Biofuels program will be carried out as scheduled – Reyes

The National Biofuels Board (NBB) will see to it that the government’s policy on biofuels will be carried out as scheduled, a top energy official said.

Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes said NBB, chaired by the Department of Energy (DOE), is the prime implementor of the biofuels program.

NBB is on track in seeing to it that the policy of the government on biofuels is being implemented as envisioned, he said.

This year, NBB approved the National Biofuels Program and joint Administrative Order governing the production of biofuel feedstocks and the production, sale, and distribution of biofuel and biofuel-blends under Republic Act 9367.

Reyes said biofuels and renewable energy sources will be promoted simultaneously. For this, he said the DOE has created a renewable energy business division.

He said the state-owned Philippine National Oil Co. (PNOC) has also formed a renewable energy corporation.

“We are working along this line. We will continue with the biofuels program. We will have the mandated blend of two percent for diesel and five percent for ethanol by February.  Everything is within schedule,” he said.

The Biofuels Law mandates an increase in blends to two percent from one percent for biodiesel and to five percent for ethanol starting this year.

At one-percent blend total requirement for biodiesel is 60 to 70 million liters based on an annual consumption of six to seven billion liters.

At two-percent blend, the biodiesel requirement will double to around 112 to 114 million liters.

Just recently, President Arroyo signed into law the Renewable Energy Bill.

The landmark legislation aims to accelerate the development and use of the nation’s vast renewable energy resources through fiscal and non-fiscal incentives for investors.

Key provisions include Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS), requiring energy suppliers to source a minimum of their annual energy demand from RE-based sources, and a mandated feed-in-tariff system that allows, among others, a fixed price of electricity sourced from RE for 12 years.

It also approved a set of fiscal incentives such as duty-free, tax credit on domestic capital equipment and services, income tax holiday and cash incentive for RE developers. A set of incentives is also available for RE commercialization.–Donnabelle L. Gatdula, Philippine Star