporting the Circular Economy Act, Focus area : circular public procurement
- Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation: Stakeholder consultation on the method for identifying and tracking substances of concern in products
- Birla Carbon to present ‘next-generation carbon solutions’ at Global Polymer Summit 2026
- ‘World’s first hydrogen-fuelled engine for large commercial vessels’ completes land-based testing
- Moeve breaks ground on renewable hydrogen project
- Yokogawa wins order from KHI for hydrogen-fuelled vessels
- Azane and Yara ink ammonia supply agreement
- World Fuel Co-Founder Michael Kasbar to step down as Executive Chairman at the end of the year
- Bayer and Neste close commercial agreement to jointly scale newgold® winter canola for biofuels production
18 headlines, updated automatically. Last refreshed .
Sources and further reading
Primary sources for the rules and figures on this page, so you can check them yourself. Legislation is amended: always read the consolidated text on the date that matters to you.
- Biofuels News: Indonesia to fully implement B40 biodiesel (15.6 million kL allocation for 2025)
- EU feed material catalogue, Regulation (EU) No 68/2013 consolidated (entries 13.8.1 and 13.8.2)
- Directive (EU) 2018/2001 (RED II), Annex IX and Article 27(2)
- Our how to sell glycerine in Europe guide
- Our glycerine product page: grades, specification and outlets
Who to ask about Export glycerine from Asia
Just ask. Asian glycerine to place? Send the glycerol, water, ash, MONG and methanol figures with the monthly volume and where it sits, and we will tell you where it lands. You get Bart van den Brug on the other end, same working day, in English or Dutch, and across the team also in French, Portuguese, Polish, Czech and Russian.
On how we work: on the feedstocks and fuels on this site we are a broker. We never take title, we do not trade our own book, and we are paid a commission on business that concludes. Additives are the one exception: those we also buy and sell for our own account, and we say in which capacity we are acting before you commit to anything. Either way you will hear it from us when the answer is no, or when your parcel is not ready for the conversation you want to have. A market read or a second opinion on a specification costs nothing and commits you to nothing.
Happy to look at whatever you have, even if it is half an analysis and a question.
+31 6 115 83 448
bart@sustainablecommodities.eu
Sustainable Commodities 3 B.V., Lemmer, the Netherlands
Ask about Export glycerine from Asia
Specification, volume, location and certification are enough to start.
Or e-mail us directly: bart@sustainablecommodities.eu
Last reviewed 20 September 2026. Regulatory references are given for orientation and are not legal advice: verify against the current Official Journal text before contracting.