Friday Edition

10.26.09

North America

OBAMA URGES AMERICANS TO LEAD GLOBAL CLEAN ENERGY
President Obama, Friday, urged Americans to win the race and lead the world towards clean energy innovation and implementation, saying, "The nation that wins this competition will be the nation that leads the global economy. I’m convinced of that. I want America to be that nation.”

In a speech held at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, MA, Obama stressed the need for sustainable biofuels, wind energy, and solar power among energy efficiency and conservation. The President also praised the school, as well as MA Governor Deval Patrick and Sen. John Kerry for their support of green energy.

After Obama’s 20-minute speech, he made his way to a fund-raiser for Deval Patrick, of which the Governor hoped would give a jump to his reelection campaign.

HOUSE BILL PROPOSED TO EXTEND BIOFUEL TAX CREDITS
A House bill introduced this week by Rep. Deborah Halvorson would extend a handful of renewable energy and biofuel-related tax incentives including the 45 cts/gal ethanol tax credit by one year, and the $1/gal biodiesel and renewable diesel tax credit by two years, OPIS reports.

EPA DIESEL EMISSION REDUCTION PROGRAM SHOWS PROGRESS
EPA reported to Congress last week that its $50-million Diesel Emission Reduction Program resulted in reducing 46k mt of NOx and 2.2k mt of particulate matter over a vehicle's lifetime. The program allowed the EPA to purchase or retrofit 14k diesel-powered vehicles, Biodiesel Magazine reports. Read more


South America

BRAZIL MOVES UP 5% BIODIESEL MANDATE
Brazil has moved up its 5% biodiesel mandate to 2010 from 2013. The measure is expected to boost output by 2.4-million mt in 2010.

ARGENTINA LIKELY TO PLANT RECORD SOY CROP
Argentine farmers will plant a record 19-million ha with soybeans this season, up 7% from the previous record, according to local reports. The bump up in planted area is due mainly to decreased corn, sunflower seed and wheat planting this season. However, farmers are having trouble securing enough quality soy seed because of the drought that battered last year's crop, CME reports.

Europe

EU BIODIESEL IMPORTS FORECAST AT NEARLY 2 MLN MT
Biodiesel exports from the main exporting countries including US, Argentina, and Malaysia to the EU reached 156k mt/month in average over the first eight months of 2009. If this figure remains true until the end of the year, EU imports from these three countries would be around 1.9-million mt, Mer-7 reports. Biodiesel imports in 2008 accounted for about 2.3-million mt, about one third of EU’s consumption.

UK PROPOSES TO SEPARATE ETHANOL AND BIODIESEL IN FUEL POLICY
This week the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership said the EU should consider separating ethanol and biodiesel policy due to the fuels' differing sustainability and land use issues, explaining that the EU and UK should discuss whether separate mandates for ethanol and biodiesel were preferable to the current 10% biofuels target for transport fuels by 2020, CME reports.

POLAND PUSHING CERTIFICATES OF ORIGIN FOR BIODIESEL
Polish biofuels producers are trying to use the Renewable Energy Directive as an opportunity to promote domestic production and curb imports from outside the EU by introducing certificates of origin for biofuels. If adopted, national oil companies will be obligated to buy from producers who own the certificates. According to the National Biofuels Chamber, 59% of biofuels used in Poland come from abroad.

Asia / Pacific

CHINA CLEAN ENERGY COMMENCES CONSTRUCTION OF NEW BIODIESEL PLANT
China Clean Energy has announced the completion of construction of its 100k ton/yr Jiangyin biodiesel plant. The commissioning process is now underway and a test-production run is expected to occur next month, according to a company statement.

MALAYSIA DROPS BIODIESEL SALES TAX
The Malaysian government has announced it will drop the 10% biodiesel sales tax in hopes of spurring domestic demand. The move comes as pressure increases on the government to act after the government vehicle biodiesel program failed to take off as expected..


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