France increases biofuel mandates

French deputies’ vote for the country’s 2019 finance bill has led to France increasing its biofuel mandates. This means that the minimum amount of biofuels that is incorporated into motor vehicle fuel is to be increased.

The minimum amount of biofuels that is to be blended will rise from 2018’s 7.5% to 7.9% in 2019 and to 8.2% in 2020. The new biofuel mandates came into effect on the 1^st of January 2019 and is set to all biofuel players to continue reducing greenhouse gas emissions from transportation.

In December 2018, the French National Assembly passed the 2019 finance bill that requires the increase of biofuels to be used in road transport. The bill also includes incentives to encourage distributors to efficiently incorporate the legal minimum amount of biofuels.

French lawmakers are also giving priority to local feedstock that can be used to manufacture biofuels.

Global Bioenergies has announced that it is welcoming the country’s biofuel changes. The bioenergy company is hoping that the changes to the mandates encourage more developments within biofuels. As other European counties are also adopting the same approach, Global Bioenergies hope that this will continue to push France forward.

Head of industrial strategy at Global Bioenergies, Bernard Chaud said, “This ambitious, sustainable progression will enable a continual increase in the consumption of biofuels in France. Over the course of this ramp-up, when time comes, distributors will incorporate increasing volumes of high-performance biofuels bendable at high proportion into gasoline, such as those produced by Global Energies.”

“France has chosen the incorporation of sustainable biofuels as one of the main ways to accomplish its energy and environmental transition. Our technology for producing renewable and sustainable hydrocarbons for the road and air transport sectors will be needed to continue this transition at the sustained pace environed in Europe.” Said Marc Delcourt, CEO of Global Bioenergies.