Czech Rep's biodiesel plans hit by methyl ester subsidy row

30 June 2005 16:00  [Source: ICIS news]

PRAGUE (CNI)--Biodiesel plans in the Czech Republic have been derailed by a dispute over the public subsidy level being offered for the production of rape-oil methyl ester (ROME).

 

Government environmental planners had expected that biodiesel would be available at some Czech filling stations as soon as July.

 

However, Setuza, the key Czech market supplier of ROME – ROME is mixed into diesel to create biodiesel – is to export supplies that could have been earmarked for domestic use to Germany.

 

It has protested that the offered ROME government subsidy of around Koruna7,000/tonne should be raised to Koruna9,500/tonne.

 

“If we take the current subsidy level, we can say it is more lucrative to export the ROME to Germany,” a Setuza spokesperson told CNI.

 

Last week the chemicals and foodstuffs producer announced it is to invest almost Koruna1bn ($40.8m/Euro35.4m) into trebling its production of ROME to 160,000 tonne/year from the current 50,000 tonne/year.

 

Environmental lobbyists said the government risks a European Union (EU) fine if 2% of fuels are not biofuels by the end of this year. The 2010 target is 5.75%.

By: Will Conroy
+44 20 8652 3214

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