EU and Brazil agree joint biofuels research

The European Commission and the Brazilian government have agreed to carry out joint research into the next generation of biofuels to help Europe meet its targets on generating energy from plants.

Janez Potocnik, the European commissioner for research, struck a deal with Celso Amorim, the Brazilian foreign minister, to issue a joint call for proposals for research during the commissioner’s visit to Brazil on 24-26 October.

The research will be focused on second-generation biofuels, fuel from agricultural waste, which is increasingly touted as a more sustainable alternative to first-generation biofuels, fuel from plants. The deal is still at an early stage and a Commission official said that sums of money were not discussed at the meeting. In 2007, the EU spent €50 million on biofuels research.

Earlier this year, EU ministers agreed a target to increase the share of biofuels in transport to 10% by 2020. This goal has been criticised by some green groups and is also viewed sceptically within the Commission’s environment department.

A spokeswoman for Potocnik said that "research into technology is fundamental to reaching all biofuels targets". She added that the exercise would help bring scientists together. "Our science system is so fragmented that it is quite difficult to make those connections across borders," the spokeswoman said.

The agreement falls under the EU’s seventh research programme for research. Under EU rules, third countries with a relevant interest are invited to take part in the programme. The Commission is also in talks with India about joint research on climate change and nanotechnology.

But the Brazil deal got a mixed reception from non-governmental organisations. Oliver Schäfer, policy director at the European Renewable Energy Council, said: "We appreciate any efforts in second-generation biofuels, nevertheless we do hope that they do not forget to invest in first-generation biofuels."

He said that biofuels were "sustainably produced" adding that it was right for the EU to work with Brazil, which had made a "good start" with biofuels.

Andrew Boswell of Biofuelwatch, a UK-based conservation group, said that the EU should not be spending money on biofuels research at all, but instead should allocate this money to research on energy efficiency. "Biofuels are essentially not going to take us anywhere and putting all this money in is taking money away from where we could make a difference on climate change," he said.

The biofuels giant

Brazil is the world’s largest producer of ethanol grown from sugar-cane, following a policy switch in the 1980s to biofuels. This legacy has made Brazilian biofuels very competitive: the cost of Brazilian biofuels is 14 cents, 50% cheaper than American grain-based ethanol and 100% cheaper than EU-produced ethanol. In 2005 Brazil produced 13 million tonnes of fuel from bioethanol, while the EU produced 3.9 million tonnes, and is tipped to become a major exporter of biofuels.

But Brazil has faced criticism from environmental groups. Earlier this year, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) warned that energy crops threaten to cause food shortages and damage to bio-diversity for limited benefits (although it did not single out specific countries). On second-generation biofuels, the OECD noted that they "hold promise, but depend on technological breakthroughs", citing questions over the feasibility of using agricultural residues on a large scale. These are some of the issues that future research may address.

The European Commission and the Brazilian government have agreed to carry out joint research into the next generation of biofuels to help Europe meet its targets on generating energy from plants.