On 17 October, the European Commission (EC) published a proposal to limit global land conversion for biofuel production, and increase the climate benefits of biofuels used in the EU. The use of food-based biofuels to meet the 10% renewable energy target of the Renewable Energy Directive1 will be cut from 10% to 5%, confirming leaks reported on 17 October by Automotive World. The EC’s intention is to stimulate the development of second-generation biofuels from non-food feedstocks, e.g. agricultural waste or algae, which emit substantially less greenhouse gases than fossil fuels and do not directly interfere with global food production.
For the first time, the estimated global land conversion impacts – Indirect Land Use Change (ILUC) – will be considered when assessing the greenhouse gas performance of biofuels, but, as Reuters reported on 16 October, via market incentives and obligatory reporting by fuel suppliers, rather than via the imposition of absolute limits.
Commissioner for Climate Action Connie Hedegaard said: “We are of course not closing down first generation biofuels, but we are sending a clear signal that future increases in biofuels must come from advanced biofuels. Everything else will be unsustainable.”
The Commission is proposing to amend the current EU legislation on biofuels through the Renewable Energy and the Fuel Quality Directives and in particular:
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To increase the minimum greenhouse gas saving threshold for new installations to 60% in order to improve the efficiency of biofuel production processes as well as discouraging further investments in installations with low greenhouse gas performance.
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To include ILUC factors in the reporting by fuel suppliers and EU Member States of greenhouse gas savings of biofuels and bioliquids.
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To limit the amount of food crop-based biofuels and bioliquids that can be counted towards the EU’s 10% target for renewable energy in the transport sector by 2020, to the current consumption level, 5% up to 2020, while keeping the overall renewable energy and carbon intensity reduction targets.
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To provide market incentives for biofuels with no or low indirect land use change emissions, and in particular the second and third generation biofuels produced from feedstock that do not create an additional demand for land, including algae, straw, and various types of waste, as they will contribute more towards the 10% renewable energy in transport target of the Renewable Energy Directive.
While the current proposal does not affect Member States’ freedom to provide financial incentives for biofuels, the Commission considers that after 2020 biofuels should only receive financial support if they lead to substantial greenhouse gas savings and are not produced from food or feed crops.
1. The 2009 Renewable Energy Directive requires a 10% share of renewable energy in the transport sector by 2020; the Fuel Quality Directive set a target of a 6% greenhouse gas reduction for fuels used in the transport sector in 2020. The contribution from biofuels to these targets is expected to be significant. To avoid possible negative side-effects, both directives impose sustainability criteria that biofuels and bioliquids need to meet to be counted towards the targets and receive subsidy. The biofuels sustainability criteria in force today prevent the direct conversion of forests and wetlands and areas with a high biodiversity value for biofuel production and require that biofuels must emit a minimum of 35% less greenhouse gases than the fossil fuels they replace. This requirement will increase to 50% in 2017.
