The federal government of Germany has decided to increase the share of renewable energies in the transport sector to 28% by 2030. This means that Germany is well above the EU target of 14%. In addition to stronger incentives for green hydrogen, new charging stations and advanced biofuels that are obtained from residues instead of food, the change in the law also provides... [Read More]

Oil giant Shell suffered a loss of $21.7 billion (£17.5 billion) last year after the COVID-19 pandemic hit prices and demand. The trend follows that of BP and Exxon, which posted similar huge losses in the past 12 months. “2020 was an extraordinary year. We have taken tough, but decisive actions and demonstrated highly resilient operational delivery while caring for... [Read More]

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved three small refinery exemptions (SRE) in a last-minute move by the Trump Administration. This reverses one denial from 2018 and the granting of two for the 2019 compliance year. Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor called on the incoming Biden Administration to reverse harm done to rural America through what she described as... [Read More]

The draft act transposing the Renewable Energy Directive (RED II) was presented by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment at the end of last year. It was appraised and criticised at a press conference hosted by the organisers of the 18th International Conference on Renewable Mobility - Fuels of the Future 2021. The press conference was held in the run-up... [Read More]

A coalition of senators sent a letter to President-elect Joe Biden requesting stronger support for farmers and the biofuels industry and to restore the integrity of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). The senators, led by Senator Tammy Duckworth, called on the Biden Administration to direct the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reject pending Small Refinery Exemptions... [Read More]

The Prince of Wales has launched the Terra Carta – the Earth Charter – that aims to provide a roadmap to 2030 for businesses to move towards a sustainable future. The charter will serve as the guiding mandate for the Prince’s Sustainable Markets Initiative and seeks to put sustainability at the heart of the private sector. In section 2, Redesigning Net Zero &... [Read More]

HSBC is under pressure to cut its exposure to fossil fuels after a group of investors filed a climate resolution ahead of the bank’s annual meeting in April. In October, the lender announced that it would become a “net zero” carbon emissions bank by 2050. But a group of influential investors, including some of Europe’s biggest institutions, are calling on HSBC... [Read More]

The Renewable Fuels Association’s industry safety programme has celebrated its 10 anniversary. Over the past decade, RFA’s safety training has reached thousands of ethanol plant workers and others in protecting the industry’s employees. “While our award-winning safety training programme often flies below the public radar, it is crucially important to ethanol... [Read More]

US President-elect Joe Biden’s transition team has held calls with biofuel groups on topics including compliance with biofuel blending laws and Biden’s low-carbon climate vision. The discussions with biofuel trade groups as well as POET, a top company in the cellulosic bioethanol industry, come as the industry positions itself as part of Biden’s fight against climate... [Read More]

Four US organisations have hit back after Brazil imposed tariffs on ethanol imports into the country. All US ethanol imports into the South American state now face a 20% tariff following the expiry of a deadline set for December 14. This relates to a Brazilian quota allowing for tariff-free imports of 187,500 cu m of the US product. The U.S. Grains Council, Growth Energy,... [Read More]

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is now aiming for December 31 as the point by which it will propose rules on the amount of biofuels refiners must blend into their fuel mix next year. This was after missing a deadline last month to release the proposal. Under the adjusted timeline, the agency will aim to finalise the rule on the so-called Renewable Volume... [Read More]

The Supreme Court has effectively given the green light for Heathrow’s third runway plans. The scheme was previously blocked by the Appeal Court over climate targets, but the highest court in the UK land has ruled the strategy was legitimately based on climate targets at the time it was agreed. Planning permission will now be sought for the runway before construction... [Read More]

The UK Prime Minister has revealed that the country will end direct government support for the fossil fuel energy sector overseas. The policy, announced at the Climate Ambition Summit by Boris Johnson, will see the UK end export finance, aid funding, and trade promotion for new crude oil, natural gas, or thermal coal projects, with ‘very limited’ exceptions. The... [Read More]

The UK government has set out ambitious plans to clean up our energy system as it transitions to net zero by 2050. Building on the Prime Minister’s Ten Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution, the Energy White Paper sets out specific steps the government will take over the next decade to cut emissions from industry, transport and buildings by 230 million metric... [Read More]

The Dutch government is looking to make alterations to its biofuels legislation in order to hit EU RED II targets. Companies that deliver fuels to the transport sector in the Netherlands are obliged to deliver an annually increasing share of renewable energy rising to 16.4% by the end of this year. This could potentially increase gradually to just over 27% by the end... [Read More]

The UK and Ireland Fuel Distributors Association (UKIFDA) has welcomed the Sixth Carbon Budget published by the Committee on Climate Change (CCC). UKIFDA has been lobbying for targets and timelines and was pleased that the CCC has agreed with this. However, the organisation said liquid biofuels were still not included in the list of possible decarbonisation solutions,... [Read More]