Renewable ethanol drives EU decarbonisation. Why turn back now?
With its new revised Renewable Energy Directive (RED II) the European Commission wants to phase out conventional biofuel use in Europe – a proposal that threatens to remove one of the EU’s best options for reducing greenhouse gases and decarbonising transport.
The measure would reduce the maximum contribution of conventional biofuels, such as ethanol made from corn, wheat and sugar beet grown in Europe, from a maximum of 7% of road transport energy in 2021 to 3.8% in 2030.
Road transport is currently 95% reliant on oil and accounts for 20% of EU greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. But rather than ensuring the growth of realistic renewable and low-carbon energy sources in transport by 2030, the Commission’s proposal is counterproductive to the EU’s climate and energy goals, discourages investment in new technology and ignores the Commission’s own science.
