(Eurasia Review) The European Union renewable energy regulation may became a subject of dispute in the World Trade Organization (WTO), warned Monday the Globalization Institute, adding that lack of transparency and discrimination towards foreign biofuel suppliers cause the Renewable Energy
European Union (EU)
Back TO HOMEStudy Shows High Emissions from Growing Biodiesel from Palm Oil
(Transport & Environment) Biofuels produced from palm oil grown in tropical peatlands are a significant source of greenhouse gases. This is the finding of a new study done for the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) which, if taken on
November 28, 2011 Read Full Article
Biofuels and Other Bioliquids—Facts and Perspectives
by Igor Dormuth and Elena Schmidt (Biomass Power and Thermal/TÜV SÜD Industrie Service) New EU sustainability criteria for biofuels and other bioliquids must be complied with and verified by an independent third party at every stage of the production
November 11, 2011 Read Full Article
New Energy Farm's New Planting System Speeds up Miscanthus Development
by Anna Austin (Biomass Power and Themal) Energy crop developer New Energy Farms says it has developed a new system for establishing miscanthus that takes one-third the time of previous planting methods. ...The first is a bulked up miscanthus breed that
November 10, 2011 Read Full Article
Biofuel Rules Could Price Older Car Drivers Off the Road
(The Green Car Website) ...According to reports, nearly one million motorists could suffer as the government prepares to increase the biofuel content in unleaded fuel from five per cent to ten per cent as directed by the EU. Some older models, made before 1993,
November 08, 2011 Read Full Article
Skeptics Question Airline Biofuels
by Robert Wall (AviationWeek) When it comes to operating airliners with a biofuel blend, it is becoming difficult to find a name-brand airline that has not conducted a demonstration flight. The problem is, it may all be for naught. Air France
November 04, 2011 Read Full Article
European Union Biodiesel Production Slumps in 2011
by John C.K. Daly (http://oilprice.com) Greening the European Union has suffered a setback. The European Biodiesel Board is reporting that the European Union biodiesel industry production forecasts are noting a 2011 decrease in output, the first since data has been gathered,
November 04, 2011 Read Full Article
Is There Too Much Land in Europe?
by Robert Vierhout (Ethanol Producer Magazine/ePURE) ...Even if that extra demand would not exist, why would European politicians want to increase idled land, knowing that year-on-year, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, arable land in
November 02, 2011 Read Full Article
Biofuels Growth Stifled by EU Policy Delays: BP
by Nina Chestney (Reuters) Biofuels for use in transport are becoming more competitive compared with oil but the pace of growth has slowed due to a lack of regulation and sustainability standards in Europe, the chief executive of BP's biofuels
October 27, 2011 Read Full Article
Mission NewEnergy Awarded World’s First Jatropha Biofuel ISCC Certification
(Proactive Investors Australia) Biofuels company Mission NewEnergy has become the first commercial scale provider of Jatropha in the world to receive International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) for its Jatropha contract farming model. ...To qualify for ISCC certification, companies must meet strict
October 26, 2011 Read Full Article
EU Votes in Favor of Hiking Import Taxes for High Ethanol Blends
(Platts) The EU's Customs Code Committee approved Wednesday a draft regulation to raise import taxes for high ethanol blends, a source close to the matter told Platts. The decision could result in increased domestic prices for renewable fuels as it would
October 14, 2011 Read Full Article
Instant View - EU Announces Shake-Up of Farm Policy
(Reuters) The European Union's executive finalised proposals for a shake-up of the bloc's 55 billion euro-a-year (48 billion pounds) farm policy on Wednesday. Following are reactions to the proposals: MARCO CONTIERO, GREENPEACE EU AGRICULTURE POLICY DIRECTOR "What Europe needs to save its food
October 13, 2011 Read Full Article
Industry Split Emerges over Biofuels' Indirect Impact
