Bio Diesel New Zealand to shut down Waikato project after NZ govt scraps mandate; $10 million trapped in investment

In New Zealand, Bio Diesel Oils New Zealand has canceled plans for a new biodiesel plant in the Waikato, after investing more than $10 million in the project, following the national government;d decision to repeal the biofuel mandates that were established by the previous government last year.

The company criticized the national government for not consulting with industry before the repeal, saying that without the mandates, oil companies and other fuel marketers have no reason to blend domestically-produced biofuels that reduce their profit margins without cost recovery. The government replaced the biofuels mandate with a subsidy system after oil companies led by BP predicted that the cost of fuel would rise as much as eight cents per liter. The oil companies did not indicate how a 0.5 percent biofuel content would produce such a price variation.

Free Subscription to the Daily Biofuels Digest e-newsletter

Related Stories

Earthrace skipper blasts NZ gov’t: “a Kiwi beat a world record using a bio-fuelled boat, but we can’t get biofuels in our own country.”

In New Zealand, Pete Bethune, skipper of the round-the-world speedboat Earthrace, said that “It is ironic that a Kiwi beat a world record using a bio-fuelled boat, but we can’t get biofuels in our...

New Zealand to abandon biofuels mandate, shift to tax breaks

In New Zealand, the national government said it will repeal the nation's biofuels mandate and replace the mandate with tax breaks on fuels that meet a sustainability standard. The mandate had called f...

The Top 10 Biofuels Stories of 2008: #9, India sets a 5 percent biofuels mandate, raises to 10 percent, misses the first target badly

In late 2007, India imposed a 5 percent biofuels mandate, and hiked the mandate to 10 percent in 2008. Chaos ensued. As Biofuels Digest special correspondent Joelle Brink describes it: "The governm...

Pure Power Global acquires New Zealand ethanol firm as NZ continues to shun public or private biofuel investment

In New Zealand, Pure Power Global has acquired BioJoule, a development stage biofuels company with a goal of producing ethanol from shrubby willow. The transaction was valued at NZ$6 million in cash a...

Argent Energy cancels $73 million New Zealand biodiesel project, cites pro-import Biofuels Bill

In New Zealand, Argent Energy has cancelled plans for a $73 million investment in tallow biodiesel production, saying that government biofuel policies are favoring ethanol imports over domestic biodie...

New Zealand cleantech fund seeks Kiwi investment opportunities in renewables

In New Zealand, the Herald is reporting that the Rutherford Innovation Fund is looking to invest up to $50 million in cleantech companies with New Zealand companies or companies with operations in the...