By Leah Douglas

Aug 7 (Reuters) - The U.S. Epa has actually released examinations into the supply chains of a minimum of 2 renewable fuel producers in the middle of market concerns that some may be utilizing deceitful feedstocks for biodiesel to federal government subsidies.

EPA representative Jeffrey Landis told Reuters that the firm has launched audits over the past year, but decreased to identify the business targeted due to the fact that the investigations are continuous.

The production of biodiesel from sustainable components, like utilized cooking oil, can earn refiners a variety of state and federal ecological and environment aids, including tradable credits under a program administered by the EPA called the Renewable Fuel Standard. But fears have actually been mounting that some products identified as used cooking oil are really more affordable and less sustainable virgin palm oil, an item that is related to deforestation and other environmental damage.

The concern entered focus following a rise in used cooking oil exports from Asia in recent years that analysts have actually stated involves unrealistically high volumes relative to the amount of cooking oil used and recuperated in the area. The European Union is likewise examining feedstocks over the fraud issues.

The EPA audits started after the firm updated domestic supply-chain accounting requirements in July 2023 for renewable fuel producers looking for to make credits under the RFS, he stated.

“EPA has carried out audits of eco-friendly fuel manufacturers since July 2023 which consists of, to name a few things, an examination of the areas that utilized cooking oil utilized in sustainable fuel production was gathered,” he said. “These examinations, nevertheless, are continuous and we are unable to go over continuous enforcement investigations.”

U.S. senators from farm states have actually required more oversight of biofuel feedstocks, saying federal agencies need to be as extensive in validating imports as they are auditing domestic supply chains.

“The Biden administration has actually developed vigorous standards to confirm, not simply trust, American manufacturers, and it is essential that the same examination is used to imported feedstocks,” 6 U.S. senators, led by Roger Marshall and Sherrod Brown, wrote in a June 20 letter to federal firms.

Another letter from 15 senators to the Treasury Department on July 30 prompted the administration to omit imported feedstocks like UCO from an additional clean fuel tax credit program passed in the Inflation Reduction Act. (Reporting by Leah Douglas in Washington Editing by Richard Valdmanis and Matthew Lewis)