by Charlie Dunmore (Reuters) European bioethanol producers have broken ranks and urged EU policymakers to introduce rules on the indirect climate impacts of biofuels that distinguish between "good and bad biofuel pathways," Reuters has learned. ...In a letter to the
October 06, 2011 Read Full Article
Greenergy Digs Deeper into Waste to Make Biodiesel
by Nigel Hunt and Ikuko Kurahone (Reuters) Major British independent oil firm Greenergy sees its future as an exploration company, but one that hunts for fuel in piles of stale pork pies and cakes rather than under the ground or from
September 29, 2011 Read Full Article
European Association Formed to Promote and Standardize Waste to Renewable Biodiesel Production
(Zlokower Consulting) Four major European waste to biodiesel producers, each representing a different country, have announced the formation of The European Waste to Renewable Biodiesel Association (WtoRB). The founding members are Veolia Environmental Services (France), Petrotec Biodiesel AG (Germany), DP
September 29, 2011 Read Full Article
From Feedstocks to Finance: Upscaling Sustainable Biofuels
(Netzwerk Biotreibstoffe News) Deployment of innovative biofuels technologies, possible, but requires strong political commitment, say European biofuels stakeholders. The annual meeting of European biofuels stakeholders stressed that advanced biofuels technologies are now available and called for robust support to ensure
September 23, 2011 Read Full Article
Members of the European Parliament Call for Cuts in Non-CO2 Greenhouse Emissions
(European Parliament) Great efforts have been made to reduce CO2 emissions in Europe and internationally, but a number of other substances are also causing Arctic ice-melt and on Wednesday MEPs called for action against so-called non-CO2 emissions including the
September 19, 2011 Read Full Article
‘Serious’ Error Found in Carbon Savings for Biofuels
by James Kanter (New York Times) The European Union is overestimating the reductions in greenhouse gas emissions achieved through reliance on biofuels as a result of a “serious accounting error,” according to a draft opinion by an influential committee of
September 16, 2011 Read Full Article
EU Biofuel Rules 'Skewed against Imports' – Academic
(Agra-net.com) Carbon savings from biodiesel produced using imported palm oil are being deliberately underestimated by the EU, a researcher has claimed. Dr Gerot Pehnelt, a member of the academic advisory board to the European Forum for Sustainable Development (EFNE) - which lobbies on behalf
September 14, 2011 Read Full Article
Sugar Could Be Produced Again, Says Minister
SEÁN Mac Connell (Irish Times) Ireland could be producing sugar and ethanol again when the European Commission ends its current quota system in 2016, the Agricultural Science Association annual conference in Maynooth heard yesterday. Minister for Agriculture Simon Coveney said figures in
September 13, 2011 Read Full Article
Exclusive: EU to Delay Action on Biofuels' Indirect Impact
by Charlie Dunmore (Reuters) The European Union's top climate and energy officials have agreed to delay by up to seven years rules that would penalize individual biofuels for their indirect climate impacts, details of the dealshowed. The political compromise is designed to
September 10, 2011 Read Full Article
Mission Signs Biodiesel Supply Deal with Global Oil Major
(Clean Technology Business Review) Mission NewEnergy has signed a contract to supply sustainability-certified biodiesel to a global oil major. The six-month contract will begin in January 2012 and is expected to generate revenue in excess of $40m. Mission NewEnergy group CEO Nathan
September 08, 2011 Read Full Article
It’s All about Sugar as Prices Surge and Supply Fears Grow
by Joelle Brink (Biofuels Digest Asia) ...We imagine “food vs fuel” in terms of grain shortages, but where food and fuel actually collide is on the global sugar markets. “While sugar is widely available in the west and its price
September 08, 2011 Read Full Article
European Partnership to Unlock the Potential of Algal Bioenergy
by Dr Matthew Aylott (National Non-Food Crops Centre) A major new €14 million (£12.3 million) initiative - bringing together experts from across North West Europe to develop the potential of algae as a source of sustainable energy - has been
September 07, 2011 Read Full Article
