GERMANY: Government scraps compulsory biofuel blending plans
4 April 2008 | Source: just-auto.com editorial team Germany's environment
minister, Sigmar Gabriel, has said the country would scrap its biofuels
blending
strategy because many cars on German roads cannot cope with the fuel.
Germany was aiming for all petrol to contain a blend of 10% ethanol (E10), up
from 5% now, but there has been pressure from motoring organisations saying
that the fuel was more corrosive than ordinary petrol and could wear out engine
parts more quickly.
The automotive industry had been supportive of the E10 strategy, as a way of
helping reduce CO2 emissions. The industry's association, the Verband der
Automobilindustrie (VDA), had said that around 360,000 cars on the road were
unsuitable for the fuel, but Gabriel said on Friday that the figure was more
than
3m.
"Our environmental policy does not want to be responsible for making millions
of drivers of old cars, who often do not earn so much money, drive to
expensive Super Plus petrol pumps," Gabriel told a television channel. The
Super Plus
fuel costs around EUR0.15 more than regular petrol with 5% ethanol.
According to Gabriel, the decision is final and there will be no debate about
retrofitting cars so that they can tolerate the fuel. He said he was
influenced by testimony from import brands that put the number of cars that
would be
damaged by the fuel at more than 3m.
Germany's policy had also been criticised by environmentalists, fearful that
biofuels can sometimes produce more CO2 than regular petrol, depending on
where they come from.
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