D1 Oils has ditched its “earth to engine” business model after the biofuels developer announced a new share placing and the closure of two of its refineries to fund its future development and research.

The company has been hit by heavily subsidised US biodiesel imports and sharply rising feedstock prices and will now withdraw from refining and trading and concentrate on plant science and the planting of jatropha, a tropical oilseed bearing tree.