Merkel Coalition Partners Attack 'Failed' Government Biofuel Rollout
(Deutsche Welle) Angela Merkel's junior coalition partners, the liberal Free Democrats, have criticized the botched introduction of the E10 biofuel. The party called on the environment minister to revise its policy on green fuels. The pro-business Free Democrats (FDP), Angela Merkel's
August 31, 2011 Read Full Article
Joint Nature Conservation Committee Publishes "Indirect Land Use Change from Biofuel Production: Implications for Biodiversity"
by Monika Bertzky, Valerie Kapos & Jörn P.W. Scharlemann (Joint Nature Conservation Committee) Inference from production statistics and modelling studies suggest that iLUC has occurred, is likely to increase with increasing demand for biofuels and needs to be considered when assessing the
August 30, 2011 Read Full Article
EU Biofuels Policy Driving Regional Product Demand
by Caroline Henshaw (Drovers CattleNetwork) Europe's stringent biofuels policy is driving growing interest in region-specific ethanol and rapeseed oil hedging products, a senior executive for CME Group Inc (CME) in Europe said Friday. The global exchange provider said its new German-Spec
August 29, 2011 Read Full Article
Assessing Opportunities and Constraints for Biofuel Development in Sub-Saharan Africa
by Graham von Maltitz, William Stafford (Center for International Forestry Research) Sustainable biofuel production should provide opportunities for sub-Saharan African countries and their inhabitants, especially in impoverished rural areas. Biofuel feedstock production has the potential to bring job opportunities
August 29, 2011 Read Full Article
EU Approval of Certification Standards for Biofuels Brings Transparency and Supports Planning by Sugar-Energy Industry
(UNICA) The European Commission’s approval of certification schemes for biofuels, announced on July 19th, is an important step to add transparency to the issue and help Member States meet reduction targets for greenhouse gas emissions. The measure will also benefit
August 10, 2011 Read Full Article
European Biodiesel Board Slams EU Thinking on Biofuel Land Use Impacts
(Argus Media) Europe's biodiesel producers have commissioned an independent review of a policy document on biodiesel's indirect effects on land use change, which the European Biodiesel Board (EBB) maintains has skewed the European Commission's thinking on the subject to the
August 10, 2011 Read Full Article
Phase Shift: 12 Hot Gas-Based Biofuels Technologies
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ...But a new generation of technologies is coming along fast, primarily in advanced biofuels, which is gasifying biomass at the front end along its path towards making fuels, chemicals or other biomaterials – or in
August 09, 2011 Read Full Article
Biofuels' Potential to Transform the Global Economy
by John C.K. Daly (Oilprice.com) After years of existing largely as an environmentalist's fantasy, commercial production of biofuels for the world civil aviation industry is slowly becoming a fact, with production starting up across three continents. The leading contenders for biofuel
August 09, 2011 Read Full Article
EurObserv’ER Biofuels Barometer Available: The Growth in Biofuel Consumption Slowed Down in 2010
(EurObserv'ER) ...The EurObserv’ER Barometer regularly publishes indicators reflecting the current dynamics in renewable energies (solar, wind, hydropower, geothermal and biomass, biogas, biofuels) worldwide and within the European Union. In ‘The State of Renewable Energies in Europe’ two additional technologies have been assessed: solar thermal electricity,
August 04, 2011 Read Full Article
Rosetta Green Joins Project to Develop Algal Proteins and Chemicals
(Algae Industry Magazine) Kim Chapman reports that Rosetta Green, of Rehovot, Israel, will take part in an EU-funded consortium, led by the Microalgal Biotechnology Laboratory at Ben-Gurion University, and will identify MicroRNA genes to develop algae with improved traits, and
August 04, 2011 Read Full Article
Biofuels: What Do the Experts Think?
by Matthew Knight (CNN) It wasn't so long ago that biofuels were being heralded as the savior of the planet and a thoroughly green solution to our climate woes. But fair winds have been replaced by persistent storms of criticism.
