HVO is a hydrocarbon, not an ester: which is why it behaves so differently from FAME and why the conversation moves so quickly past the specification. Made by hydrotreating vegetable oils, waste oils and fats, it is specified under EN 15940 for paraffinic diesel, and HVO100 can be used neat in approved applications. We broker it between producers, majors, distributors and large fleet users. What is actually being traded is the feedstock and the certificate: two identical litres of EN 15940 fuel can be worth materially different money depending on what they were made from and what the buyer can count.
Why HVO is easy to handle and hard to buy
Technically it is the most forgiving renewable fuel on the market. It has no ester content, so none of FAME's characteristic problems: no oxidation stability limit that degrades in the tank, no microbial growth driven by water absorption, no sterol glucoside filter blocking, no seasonal blending gymnastics. Cold-flow properties can be set very low in production, storage life is long, and it is a genuine drop-in for approved applications.
Commercially it is the opposite of easy. Much of the European volume is contracted forward by parties covering a legal obligation under national RED III implementations, so genuine spot availability is thinner and more seasonal than headline production figures suggest. A seller holding certified volume in a defined delivery window has more leverage than the raw supply numbers imply, and a buyer who waits for a soft spot market often waits a long time.
Specification and grades
| Standard | EN 15940 for paraffinic diesel. Class A and B differ in cetane and density ranges. |
|---|---|
| HVO100 vs blend component | Neat use in approved applications, or blending into fossil diesel at a stated ratio. |
| CFPP / cold-flow grade | Set in production by isomerisation. Summer and winter grades; confirm the destination requirement. |
| Cetane number | Characteristically high, typically well above fossil diesel. |
| Density | Lower than fossil diesel; relevant to volumetric fuel consumption and to blend calculations. |
| Sulphur | Very low. |
| Feedstock | UCO, animal fat, POME, technical vegetable oils. Determines Annex IX status and therefore value. |
| Certification | ISCC EU or REDcert, with a valid proof of sustainability per delivery. |
| GHG saving | The actual figure on the PoS where the buyer's claim depends on it, not a default value. |
| Mandate treatment | How the volume counts in the specific destination member state, national, not EU-wide. |
| Delivery basis | In-tank, ex-works, barge, truck or pipeline. |
| OEM approval | For neat HVO100 in a fleet, the engine manufacturer's approval position matters to the end user. |
Feedstock decides the value
This is where HVO deals are won and lost. The physical fuel is fungible; the sustainability characteristics travelling with it are not. Material made from an Annex IX Part B feedstock such as used cooking oil or category 1 and 2 animal fat sits under the 1.7 % of transport energy cap per member state. Material from Part A feedstocks counts against the advanced sub-target instead. Crop-based feedstock is a different category again.
Two warnings that save real money. First, multipliers are now member state specific under RED III, the Netherlands and Germany have moved away from double counting in their national implementations, so a grade described as "double counting" means nothing until you name the destination market. Second, check the mass balance accounting period against your delivery schedule; a certificate that is valid but out of period is a problem discovered at the worst possible time.
Feedstock detail lives on the source pages: used cooking oil, animal fats and POME.
How we broker it
We work with producers placing output, distributors and majors covering obligations, and larger fleet and industrial users buying HVO100 directly. Because we are independent and never take title, we can tell a buyer plainly when an offered parcel will not survive their own compliance review, which in a market where the certificate carries most of the value saves far more than negotiating the price.
Related products from the same hydrotreating process: bionaphtha and SAF.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between HVO and FAME biodiesel?
HVO is a hydrocarbon made by hydrotreating fats and oils; FAME is an ester made by transesterification. HVO is specified under EN 15940, has excellent cold-flow properties, long storage life and no oxidation stability or microbial growth problems, and HVO100 can be used neat in approved applications. FAME is specified under EN 14214, is normally blended, and carries seasonal cold-flow and stability constraints that HVO does not.
What is HVO100?
Neat HVO, 100 % hydrotreated vegetable oil with no fossil diesel blended in, used directly as a fuel in applications approved for it. Because it is a paraffinic hydrocarbon under EN 15940 rather than an ester, many diesel engines can run it, but the engine manufacturer's approval position is what matters to a fleet operator and should be checked rather than assumed.
Why is HVO hard to buy on the spot market?
Because much of the European volume is contracted forward by parties covering a legal obligation under national RED III implementations. Genuine spot availability is thinner and more seasonal than headline production capacity suggests, which puts sellers holding certified volume in a defined delivery window in a stronger position than the raw supply numbers imply.
Does HVO count double towards renewable fuel targets?
That depends on the member state and on the feedstock. Under RED III, national implementations diverge and several markets, including the Netherlands and Germany, have moved away from multipliers. Confirm the treatment in the specific destination market for the specific feedstock rather than relying on how the market worked historically.
What cold-flow properties can HVO achieve?
Cold-flow behaviour is set during production through isomerisation, and HVO can be produced to very low CFPP values, considerably lower than FAME can reach without additives or winterisation. The practical answer is that you specify the grade you need for the destination and season and the producer makes it, rather than discovering a limitation after delivery.
Which feedstocks is HVO made from?
Used cooking oil, animal fats, POME, technical and non-food vegetable oils, and crop oils. The feedstock determines the Annex IX classification and therefore the value, which is why the first question on any HVO offer should be what it was made from and under which certification scheme.
Who to ask about HVO / renewable diesel
Ask us. Volume to place or a mandate to cover? Tell us the feedstock, the scheme and the delivery window. We answer the same working day, in English or Dutch, and there is no charge and no obligation for a market read or a second opinion on a specification.
You get Bart van den Brug directly, not a call centre and not a form that goes nowhere. We are an independent broker: we never take title, we do not trade our own book, and we are paid a commission only on business that actually concludes. That is why we will also tell you when the answer is no.
+31 6 115 83 448
[email protected]
Sustainable Commodities 3 B.V., Lemmer, the Netherlands
Last reviewed 09 August 2026 by Bart van den Brug, Sustainable Commodities 3 B.V. (KvK 99665042), Lemmer, the Netherlands. Regulatory references are given for orientation and are not legal advice; verify against the current Official Journal text before contracting.