BBK: Higher biofuel blending will raise imports

Germany’s new plan to raise biofuel blending levels in fossil fuels will not help the country’s crisis-hit biodiesel industry and will probably increase biofuel imports, the head of German renewable fuels industry association BBK told the press agency Reuters. “This new plan will only generate huge imports of biodiesel for blending,” BKK president Peter Schrum said. “If the government wants to increase biofuel use it should stop its plans for biodiesel tax increases.”

The German government said it plans to raise the level of biofuels blended into fossil diesel and gasoline from five percent now to ten percent in 2010, rising to 20 percent by 2020.

Schrum complained: “The biodiesel used for blending so far this year has virtually all been imported. I estimate about one million tonnes of imported biodiesel will be blended this year in Germany.” He added: “The new blending plan will do nothing for the German biodiesel industry which is in a crisis with most of the industry likely to stop production in 2008 if the tax rise goes forward.”

Industry groups estimate Germany’s biodiesel industry is producing at about 20 percent of its five million tonne annual capacity following the government’s decision to start taxing biodiesel. A second round of tax increases on biodiesel is scheduled to be imposed in January 2008.

Full text availale here: “Higher German biofuel blend will raise imports” in Guardian Unlimited of 2007-11-22.

(Cf. news of 2007-11-21, 2007-11-08 und 2007-10-19.)

Source

Guardian unlimited, 2007-11-22.

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