July 29, 2011 Read Full Article
SWAFEA Final Report Lays Groundwork for the Deployment of Sustainable Aviation Biofuels in Europe
(GreenAirOnline) Although the aviation sector has a good track record in reducing its environmental impact through efficiency gains, it is highly unlikely to reduce or even stabilise its emissions through this means alone, but biofuels present a real potential for
July 29, 2011 Read Full Article
Biofuels Mandates Around the World
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ...The bulk of mandates comes from the EU-27, where the Renewable Energy Directive (RED) specifies a 10 percent renewables content by 2020 across the entire membership – though 7 percent of that will come from
July 21, 2011 Read Full Article
PTTAR Shelves Jet Biofuel Project
by Nalin Viboonchart (The Nation) PTT Aromatics and Refining (PTTAR) has put on hold its US$150-million (Bt4.5 billion) jet-biofuel project, given the exorbitant production cost and the likelihood that the price of the fuel would deter potential buyers. Prajya Phinyawat, chief operating
July 20, 2011 Read Full Article
Will the EU Reveal Judging Criteria for Biofuel Bodies?
by Jessica Shankleman Green groups slam Commission's "back room" processes for approving sustainable biofuel certification schemes Green groups will today learn if the European Commission is ready to lift the lid on the methods it used to decide whether biofuels can be certified as
July 19, 2011 Read Full Article
Analysis: EU Cushions Biodiesel from Damning Carbon Research
by Charlie Dunmore (Reuters) The EU will protect existing investment in its $13 billion biodiesel sector even as it acts on new evidence that suggests making the fuel from food crops can do more harm than good in fighting climate
July 18, 2011 Read Full Article
SCS Offers Sugarcane Certification Program
by Joanna Schroeder (DomesticFuel.com) ...Brazil’s sugarcane industry is also accused of not producing the crop, nor the fuel, in a sustainable manner. As a result, the EU Renewable Energy Directive was created to address concerns including labor and environmental issues.
July 15, 2011 Read Full Article
Exclusive: Climate Impact Threatens Biodiesel Future in EU
by Charlie Dunmore (Reuters) Europe's biodiesel industry could be wiped out by EU plans to tackle the unwanted side effects of biofuel production, after studies showed few climate benefits, four papers obtained by Reuters show. Europe's world-leading $13 billion biodiesel industry,
July 13, 2011 Read Full Article
Commission Study Questions Carbon Dioxide Benefits from EU Biofuel
(E-Energy Market/European Voice) Biofuel from palm oil, soybean and rapeseed produces more greenhouse-gas emissions than fossil fuel, once the environmental side-effects of its production are taken into account, an impact assessment prepared by the European Commission has found. READ MORE
June 29, 2011 Read Full Article
European Advanced Biofuels Flight Path Initiative
(European Commission) The European Commission's services, in close coordination with Airbus, leading European airlines (Lufthansa, Air France/KLM, & British Airways) and key European biofuel producers (Choren Industries, Neste Oil, Biomass Technology Group and UOP), have launched an exciting new industry
June 27, 2011 Read Full Article
Honeywell: The Lindbergh of Aviation Biofuels
by Mark Halper (SmartPlanet) Jet biofuels should get a boost this Friday, when Honeywell has scheduled a trans-Atlantic flight heading to Paris from Morristown, N.J., powered by Honeywell-branded Green Jet Fuel. The corporate jet, a Gulfstream 6450, will carry executives from
June 15, 2011 Read Full Article
National Farmers Union Rejects Biofuel Criticism
(National Farmers Union) Biofuels can help to create a strong and sustainable agricultural sector in Europe, NFU policy director Martin Haworth stressed this week. Speaking at an international food security conference in Brussels this week Mr Haworth criticised campaign groups for painting
June 02, 2011 Read Full Article
Mina-Made Ethanol Heading to Brazil
by Jeff Natalie-Lees (Aberdeen News) Export options help facility weather weaker domestic demand Ethanol produced in Mina is helping Brazil avoid a fuel crisis after a weak sugar cane crop cut that country's ethanol production. When the sugar cane crop — the
May 31, 2011 Read Full Article
EU Rules on Biofuel Concern Soybean Growers
