cetane energy, l.l.c.

What cetane energy, l.l.c. does

Cetane Energy, LLC is a privately held renewable fuels company founded in 2006 and headquartered in Carlsbad, New Mexico, where it operates a pilot plant converted from a decommissioned ammonia facility. The company uses a patented pyrolysis-based process to convert sustainable biomass feedstocks — including tallow, brown grease, algae oil, woody biomass, and other waste oils — into renewable diesel that is structurally identical to petroleum ultra low sulfur diesel, achieves a 1:1 BTU ratio, and carries a higher cetane number than petroleum diesel. Its fuel is EPA-registered as a renewable fuel and is sold as a drop-in substitute for #1 and #2 diesel, naphtha, and propane, requiring no modification to existing storage or vehicle infrastructure. In 2009, Cetane became the first facility in the United States to produce renewable diesel from a standalone unit.

The company operates a sales-led, business-to-business commercial model and explicitly does not sell directly to the general public; all inquiries are routed through a single direct email contact. Beyond fuel sales, Cetane monetizes its technology through three additional streams: licensing its patented process to third parties for new renewable fuel plant construction, providing engineering services for plant design and operations, and offering truck-to-rail transloading services, the last of which appears to also handle crude oil, frac sand, and spray lining based on its active job postings. Customer segments are commercial and industrial fuel buyers and renewable energy plant developers, served exclusively within a New Mexico operating geography with no global footprint claim. Pricing is not publicly disclosed, no headcount or revenue figures are available, no institutional funding has been identified, and the company's web presence carries a 2014 copyright, leaving its current commercial scale and growth trajectory largely unobservable from public data.

Name

cetane energy, l.l.c.

Legal name

Cetane Energy, LLC

Website

https://cetaneenergy.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Cetane Energy, LLC is a Carlsbad, New Mexico-based renewable fuels company that uses a patented pyrolysis process to convert waste biomass feedstocks into EPA-registered renewable diesel, serving commercial and industrial buyers while also licensing its technology and offering engineering and transloading services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Renewable Diesel Fuel

NAICS

Petroleum Refineries (32411)

SIC

Petroleum Refining (2911)

akta.pro primary industry

Renewable Diesel (HVO/HEFA) Production (EUAAAHAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Biofuels & Renewable Fuels Switching (Biomethane/RNG, Bio-oils, Sustainable Biomass) (EUABAJAD), Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) Production (HEFA, FT, ATJ) (EUAAAHAE)

Keywords

• Renewable diesel fuel
• Biomass feedstock processing
• Pyrolysis conversion technology
• Fuel transloading services
• Renewable fuel engineering

Headquarters

HQ city

Carlsbad

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Personnel

Revenue model

1. Renewable Diesel Sales: Commercial sales of renewable diesel fuel to business customers. The company sells directly to commercial entities and cannot sell to the general public. Product is a drop-in substitute for petroleum diesel.
2. Technology Licensing: Licensing the proprietary renewable diesel production technology to build new renewable fuel plants. This allows third parties to construct their own renewable diesel production facilities using Cetane's patented process.
3. Engineering Services: Providing engineering services related to renewable fuel plant design, construction, and operation.
4. Transloading Services: Transloading product from truck to rail for logistics and distribution support.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

Cetane Energy, LLC operates a pilot plant in Carlsbad, New Mexico that produces renewable diesel fuel from sustainable biomass feedstocks (tallow, brown grease, algae oil, woody biomass, and waste oils) using a patented pyrolysis process. The renewable diesel is a drop-in substitute for #1 and #2 petroleum diesel, naphtha, and propane, and is EPA-registered as renewable fuel. The company also licenses its production technology and provides engineering and transloading services.

Product overview

Cetane Energy, LLC is a renewable diesel fuel company offering a single core product—renewable diesel fuel—along with supporting services including technology licensing for building renewable fuel plants, engineering services, and product transloading (truck to rail). The renewable diesel fuel is a 'drop in' substitute for petroleum diesel (#1, #2), naphtha, and propane, and has received EPA registration as renewable fuel. The company is exploring alternative biomass feedstocks including algae oil, woody biomass, and waste-derived oils using pyrolysis technology.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Renewable Diesel Fuel
• Renewable Fuel Technology Licensing
• Engineering Services
• Product Transloading (truck to rail)

Quantifiable outcome

• 1:1 BTU ratio with petroleum diesel
• +2 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Neste: Global leader in renewable diesel (HVO/HEFA) production from waste and residue feedstocks. Highly relevant because, like Cetane, it produces drop-in renewable diesel from tallow, brown grease, and other waste oils, but operates at massive commercial scale, defining the market Cetane is attempting to address.
• Phillips 66: US refiner actively producing and expanding renewable diesel output, including through co-processing of bio-feedstocks. Comparable as a downstream renewable diesel incumbent whose drop-in product competes for the same commercial fuel buyers Cetane targets.
• Marathon Petroleum: US refiner with renewable diesel capacity through its Martinez Renewables and other conversion projects. Comparable because it converts legacy refinery/petrochemical assets into renewable diesel production — the same asset-repurposing logic Cetane applies to the Carlsbad ammonia plant.
• Diamond Green Diesel: Joint venture between Valero and Darling Ingredients producing renewable diesel from used cooking oil, tallow, and other waste fats. Directly comparable to Cetane's feedstock base and product, but at vastly larger commercial scale.

Direct peers

• KiOR: Former biomass-to-renewable-crude producer using catalytic cracking of biomass into drop-in fuels. Highly comparable technology pathway to Cetane's pyrolysis process and a useful proxy for the scale-up challenges facing pyrolysis-based renewable diesel ventures.
• Velocys: Developer of Fischer-Tropsch technology for producing renewable diesel and SAF from biomass and waste feedstocks. Closely comparable as a small, technology-driven renewable fuels company licensing its proprietary process for plant deployment.
• Ensyn: Producer of renewable fuel from forest residues and cellulosic biomass via proprietary pyrolysis technology. Comparable because it uses a pyrolysis-based pathway to produce drop-in renewable fuels from waste biomass — overlapping directly with Cetane's core technology approach.

Emerging players

• Sapphire Energy: Algae-to-crude renewable fuel developer pursuing pyrolysis/conversion of algae biomass into drop-in fuels. Comparable to Cetane's stated exploration of algae as the next feedstock for its pyrolysis-based renewable diesel process.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cetane-energy-llc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about cetane energy, l.l.c.