AgMRC: biodiesel profitability turns corner

Biodiesel Magazine November 2009
By Susanne Retka Schill
Posted October 15, 2009

After six months of negative net returns, the model developed by the Agricultural Marketing Resource Center for a hypothetical, single-feedstock biodiesel refinery using soybean oil, showed a return to the black in September.

Biodiesel revenue for September showed $3.02 per gallon, the soybean oil cost was $2.35 per gallon, natural gas 3 cents per gallon and methanol cost 9 cents per gallon. AgMRC’s model plant showed a total breakeven cost per gallon, including variable and fixed costs of $2.96 per gallon. The net return over variable costs was 32 cents per gallon, and the net return over all costs for September was 6 cents per gallon.

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