In Indonesia, the Jakarta Post reports that the government is pulling out all the stops in trying to boost demand for palm oil biodiesel, now exploring the conversion of state-owned power provider PLN’s diesel-based facilities to biodiesel. It is also looking at the possibility of allowing privately-owned power providers who are using biodiesel rather than […]
In Washington, Bloomberg reports that the on-going government shutdown is likely to have negative impacts on the Environmental Protection Agency’s capacity to implement year-round E15 before its current deadline of May that would have allowed the fuel to be sold during the summer driving season. US demand for gasoline goes up significantly during the summer […]
In California, Mike Newman of Parhelion Underwriting said that under the Renewable Fuel Standard, the EPA imposed a “buyer beware” approach to the purchase and sale of RINs. This creates a liability for any buyer of RINs, making them responsible for purchases of invalid RINS, even if it’s done inadvertently. The liability includes the replacement […]
In Washington, Platts expects that how the Environmental Protection Agency decides to handle hardship waivers in 2019 will be the biggest challenge for the future of the RIN market and the Renewable Fuel Standard overall. The EPA has yet to reallocate RINs waived during 2018 although industry players say the agency must do so by […]
In Spain, El Mundo reports that the government intends to include a 2% biofuel blending mandate for aviation in its new climate change law that is under development, with the mandate coming into force in 2025. The proposal is a result of work done at ICAO’s Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection where France is also […]
In Malaysia, the government wants its citizens to do its patriotic duty by boosting consumption of palm oil, no matter their economic status and across all types of uses, in an effort to push up palm oil prices. Beyond the higher B10 blending mandate that came into effect in December after several years of going […]
In Malaysia, Reuters reports that the country sees Norway’s ban on palm oil for biodiesel beginning in 2020 as a major roadblock to concluding multilateral trade negotiations between Malaysia and the European Free Trade Area, which includes the European Union plus Switzerland and Norway. The Malaysia-EFTA trade pact last held negotiations in May 2017 but […]
In California, ExxonMobil submitted a formal comment supporting the need for strong methane policy in response to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) plan to roll back existing methane regulations. This action came two weeks after the company received a letter sent on behalf of 61 investors representing $1.9 trillion in assets under management. The […]
In Minnesota, the Star Tribune newspaper reports that the new $25 million program under the recently-signed Farm Bill that encourages farmers to experiment with low-till and no-till farming methods came about as a result of the American Coalition for Ethanol working together with the National Corn Growers Association and the Natural Resources Defense Council working […]
In India, the Principal Scientific Advisor to the Prime Minister’s Science, Technology and Innovation Advisory Council says waste-to-energy is a key priority for the PM as a way to reduce energy poverty and increase environmental sustainability through value-based waste management. The country is beginning to collaborate with countries like Japan whose best practices can help […]
