Biofuels and biogas in co-processed fuels

Biofuels are liquid or gaseous transport fuels, such as biodiesel and bioethanol, made from biomass.

The Commission adopted on June 2023 new rules establishing the share of biofuels and biogas in mixed fuels, co-processed using bio-based and fossil-based raw materials, and that can count towards the Renewable Energy Directive target for renewables in transport. The Delegated Regulation (EU/2023/1640) was published in the Official Journal of the EU on 18 August 2023 and has been subject to public feedback, several consultations and scrutiny from the European Parliament and the Council.

Under the Renewable Energy Directive, EU countries are obliged to ensure that the share of renewable energy in the final consumption of energy in transport is at least 14% by 2030, including a minimum share of 3.5% of advanced biofuels.

They are also required to set out an obligation on fuel suppliers that ensures the achievement of this target.

The main verification method required in these rules is based on radiocarbon (14C) testing, while some flexibility is also allowed to use it in combination with other company- or process-based testing methods. 

Sustainability criteria

The revised Renewable Energy Directive (EU) 2018/2001 establishes an overarching policy for the promotion and use of energy from renewable sources in the EU. It also reinforces the sustainability criteria of bioenergy through different provisions, including the negative direct impact that the production of biofuels may have due to indirect land use change.

While biofuels are important in helping the EU meet its greenhouse gas reduction targets, biofuel production typically takes place on cropland that was previously used for agriculture, to grow food or feed. Since this agricultural production is still necessary, biofuel production may lead to the extension of agricultural land into non-crop land, possibly including areas with high carbon stock, such as forests, wetlands and peatlands. This process is known as indirect land use change (ILUC). As it may cause the release of CO2 stored in trees and soil, ILUC poses a risk to the greenhouse gas savings that result from increased production of biofuels.

 Photo Mauro Tandoi  on Unsplash

To address the issue of ILUC, the revised directive introduces a new approach by setting limits on high ILUC-risk biofuels, bioliquids and biomass fuels with a significant expansion in land with high carbon stock. These limits affect the amount of these fuels that EU countries can count towards their national targets when calculating the overall national share of renewables and the share of renewables in transport. EU countries will still be able to use (and import) fuels covered by these limits, but they will not be able to include these volumes when calculating the extent to which they have fulfilled their renewable targets. These limits impose a freeze equivalent to 2019 levels for the period 2021-2023, which will gradually decrease from the end of 2023 to zero by 2030. The directive also introduces an exemption to these limits for biofuels, bioliquids and biomass fuels certified as low ILUC-risk.For the implementation of this approach, as required by the directive, the Commission adopted the Delegated Regulation on indirect land-use change ((EU) 2019/807), in which it lays down provisions to determine the high ILUC-risk feedstock for which a significant expansion of the production area into land with high carbon stock is observed. It also sets out criteria to certify low ILUC-risk biofuels, bioliquids and biomass fuels.

The Commission adopted in 2019 an accompanying report on the status of production expansion of relevant food and feed crops worldwide (COM/2019/142), based on the best available scientific data. It provides information that EU countries can use jointly with the criteria set out in the delegated act in order to identify high ILUC-risk fuels and certify low ILUC-risk fuels.

Furthermore, specific rules and methodological guidance for certification of low ILUC-risk biofuels, bioliquids and biomass fuels have been included in the Implementing Regulation on sustainability certification proposed by the Commission in line with Article 30(8) of the revised directive. The Implementing Regulation received on a positive vote by the Committee on the sustainability of biofuels, bioliquids and biomass fuels on 10 March 2022, and was published in the Official Journal on 27 June 2022.

Quality standards for biofuels

Working together with the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN), the EU aims to develop and improve the technical quality standards of biofuels and biofuel blends for vehicle engines. The practical work is carried out by CEN Technical Committee 19, consisting of experts from the automotive and fuel industries, biofuels producers, and other stakeholders.

Reports on emissions from cultivation of raw materials for use in biofuels

Article 30 (2-4) of the Renewable Energy Directive (EU/2018/2001) requires that EU countries and third countries submit reports of cultivation emissions to the Commission. The reports should include a list of areas on their territory, which are classified as NUTS2, or at a more disaggregated NUTS level (equivalent size for territories outside the EU), where the typical greenhouse gas emissions from cultivation of agricultural raw materials could be expected to be lower than - or equal to - the emissions reported under the heading ‘Disaggregated default values for cultivation’ in part D of Annex V to the directive. They should also be  accompanied by a description of the method and data used to establish such list.

The Commission may decide, by means of an implementing act, that reports submitted by EU countries and by countries outside the EU contain accurate data for the purposes of measuring the greenhouse gas emissions associated with the cultivation of biofuel and bioliquid feedstocks typically produced in those areas.

Source: https://energy.ec.europa.eu/