by Philip Brasher (Des Moines Register) The European Union has set new environmental and labor standards for the crops used to make biofuels there, angering U.S. farmers who worry that such restrictions could spread to other products and countries. The standards
May 31, 2011 Read Full Article
European Commission Sued for Lack of Transparency on Biofuels Policy
(Client Earth) The European Commission has been sued, accused of violating European transparency laws. Environmental law organisation ClientEarth, Friends of the Earth Europe (FOEE), FERN and Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO) filed the lawsuit following the Commission’s refusal to provide access
May 27, 2011 Read Full Article
Opportunities for Australia as Europe Seeks More Biofuel
(ABC Rural) The European Union wants more of its transport fuel to be made from renewable biomass like canola oil. ...EU member states can't supply enough canola or soy oil to meet the demand, so there's an opportunity to increase
May 26, 2011 Read Full Article
European Commission Funds Global Project to Produce Ethanol, Biodiesel and Bioproducts from Algae
(PR-Inside) Nine partners from seven countries have joined in an innovative project to show that ethanol, biodiesel and bioproducts can be produced from algae on a large scale. The BIOfuel From Algae Technologies (BIOFAT) project, largely funded by the European Commission’s Seventh Framework
May 24, 2011 Read Full Article
Europe May Introduce Land Use Sustainabilty Criteria
by Joelle Brink (Biofuels Digest Asia) This was one of the best weeks yet in the Asian biofuels industry. China decided to promote 2G biofuels production and reduce its CO2 emissions by up to 45 percent by 2020. India moved to
May 05, 2011 Read Full Article
Maple Plant to Produce Ethanol in Fourth Quarter in Peru as Costs Rise
(Bloomberg) Maple Energy Plc, a Lima-based oil and natural-gas producer, expects costs at an ethanol project under construction in northwest Peru to be higher than an earlier forecast. ...Most of the initial shipments will be to the Netherlands, Maple said today.
May 05, 2011 Read Full Article
Europe's Biofuel Dispute Splits the Industry
by Pete Harrison (Reuters) A divisive European debate over the green credentials of biofuels has stalled investment and threatens the future of some producers, but could also create lucrative opportunities, companies said on Tuesday. After a two-year investigation, the European Commission
May 04, 2011 Read Full Article
European Roadmap to Cut Transport Carbon Emissions by 60% by 2050 marks out a less ambitious route for Aviation
(GreenAirOnline) The landmark White Paper on EU transport policy through to 2050, presented recently by the European Commission, unveiled a roadmap for reducing carbon emissions by 60 per cent across all transport sectors relative to 1990. However, it now appears
May 02, 2011 Read Full Article
Germany’s E10 Introduction—A Drama Not to Be Repeated
by Robert Vierhout (Ethanol Producer Magazine/ePURE) ...In early 2009, France was the first to introduce E10 fuel, once it was allowed in the EU. All BP filling stations offered the new fuel almost overnight. There were no problems reported
April 27, 2011 Read Full Article
EU Proposes 'Greener' Energy Tax
by Andrew Willis (EUObserver.com) EU taxes on motor and heating fuels will focus on carbon emissions and energy content in the future, under draft rules published by the European Commission. The proposed overhaul of the bloc's energy taxation directive is designed
April 15, 2011 Read Full Article
Vision 2050: a European Future Where Society Has Recognised Travel by Air is Environmentally Friendly
(GreenAirOnline) The public in the year 2050 is informed, understands and is convinced that the aviation sector has made the utmost progress in mitigating its environmental impacts and therefore considers air travel is environmentally sustainable. So says a new
April 12, 2011 Read Full Article
The Class of 2011
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Will these biofuels projects make the expected steps towards commercialization? There was a strong response to yesterday’s Top Story about technologies that were approaching make-or-break milestones in 2012. But what about 2011, asked some? What
April 08, 2011 Read Full Article
EU's Airline Emission Goals under Scrutiny
(Euractiv.com) When the European Commission unveiled plans to slash transport CO2 emissions by 60% by 2050 last week, many assumed the figure would apply to road, rail and air travel in the same way. But EurActiv has learned that
