About: advanced biofuels
Time is running out for biofuels sustainability criteria
The European Commission’s Directorate-General (DG) of Energy will only give two days to other DGs to express their opinion about its much-awaited proposal on the sustainability criteria of biofuels, which will determine the future of palm oil in Europe.
RED2: what is next for palm oil?
The boom of palm oil in the EU biofuels mixture since 2012 took centre stage in the debate about the revised Renewable Energy Directive (RED2).
Biofuels and electromobility are key in Portugal’s transport decarbonisation
Portugal will use both electromobility and biofuels to decarbonise its transport sector by 2050, José Mendes, Portuguese First Secretary of State for Mobility - Environment and Energy Transition, told EURACTIV.com in an interview.
EU’s renewable energy law not meant to support farmers, official admits
The updated renewable energy directive was not meant to support European farmers, but rather promote green energy in whatever form as long as it complies with sustainability criteria, a European Commission official has said.
Palm oil ban on the ropes as Commission weighs options
Under the EU’s new renewable energy rules, the European Commission has to define criteria that are meant to curb the use of the most climate-damaging biofuels. A new study warns that if handled incorrectly, the use of fuels like palm oil will increase instead of being phased out.
Electricity and biofuels needed in tandem to meet climate goals, UN report says
First generation biofuels such as palm oil diesel gave bioenergy a bad name, but recent scientific reports have confirmed that policymakers must take into account all the available options in the transport sector to win the climate change battle.
Why rewarding renewable fuels under the truck CO2 regulation would be a bad idea
It may sound like a good thing to reward advanced fuels. But doing it under the CO2 standards for heavy duty vehicles (HDVs) would not achieve this goal and would only end up weakening EU fuel efficiency standards, says Cristina Mestre.
European market ‘open to palm oil’, EU ambassador in Malaysia says
The EU is open to palm oil and there is no ban on the commodity, the head of the European Union Delegation to Malaysia, ambassador Maria Castillo Fernandez, said on 16 July in an apparent attempt to appease Asian producers.
Palm oil to be phased out in EU by 2030
The use of palm oil as fuel should disappear in Europe by 2030 under a reform of the bloc’s renewable energy laws agreed this morning after all-night negotiations.OpinionPromoted content
RED II Council pressure for double counting renewables must be rejected
Europe’s proposed climate and energy legislation allows for ‘double counting’ of renewable energy used in transport, creating the illusion that the EU is moving towards fulfilling its commitments in transport, and making some in Brussels feel good, when all the while fossil emissions are steadily rising.OpinionPromoted content
Flawed Commission advanced biofuel costings fail taxpayers and consumers
Key European Commission documents refer to substantial cost savings when transitioning from conventional to advanced biofuels. This cost saving claim is actively implied but never explained, nor are solid references provided. It is just presented as a fact in important decision-supporting documents.
Biofuels: ‘Waste and residues’ need clear criteria to avoid system’s misuse
The criteria for "waste and residues" should be so defined clearly in the EU legislation that the system cannot be misused and allowed to endanger sustainability, Robert Spišák told EURACTIV.com in a written interview.
Debate on costs of advanced biofuels heats up
The debate on the technologies available to produce second-generation biofuels, and their related costs, is heating up in Brussels amid disagreement over the European Commission’s estimates.
RED II – Europe’s €25 billion blunder
The Commission’s ‘strategy’ is to phase out conventional biofuels in the hope that they will miraculously be replaced by ‘advanced’ biofuels in Europe’s transport energy mix isn’t backed by science or by logic, writes Dick Roche.
EU set bar ‘too high’ on advanced biofuels
The EU needs a more realistic target for advanced biofuels in transport, green campaigners have warned, saying proper sustainability criteria should be introduced to avoid the “mistakes of the past” when biofuels attracted criticism for causing deforestation and environmental degradation in the developing world.
Can advanced biofuels really work?
As part of the Renewable Energy Directive review (RED II), the Commission proposed a gradual phase-out of food-based biofuels, which should be replaced by “more advanced biofuels” that do not compete with food crops.
Advanced biofuels ‘not yet viable’, industry study warns
Less than 1% of projected capacity for advanced biofuel production worldwide has become reality, according to ethanol industry researchers who warned policymakers against placing too much hope in the fledgling technology.
EU Parliament ends palm oil and caps crop-based biofuels at 2017 levels
The European Parliament decided today (17 January) to phase-out palm oil by 2021 and cap the crop-based biofuels at the 2017 member states’ consumption levels and no more than 7% of all transport fuels until 2030.
EU needs advanced biofuels boost to reach climate goals, transport decarbonisation
The International Energy Agency confirms that sustainable biofuels are needed to secure transport decarbonisation. The European Parliament’s Industry Committee, for its part, confirms the need to set a specific mandate for advanced biofuels, writes Marko Janhunen. Marko Janhunen is the...
Divided on biofuel phase-out, Parliament looks for compromise
The lawmaker in charge of steering the EU’s biofuels reform in the European Parliament is looking for compromise after MEPs last week rejected his proposal to phase out crop-based biofuels entirely by 2030 and ban palm oil in biodiesel almost a decade earlier.
The dismal prospect of advanced biofuels in the EU
Advanced biofuels are proposed as the next fuels to replace oil, but the EU regulatory environment is fuzzy and uncertain to lure investors and some questionable solutions may benefit the most – in addition to oil, writes Zoltán Szabó.
Hungary says bioethanol phase-out will damage its agricultural economy
The European Commission’s proposal to gradually phase-out first generation biofuels by 2030 will have a “major” negative impact on Hungary’s rural development, the ministry of agriculture told EURACTIV.com.OpinionPromoted content
Renewable Energy Directive: Keep molasses for food and feed
The European Parliament ENVI Committee will vote on whether molasses is a feedstock for “advanced” biofuels on 23 October. Since molasses is a food and feed material used for yeast, bread, beer, confectionery and animal feed, it should not be seen as a raw material for “advanced” biofuels, according to several European food and feed associations.