As UK caps crop-based biofuel use, NGOs lobby for EU ban

Last month’s announcement to amend the Road Transport Fuel Obligation to cap the use of crop-based biofuels came as little surprise to anyone. Concerns over indirect land use change have been debated in Brussels for the past 10 years and London for the past five.

So when the UK government introduced a crop-based cap at 4% in 2018, falling to 2% in 2032, there was only a murmur of disappointment that a more generous cap of 7% wasn't passed. The government in its response said the decision was no only about land-use, but also that it didn't believe crop supply wont get above a 3.34% UK market share, even with a maximum roll out of E10 in vehicles.

But while the UK biofuels market chews on the long awaited amendments, there could be a bigger threat on the horizon for UK producers of crop-based biofuels – potentially a total EU ban.

The EU Parliament has started the process towards debating changes to the EU Directive on Renewable Energies (RED II) that seeks to set a maximum share of first generation biofuels at 3.8% by 2030, down from the current 7%.

The lead parliamentary committee will vote next month with a full plenary vote in January expected.

And while oilseed farmers and the biofuels industry in general are urging MEPs to reject the new cap, environmental groups are lobbying hard for a ban.T&E, a Brussels-based lobby group, in a report published last week said that around a third of all biodiesel use across the EU comes from palm oil, which emits more carbon dioxide than fossil fuels due to land use change.

“Palm has the highest overall GHG emissions – over three times the fossil emissions.” the T&E study stated. It is the second study the group has published in the last month as it attempts to persuade lawmakers to ban first generation biofuels altogether; an earlier study had claimed their use had boosted food prices globally.