April 05, 2011 Read Full Article
Focus on Cost and Sustainability Issues as Aviation and Biofuel Sectors Meet Face to Face in Rotterdam
(GreenAirOnline) Sustainability and economics dominated debate at last week’s World Biofuels Market (WBM) event in Rotterdam as airlines gathered to make the case for aviation biofuels commercialisation to a wider biofuels industry audience. In a keynote speech, KLM Managing Director
March 28, 2011 Read Full Article
EU Not Supporting NGOs Against Palm Oil
by Rupa Damodaran (Business Times) The European Union is not using environmental non-government organisations as a "fifth column" to help it achieve its Renewable Energy Directive (RED) which places palm oil for biofuel at a disadvantage, says Trade Commissioner Karel
March 25, 2011 Read Full Article
Update from the International Sustainability & Carbon Certification Association
(Task 39) Around 140 guests followed the invitation of ISCC to the first General Assembly and discussed the status quo and development of sustainability certification with speakers like Ron van Erck from the European Commission and Dr. Hans-Jürgen Froese
March 25, 2011 Read Full Article
US Oilseed Growers Protest EU Biofuel Requirement
by John Davis (DomesticFuel.com) Oilseed growers, led by the American Soybean Association (ASA), have raised concerns with U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack and U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Ron Kirk over the European Union’s (EU) Renewable Energy
March 17, 2011 Read Full Article
Diester Sees No Respite for EU Biodiesel Industry
by Sybille de La Hamaide (Reuters) Overcapacity, squeezed margins and massive imports should continue to hurt Europe's biodiesel industry this year and lead to further consolidation, the chief executive of EU giant Diester Industrie said on Monday. Several biodiesel firms in
March 17, 2011 Read Full Article
Mission NewEnergy Limited Announces Asia’s First Fully Integrated Sustainability & Carbon Certified Palm Biodiesel Supply Chain
(Daily Markets/PRNewswire) Multi-Media Enterprises is reporting that Mission NewEnergy Limited has announced the establishment of Asia’s first fully integrated Sustainability & Carbon Certified palm biodiesel supply chain. The announcement was made in Australia in the following news release: Mission NewEnergy Limited
March 15, 2011 Read Full Article
European Biofuels Technology Platform Adds Reports to Library
(European Biofuels Technology Platform) The mission of the European Biofuels Technology Platform (EBTP) is to contribute to the development of cost-competitive, world-class biofuels technologies, to the creation of a healthy biofuels industry and to accelerate the deployment of sustainable biofuels
March 04, 2011 Read Full Article
Report Criticises the UK over Its Refusal to Earmark EU ETS Carbon Revenues for Financing Green Projects
(GreenAirOnline) According to a report by carbon offsetting company Carbon Retirement, the United Kingdom has earned more than one billion euros ($1.35bn) from the auction of EU Allowances since its first auction in Phase II of the EU Emissions Trading
February 25, 2011 Read Full Article
Alternative Fuels Could Replace Fossil Fuels in Europe by 2050
(EMM NewsBrief) Alternative fuels have the potential to gradually replace fossil energy sources and make transport sustainable by 2050, according to a report presented to the European Commission today by the stakeholder expert group on future transport fuels. The EU
February 01, 2011 Read Full Article
European Commission Approves State Support for Development of Second Generation Biofuel
(Chemrec) The European Union has approved the SEK 500 million (€55 million, $75 million) R&D grant awarded by the Swedish Energy Agency towards the industrial scale demonstration biofuels plant based on Chemrec’s gasification technology at the Domsjö Fabriker biorefinery in
January 28, 2011 Read Full Article
Spinning ILUC Policy the European Way
by Robert Vierhout (ePURE/Ethanol Producer Magazine) It took the European Commission several stakeholder meetings, two public consultations and many more economic modelling studies to conclude that the indirect land use change (ILUC) effects of biofuel demand are not that obvious.
January 18, 2011 Read Full Article
The Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development of the European Commission Has Published “Prospects for Agricultural Markets and Income 2010-2020”.
