Biodiesel use in Europe
Not only in the USA, but also in Europe, biodiesel is becoming increasingly popular as an alternative to petroleum-based fuels. In Europe, about 50 producers produce about 1.5 million tonnes of biodiesel, with a total capacity of about 2.1 million tonnes. Germany is the largest market in the world, producing about one million tonnes in 2004. France produced 310,000 tonnes of biodiesel in 2003. In the US, biodiesel is mainly produced from soybean oil, but in Europe the main source of biodiesel is rapeseed oil. Palm oil is also used as a source in other tropical countries.Following the lead of Germany and France, the Scandinavian countries are also moving quickly to implement the EU's biofuel directives. Sweden has already decided to completely abolish the energy and CO tax on biodiesel. Swedish rapeseed producer Svensk Raps estimates that in the medium term biodiesel will account for two to three per cent of the market, which, with diesel demand at 3.5 million tonnes, will require production of 70,000 to 100,000 tonnes. Denmark has not yet changed its national legislation to allow biodiesel blending in the country. Consequently, its production is still marketed in Germany. Lithuania, a new EU member, has 80,000 hectares of rapeseed production. About 40,000 tonnes of rapeseed oil are produced, a tenth of which is processed into biodiesel.
European legislation for biodiesel
The European Parliament has approved a directive that will come into force in 2005. This Directive requires Member States to ensure that a minimum proportion of biodiesel and other renewable fuels is placed on the European market. . By the end of 2005, around 2 per cent of fuel should come from renewable sources, rising to 5.75 per cent by 2010.[Source: Degussa]