Ethanol
Denmark to introduce mandatory blend of sustainable biofuels in 2010
12/03/2009
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| Copenhagen, capital of Denmark (photo: travelblog.org) |
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Brazil is ready to supply Denmark with sustainable biofuels in 2010, when the country´s mandatory blend comes into force. That was one of the key messages from the Chief Representative in Europe for the Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association (UNICA), Emmanuel Deslpechin, during a workshop held on November 24 in Bagsvaerd, Denmark, and organized by Novozymes, a global leader in biotechnology.
In his presentation, Desplechin outlined the contribution of sugarcane ethanol, widely produced in Brazil, to a cleaner energy mix in transport. He also detailed numerous steps taken in recent years by the Brazilian sugarcane industry to ensure compliance with sustainability criteria being developed by the European Union, including the industry´s involvement in the efforts of the London-based Better Sugarcane Initiative (BSI).
In 2010, Denmark and Germany will become the first Member States in the European Union to begin implementing the 2009 Directive on Renewable Energy Sources, which requires that biofuels entering the market prove their compliance with a set of sustainability requirements. These include land use restrictions and minimum levels of reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
Denmark has counts with little own production of biofuels so far, with one unit by Inbicon, the largest cellulosic ethanol facility in Europe, which incidentally will provide the fuel for a number of E85 FlexFuel Vehicles to be used by COP 15 official delegations.
According to Desplechin, the Brazilian sugarcane industry is ready to complement domestic production with highly sustainable ethanol to help EU Member States achieve their renewable energy targets. He praised the collaboration between Brazilian producers and companies such as Novozymes, which is actively pursuing the development of various uses for bagasse, a residue of the sugar and ethanol production process. In collaboration with Brazil´s industry-backed Center for Sugarcane Technology (CTC), Novozymes is working on ways to use bagasse, which is already used to generate bioelectricity, to also produce cellulosic ethanol.
The workshop was designed to raise awareness about the biofuels market and provide insights on major issues, prospects and challenges surrounding the growth of sustainable fuels. Presenters included representatives from Novozymes, the Danish Petroleum Association (EOF) and the Danish Energy Agency.
UNICA’s presence at the event was made possible by the UNICA/Apex-Brasil project, a partnership launched in January of 2008 between the Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association and the Brazilian Export Promotion Agency, within the Federal Development, Industry and International Trade Ministry. The main objective of the partnership is to promote Brazilian sugarcane ethanol throughout the world as a clean, renewable energy source. |
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