South Africa to impose 2 percent biofuels mandate for 2013; corn excluded; draft plan had called for 4.5 percent target

In South Africa, the national government unveiled its biofuels policy, which will set a target of 2 percent of fuel supply come from biofuels by 2013. The policy excludes corn as a feedstock, restricting the 2 percent target to biodiesel made from soybeans, canola or sunflower oils, or ethanol from sugar cane or sugar beet.

The policy also will implement a 50 percent fuel tax exemption for biodiesel and a 100 percent exemption for ethanol. The final plan backed away from a 4.5 percent biofuels target that was the centerpiece of a draft plan circulated in the summer.

South Africa has also been active on climate change. The IBSA (India, Brazil, South Africa) group met last month with Bali on the agenda, while a recent two-day conference of the 17 “Heavy Smoker” major polluting nations ended with disappointment over President George Bush’s call for voluntary emission targets set by each individual country. The British climate envoy called the US “isolated” and the South African Environment Minister said “the US needs to go back to the drawing board”.

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