(IEA Bioenergy Task 39) The outlook consists of a set of market and sector income prospects elaborated on the basis of specific assumptions regarding macroeconomic conditions, the agricultural and trade policy environment, weather conditions and international market developments. The medium term
January 18, 2011 Read Full Article
EU Wants Answers over German Animal Feed Dioxin Scandal
by Gregg Benzow (Deutsche Welle) ...The poisonous chemical dioxin was discovered in eggs and poultry last week and is believed to have stemmed from animal feed contaminated with industrial fats. ...The German feed manufacturer Harles & Jentzsch in Schleswig-Holstein said on Tuesday
January 07, 2011 Read Full Article
'Beauty' Project Developing Better Biofuel Engine
(Europa.eu) An EU-funded collaboration between universities and industry is overcoming limitations in current technologies to develop new bioethanol engines. Driven by the need for more sustainable and less polluting sources of energy, the European Union is now more determined than ever to
December 27, 2010 Read Full Article
Biofuels: Europe Adopts Report on Indirect Land Use Change
by S.C. (TeatroNaturale International) The Commission published today (December 22, 2010) a report on indirect land use change related to biofuels and bioliquids. The report acknowledges that indirect land use change can reduce greenhouse gas emissions savings associated with biofuels,
December 23, 2010 Read Full Article
BIOLYFE Newsletter Announces Preliminary Research Results of EU Second Generation Ethanol Production Project
(BIOLYFE) The BIOLYFE project aims at improving critical steps of the second generation bioethanol production process and at demonstrating the whole supply chain, from feedstock sourcing via fuel production to product utilisation. The main result will be the construction of an
December 21, 2010 Read Full Article
Palm Oil May Gain More Users from EU Biofuel Rules-Neste Oil
by Niki Koswanage (Reuters) Palm oil has production audit in place unlike other vegoils; Green palm oil production capacity growing. European Union rules requiring vegetable-oil based biofuels to come from eco-friendly sources may boost palm oil use in the sector as
December 08, 2010 Read Full Article
Uniting Producers
By Robert Vierhout (Ethanol Producer Magazine) The eBIO brand is no longer. For five years it served the European fuel alcohol industry well. In those years, the industry has changed. Few players became many players and small players became big
November 22, 2010 Read Full Article
GreenGold Ray Energies to Benefit From Europe's Bio-Diesel Inceased Demand
(Marketwire) GreenGold Ray Energies announced today that due to the increase target by the European Union of 10% of fuel sold at the pump be bio-diesel by 2020, the company will expedite its land acquisition. According to GreenGold Ray Energies, the current
November 12, 2010 Read Full Article
Free Trade in Asian Palm Biofuels takes Baby Steps Forward, but Maybe It Shouldn’t Have
by Joelle Dent (Biofuels Digest Asia) ...On the one hand, the EU position to allow import of uncertified Malaysian palm biodiesel, but withhold EU subsidies, is not clear or comprehensive enough. On the Asian side, it involves only Malaysia, one
October 28, 2010 Read Full Article
Malaysian Palm Oil Products Not Affected by EU RED
(The Star) The European Union Renewable Energy Directive (EU RED) and its sustainability criteria will not affect Malaysia’s palm oil exports to the EU market for consumer products like food, cosmetics and detergents, according to ambassador and head of the EU
October 28, 2010 Read Full Article
Hunting Microorganisms for Lignocellulosic Biofuel
(Renewable Energy Focus) A consortium of research institutes, universities and industrial partners are looking for microorganisms with enzymes that could help process lignocellulosic biomass into biofuel. The EU-funded project, known as DISCO, is searching for microorganisms that can degrade lignocellulosic material. If successful,
October 13, 2010 Read Full Article
Journal of Peasant Studies Publishes Perspectives on New Agrarian Relations Related to Biofuels
(Journal of Peasant Studies) In this collection we ask a number of questions emerging out of the new agrarian political economy created by the ‘biofuel complex’. Together the papers offer perspectives from political economy, political sociology and political ecology, and
September 28, 2010 Read Full Article
Palm Oil’s Promotion as Diesel Alternative Draws Fire
