Aberson: biofuels used as scapegoat

EU not providing enough

Mr. Aberson, founder and director of the Dutch company Solar Oil Systems (SOS), which we reported on last month, feels that biofuels have been used as a scapegoat and that EU governments are not providing enough funding for research and development in the industry.

"The European Biofuel Directive of 2003 set a target for 2003 that 2 per cent of fuels should be replaced with biofuels, with this figure rising by 0.75 per cent every year to 5.75 per cent in 2010. However, despite agreeing to it, very few countries have actually implemented any kind of corresponding strategy in national law. The transport sector was actually the first target for the directive, and yet for some reason EU member states do not feel obliged to comply," Mr. Aberson says.

A question of greed?

With the exception of Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Austria and France, Aberson is concerned that EU countries are simply not doing enough to meet carbon reduction targets, a dangerous state of affairs he believes is motivated primarily by government greed.

"Finding alternatives to fossil fuels and reducing carbon emissions is a macro problem – it doesn’t concern one country," he says. "But, in general, governments make a lot of money on fuels and energy. On one hand they say they wish to improve the environment, but on the other, they believe it shouldn’t cost them anything to do so. And this is the real danger, because it has to cost money, or progress can’t be made."

Popularity issue

He cites the German government as an example, which as many as ten years ago, began building biofuels factories and introducing the fuels into the market.

"Biofuels were cheap, and their consumers were happy," he says. "But oil companies were making a loss, and the Government began to put a levy on biofuels. Their popularity has since declined. It has everything to do with price."

Biofuels cannot compete alone

He goes on to say that governments must fund the use and development of biofuels in the current climate because at the moment, the companies producing the fuels simply cannot compete with the cost price of mineral oil. And, he warns, ultimately it is the SMEs in biofuels who are the experts, not the governments.

"It’s tough operating in this environment with no government help," he explains, "especially when biofuels are taking the brunt of criticism in the wake of these reports, not just from politicians, but also from environmentalists, who are often not involved in all aspects of the economy and don’t see the bigger picture beyond the rainforests."

Politicians making excuses

Overall, Aberson is worried that progress in biofuels is slowing down at the very time when it needs to be pushing forward.

"Only a few highlights from the Gallagher and World Bank reports have been taken and presented as the full picture," he says. "Politicians like the UK’s Minister for Transport Ruth Kelly quote the Gallagher report, and it becomes a useful excuse to minimise their efforts with biofuels, or indeed do nothing. It’s frustrating when politicians shun the very thing they claim to advocate. Biofuels initiators are so small they have no political power. The current approach certainly isn’t helping biofuels to become established in the market."