Biofuels in Europe, looking at 2030

The authors of the report, which is called "Biofuels in the European Union. A Vision for 2030 and Beyond”, expect this report to contribute to the VII Framework Programme.

Their proposal is "to cover, for 2030, a quarter of Europe's road transportation fuel needs with biofuels, which will have a double advantage by helping meet the CO2 emission reduction goals while guaranteeing fuel supply in the EU.

Besides, this biofule initiative is expected to promote the development of innovative technologies and will bring advantages for all the biomass-related industries, including agriculture and car ones.

Estimates indicate that the EU will need from 4% to 13% of its land to cultivate biofuel crops substituting fossil fuels completely. The authors believe that this "will ease the assimilation of the agriculture industry within the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP)".

Likewise, for each 1% of fossil fuel substituted some 45,000 to 75,000 new jobs are expected to be created. If the report projections are met (25% of biofuels by 2030), this will represent more than half a million new jobs throughout the EU, all of them in rural areas.

Currently, rapeseed is the most common crop in the EU for the production of biodiesel. Its production is concentrated specially in Germany, France and Italy. In Germany, the fuel enjoys a 100% fuel exemption, which has contributed to a spectacular increase in its use and has made possible that more than 1,500 gas stations supplying biofuels exist the country today.

The Biofuels Research Advisory Council (BIOFRAC) was created in early 2005 as a tool from the Research Directorate-General aiming to put together the different research lines and provide a biomass approach to transportation fuels.

New plants in Spain
In Spain, several projects have been announced in the last weeks, namely related to biodiesel production.

Biocarburantes Almadén (a company shared by Grupo Activos, Sepides y Sodicaman) has started the production of this fuel in a new plant located in Almadén (Ciudad Real). The production, from vegetal oil, will initially amount to 24,000 tonnes per year.

Cepsa and Bio Oils Energy are other two societies that are running a joint venture to develop a biodiesel plant. It will be located in Cepsa's Palos de la Frontera (Huelva) based refinery and it will have an annual capacity of 200,000 tonnes. Cepsa is also developing another biodiesel plant in San Roque (Cádiz).

Also, Ebro Puleva will invest 120 million euros in two plants. One of them will be located in Cádiz and will produce 200,000 tonnes of biodiesel per year and the other will be located in Castilla y León and will produce 100 million litres of ethanol per year. Ebro Puleva has created a new company, called DOSBIO 2010 which will deal with all the energy assets of the firm.

One month ago, Repsol YPF and Acciona announced that they had reached a framework agreement for the construction and development of over-one-million-tonnes-per-year biodiesel plants in Spain, using first-use vegetal oil as raw material for the production process

For additional information:
www.managenergy.net
www.grupoactivos.com
www.cepsa.es
www.ebropuleva.es

biocarburantes

Biofuels in Europe, looking at 2030