by Beth Gardiner (New York Times) Ubiquitous in products from cookies to cosmetics, and increasingly in European fuel tanks, too, palm oil is driving the destruction of some of Southeast Asia’s last tracts of untouched rainforest and leading to huge
June 04, 2010 Read Full Article
Bio-Waste Targets “Could Save Europe £6 billion”
(LetsRecycle.com) Introducing ambitious Europe-wide targets for the separate collection of both food and garden waste could offer environmental and cost benefits worth more than €7billion (£6 billion) between 2013 and 2020, according to a report published as part of the
May 04, 2010 Read Full Article
Biofuels and Global Trade Study Goes Online
"Global trade and environmental impact of the EU biofuels mandate" is the title of a study finalised by the International Food Policy Research Institute this 25 March 2010. The report is one of four studies commissioned by the European Commission
April 06, 2010 Read Full Article
“Fuel Is Strategic” says Aviation Expert at ITB; Biofuels Are Key to “Thinking out of the Box”
Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In Germany, Dr. Jurgen Ringbeck, Senior Partner of Booz & Co said “Fuel is strategic, and there is an argument that can be made that an energy monopoly will be dominating the aviation industry.” Dr. Ringbeck
March 18, 2010 Read Full Article
Claims in ActionAid Publication against Biofuels Largely Questionable
(European Bioethanol Fuel Association) “Meals per Gallons”, a publication against biofuels recently produced by ActionAid, is based largely on unfounded claims, disputed data and one-sided arguments says eBio, the European Bioehtanol Industry Association. “In particular, the report paints biofuels as the villain
March 01, 2010 Read Full Article
Putting In a Good Word for Algae
by James Kanter (New York Times) A European lobbying group weighed in Tuesday on a fierce debate over the environmental value of using algae to produce biofuels for vehicles. The group, the European Algae Biomass Association, said members of its scientific
February 25, 2010 Read Full Article
Questions About Biofuels’ Environmental Costs Could Alter Europe’s Policies
by James Kanter(New York Times)...In a memorandum, Jean-Luc Demarty, the top civil servant in the agriculture department at the European Commission, wrote to a colleague in December that “an unguided use of I.L.U.C. would kill biofuels in the E.U.” His words
February 16, 2010 Read Full Article
EU: Rainforests Can Be Converted to Palm Oil Plantations for Biofuel Production
by Rhett A. Butler (Mongabay.com) The European Union may be planning to classify oil palm plantations as forests, raising fears among environmental groups of expanded conversion of tropical rainforests for biofuel production, reports the EUobserver, which cites a leaked document
February 10, 2010 Read Full Article
Argentine-European Biofuels Trade: Proposals for the Transparent Development of an Industry
by Carlos St. James (Argentine Renewable Energies Chamber) …Argentina, along with the rest of Latin America, is poised to begin capturing more and more of the growing pie that is global renewable energies investment. …Clearly, the world is coming to the
January 19, 2010 Read Full Article
EU Green Protectionism = Economic Madness
by Carpe Diem (benzinga.com) Some excerpts from the new study "Green Protectionism in the European Union: How Europe’s Biofuels Policy and the Renewable Energy Directive Violate WTO Commitments" from the European Center for International Political Economy: Biofuels production in Europe is
December 29, 2009 Read Full Article
Green Protectionism in the European Union: How Europe’s Biofuels Policy and the Renewable Energy Directive Violate WTO Commitments
by Fredrik Erixon (European Center for International Political Economy) This paper examines the trade-policy consequences of current approaches in the European Union towards biofuels. The EU uses a broad range of measures to subsidise the production of biofuels in Europe
December 07, 2009 Read Full Article
Biofuels Meet EU CO2 target but Gains Vary
by Gus Trompiz and Valerie Parent (Reuters) The current generation of biofuels meets a European target for cutting carbon dioxide emissions but its performance varies widely depending on the crop and production process used, an official French study has shown. Biofuels
October 12, 2009 Read Full Article
European States Split Over EU-Wide Carbon Tax Plan
(Reuters) European Union countries are split over plans to introduce an EU-wide carbon tax on fuel, which could be proposed early next year. The idea, which EU officials say has gained fresh momentum after losing impetus earlier this year, is