Indonesia calls on EU to open market to Indonesian palm oil biofuels

In Ukraine, UkrAgro Consult reported that Indonesia called on the European Union to immediately lift countervailing duties on biofuel imports after the World Trade Organization upheld several of Jakarta’s key demands in a complaint to the trade body.

Indonesian Palm Oil Association (GAPKI) Chairman Eddy Martono issued a statement saying the association fully welcomed the clear WTO decision and called the EU’s measures to restrict Indonesian biofuel imports wrong and unjustified, according to the report.

“The decision confirms a worrying trend: for more than a decade, the EU has been systematically and illegally blocking sustainable palm oil and its products from Indonesian plantations from entering the European market,” Martono said.

Since 2019, the EU has imposed duties of 8% to 18% on Indonesian products, stating that biodiesel producers in this Southeast Asian country receive grants, tax breaks and access to raw materials at below-market prices.

“We insist that Indonesia’s 2.7 million smallholder oil palm farmers be fully included in the new regulation, whether through certification programs or direct exemptions from discriminatory duties,” said Eddy Martono.

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