Financial research concept

Renewable Diesel Margin

Renewable Diesel margin is an issuer-defined segment measure that adds operating expenses and depreciation and amortization back to renewable diesel operating income or loss.

By Lee BaileyPublished Sep 25, 2026

Research context

See what supports this page, how current it is, and where comparable or historical context is available.

Research date: Sep 25, 2026Use the dated article and cited sources for the definition, examples, and stated limitations.
Operating-model context: 20 connected conceptsPart of the reviewed Integrated Refining & Renewable Fuels Economics; issuer definitions remain distinct where disclosed.
Company examples: 1 reviewed companyRelationships reflect supported examples, not a normalized cross-company KPI ranking.

Margin fell about 62.7%
The 2025 bridge reconciles to the segment operating loss
Margin per gallon also ties to sales volume
Part of the Integrated Refining & Renewable Fuels Economics
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Renewable Diesel Margin is Valero's issuer-defined intermediate profitability measure before operating expenses and depreciation and amortization.

Valero reported $419 million of Renewable Diesel margin in 2025, down from $1.122 billion in 2024.

Margin fell about 62.7%

The decline was $703 million.

Dividing that decline by the $1.122 billion prior-year margin gives approximately 62.7%.

Valero cited higher feedstock costs and lower low-carbon-fuel tax-incentive value as major headwinds, partly offset by pricing and lower operating expenses.

The 2025 bridge reconciles to the segment operating loss

Valero reported $308 million of operating expenses excluding D&A and $267 million of D&A.

The bridge is:

$419M - $308M - $267M = -$156M Renewable Diesel operating income

Renewable Diesel margin should not be read as operating income.

Margin per gallon also ties to sales volume

Valero reported $0.42 of Renewable Diesel margin per gallon and 2.748 million gallons per day of sales volume.

Use Renewable Diesel Sales Volume to connect the unit and total economics.

Primary sources: Valero 2025 Form 10-K and Valero 2025 earnings release.

Part of the Integrated Refining & Renewable Fuels Economics

Connect refinery capacity, throughput, utilization, yield, realized per-barrel economics, renewable-fuel compliance costs, and Renewable Diesel and Ethanol volume, margin, and profit conversion.

Browse the full operating model in Company Analysis →

Where this concept fits

Renewable diesel capacity, sales volume, and margin conversionCurrent relationship
Production capacity defines potential physical output, sales volume is the period denominator Valero uses for unit economics, segment revenue preserves external and intersegment scope, and Renewable Diesel margin is reduced by operating expenses and depreciation and amortization to reach operating income or loss.
Renewable Diesel MarginCurrent conceptRenewable Diesel Operating Income Renewable Diesel Production Capacity Renewable Diesel Sales Volume Renewable Diesel Segment Revenue
Refining capacity, throughput, and per-barrel conversion
Feedstock throughput capacity sets physical scale, while utilization and throughput show realized activity and product yield shows output mix. Refining margin per barrel is reduced by operating costs and depreciation and amortization to reach adjusted operating income per barrel, while RVO cost adds a separate compliance-cost benchmark whose treatment in realized margin must be checked.
Refinery Capacity Utilization Refinery Product Yield Refinery Throughput Adjusted Refining Operating Income Adjusted Refining Operating Income per Barrel Refining D&A per Barrel Feedstock Throughput Capacity Refining Margin per Barrel Refining Operating Cost per Barrel RVO Cost per Barrel
Ethanol capacity, production, and margin conversion
Production capacity defines the plant network's stated output capability and production volume measures realized output. Ethanol and co-product revenue feed an issuer-defined Ethanol margin, which is reduced by operating expenses, depreciation and amortization, and specified other operating expenses to reach segment operating income.
Ethanol Margin Ethanol Operating Income Ethanol Production Capacity Ethanol Production Volume Ethanol Segment Revenue

See It in Company Research

These companies are examples of how the concept is reported or discussed in public filings. Definitions can differ by issuer; these links open company research rather than a normalized metric comparison.

VLOOpen operating-model research →20 of 20 reviewed concepts in Integrated Refining & Renewable Fuels EconomicsRenewable diesel capacity, sales volume, and margin conversion5 of 5 bridge concepts supportedContinue through this bridge:Renewable Diesel Operating Income Renewable Diesel Production Capacity Renewable Diesel Sales Volume Renewable Diesel Segment Revenue

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Compare public companies

Compare the $419M intermediate margin with operating expense, D&A, and the exact bridge to the $156M operating loss.

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