Australian government increases proposed ethanol aid as national election looms

In Australia, the ruling Coalition Government, facing a tough re-election challenge, announced that it would introduce a $5 million motorist education program on ethanol, and extend a program until 2009 which provides ethanol conversion grants of up to $20,000 to service stations.

Ethanol has become an issue in the upcoming national election. A group representing feed grains users and livestock owners opposed ethanol mandates, while the Deputy Prime Minister, Mark Vaile, have campaigned for expansion of a sustainable ethanol industry.

In September, South Australian state premier Mike Rann said that the Australian federal government had missed the opportunity to make Australia a leader in global renewable energy development. The premier was commenting on the national Clean Energy Target, under which low-emission sources would account for 30,000 gigawatt hours per year by 2020 – about 15 per cent of Australia’s energy consumption. “Instead of a new plan to tackle climate change, the commonwealth has given us a substantially weakened re-packaging of state schemes and tried to sell it in the name of streamlining,” Mr Rann said.

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