US Grains Council urges New Zealand to move forward with ethanol blending

In New Zealand, ethanol’s greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction benefits could help New Zealand lower emissions by 30 percent by 2030, reaching net zero by 2050, the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) and industry partners told that New Zealand’s policymakers in comments submitted last month.

A proposed mandate in New Zealand would go beyond previous efforts by mandating that fuel suppliers reduce GHG emissions from transport fuels by a defined percentage each year. The final percentages would be reexamined every five years and could increase under the Climate Change Response Act 2020.

The first effort by New Zealand to incorporate biofuels was in 2008, when the government attempted to create a 2.5 percent volumetric mandate. However, the law was repealed before going into effect.

In its comments, U.S. industry representatives recommended that life cycle analysis (LCA) certifications align with existing international standards, such as the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) model. Increased GHG reduction targets across individual fuel types have also been promoted to provide for maximum GHG savings. Establishing individual reduction requirements will identify fuels with the most significant reduction benefits, such as U.S. ethanol, and allow for more accurate cost/benefit comparisons, the U.S. stakeholders said. According to New Zealand’s calculations, conventional ethanol is the most affordable biofuel and is expected to remain so into 2050.