Spanish biodiesel producers against importing the biofuel from the US
Yesterday, the Spanish Renewable Energies Producers Association (APPA) protested against biodiesel imports from the US into Spain. They claim this imported fuel is subsidized by the US government combined with Spain's policy of not taxing biofuels, locally produced biodiesel cannot compete against the American one.
With both the subsidy and the tax exemption, US biodiesel is 0,20 EUR/l cheaper than the Spanish one. Since Spain has definitely approved a mandatory 5.75 percent of biodiesel (B94.25 B5.75?) blended into regular diesel, and 70 percent of new cars don't run with gasoline, local producers were having good economical expectations.
The APPA has appealed both the Spanish and the EU commission for this "discriminatory" measure and are asking for protective measures such as import tariffs (which, in turn, becomes discriminatory against US fuel).
Well, this seems the start of yet another of the agricultural/food wars that both the US and the EU seem to have now and again, it raises a question: What's the balance of a "more ecological" fuel that has to be carried on tankers across the ocean? It might be profitable from an economic point of view, but chances are that the global balance is not that positive. And don't think that Spanish biofuel is made from Spanish-grown crops - the Spanish government announced agreements with countries such as Brazil to increase raw materials imports.
[Source: Europa Press via Econoticias]
Edited: Fixed biodiesel definition.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Robert 4:37PM (6/20/2007)
And here in Texas a private Spanish company is building our toll roads. Can you hear the sound of one hand washing another?
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Petri 2:45PM (6/20/2007)
By the way Xavier, you need to study more how those numbers actually effect in the real world...
That mandatory 5.75 percent is same as B5.75 it is blended with 94.25 percent regular diesel. There isn't enough biodiesel even produce B20 blend yet all over the Europe so I would say that B94.25 is impossible widely distributed in large scale (country of Spain) right now and in the near future.
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Nils 3:46PM (6/20/2007)
This whole biofuel industry stinks, it definitely needs way more regulation cause now there's only the buzz-word 'bio' that matters... no matter how bad for the environment, as long as it's a cash-maker.
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DANIEL D MARTIN 8:31AM (12/12/2007)
THERE IS MARKET LARGE ENOUGH IN SPAIN FOR BIODIESEL AND ETHANOL FROM SPAIN ,USA AND BRAZIL,STILL CHEAPER AND SAFER THAN IMPORTING OIL FROM MIDDLE EAST OR VENEZUELA OR NIGERIA
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DANIEL D MARTIN 11:21AM (12/09/2007)
WELL IN THE NEAR FUTURE EVEN B100 AND E85 WILL BE POSIBLE SINCE PRODUCTION OF PALM OIL,JATROPHA,CASTOR BEAN,SOY,COCONUT OIL,ETC IS TAKING OFF IN BRAZIL,INDIA,COLOMBIA,PERU,ECUADOR ,ARGENTINA,SOUTH AFRICA,THAILAND ,MALAISIA,INDONESIA,CHINA,VIETNAM,AUSTRALIA,CENTRAL AMERICA,AFRICA AND EVEN EGIPT AND PAKISTAN,SAME FOR SUGAR CANE REVIVAL TO PRODUCE ETHANOL ,AND ALSO SWEET POTATOES,CORN,SWEET SORGHUM AND CASSAVA
BIG FUTURE FOR BIOFUEL MARKET,SPECIALLY SINCE OIL KEEPS SHOOTING CLOSE TO $100 /BARRIL
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