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Unica descarta ameaça judicial ao Renovabio

  • Spanish Market: Biofuels, Emissions
  • 18/01/24

A Política Nacional de Biocombustíveis (Renovabio) está a caminho de solidificar ainda mais a presença dos renováveis na matriz energética brasileira, avalia o presidente da União da Indústria de Cana-de-Açúcar e Bioenergia (Unica), Evandro Gussi, apesar das distribuidoras que aderiram à judicialização para não cumprir as metas do programa.

Algumas das distribuidoras de combustíveis que não cumpriram a meta de compra de Cbios em 2022 levaram a tribunal reclamações sobre o programa de descarbonização, em uma pressão crescente por mudanças de regras do programa.

Há pelo menos 16 distribuidoras com liminares para não cumprir metas do Renovabio, apurou a Argus em outubro. Em boa parte dos casos, o pleito alega que o impacto da pegada de carbono da cadeia de combustíveis fósseis não deveria ser integralmente assumido pelo elo distribuidor. Uma vitória desses varejistas poderia colocar o Renovabio em xeque.

O presidente da Unica revelou que há estudos em curso que poderiam vincular o descumprimento das metas à hipótese de crime ambiental, já que o Renovabio é uma reposta ao Acordo de Paris.

"Eu e a Unica olhamos para essas distribuidoras com perplexidade e com uma pergunta: até quando eles acham que esse tipo de comportamento antiambiental vai perdurar?", Gussi respondeu a uma pergunta da Argus em um evento nesta semana.

Gussi apontou que há um interesse crescente no Renovabio no exterior, especialmente de países que buscam uma expansão da sua capacidade instalada de energias renováveis. O Renovabio é o maior programa de descarbonização da matriz de transporte do mundo, disse ele, citando o diretor executivo da Agência Internacional de Energia (IEA, na sigla em inglês), Fatih Birol.

Participantes da indústria na Índia, que planeja dobrar a mistura de etanol para 20pc até 2025, e do Japão, que tem metas para a produção de SAF, incluindo pela rota alcohol-to-jet, abordaram a associação recentemente sobre o Renovabio.

Um dos aspectos mais valiosos do programa é como ele mapeia a eficiência de cada usina — medida por sua pontuação de intensidade de carbono — para determinar a quantidade de produção de etanol que resultará na emissão de um Cbio, na visão da Unica.

Enquanto isso, Iniciativas semelhantes na UE e nos EUA utilizam benchmarks. "É por isso que o Brasil está sendo copiado hoje, servindo de inspiração", disse Gussi.

A gama de iniciativas de energia limpa ou eliminação progressiva de fontes fósseis – como o Combustível do Futuro e o programa Mover – está interligada ao Renovabio, o que torna as distribuidoras inadimplentes ainda mais fora de compasso com os tempos atuais, disse ele.

"Mas esse é comportamento fossilizado que não vai durar", disse Gussi. "E o Renovabio, como política, como racionalidade econômica ambiental, ele vai ficar."


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17/07/24

New Zealand, Australia carbon brokerage rivalry builds

New Zealand, Australia carbon brokerage rivalry builds

Sydney, 17 July (Argus) — Commodities broker Marex announced today it opened an office in New Zealand and launched a new carbon trading platform for local emissions units, days after New Zealand competitor Jarden rolled out its own trading platform in Australia. Marex will initially focus on execution and clearing services across carbon, electricity and dairy sectors in New Zealand, in both listed and over-the-counter products. Its New Zealand-based and global clients will also be able to trade New Zealand emissions units (NZUs) in a newly launched platform called Neon Carbon. New Zealand clients will have access to clearing directly through Marex on the Singapore Exchange and Australian Securities Exchange, with the latter planning to soon launch physically settled futures contracts for Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs), large-scale generation certificates (LGCs) and NZUs . The new Marex team will be led by Nigel Brunel, formerly Jarden's head of commodities in New Zealand. Jarden is considered to have the biggest share of the brokered NZU market through its CommTrade spot trading platform, followed by domestic trading platforms CarbonMatch and emsTradepoint, which is operated by state-owned electricity transmission system operator Transpower New Zealand's Energy Market Services. CommTrade expansion Marex has hired several other former Jarden brokers in recent months in New Zealand and Australia, as it looks to expand its environmental products business across Asia-Pacific . But the increasing brokerage competition in Australia with growing trading volumes for ACCUs in recent years prompted Jarden to roll out CommTrade in the Australian market. Jarden's clients in Australia had until now only a price display mechanism for ACCUs. But they are now able to directly input bids and offers through CommTrade, with real-time matching capabilities displayed on screen. "Transactions remain anonymous until matched, after which clients receive a contract note from Jarden detailing settlement terms," Jarden announced late last week. All transactions are settled directly through the company, with clients also able to trade other products such as LGCs. Marex told Argus it would not be able to share any product details on Neon Carbon at this stage. UK-based broker Icap entered the New Zealand carbon trading market earlier this year with the acquisition of domestic brokerage firm Aotearoa Energy, while several other brokers have entered the ACCU market in recent years. By Juan Weik Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Trump taps Vance as running mate for 2024


15/07/24
15/07/24

Trump taps Vance as running mate for 2024

Washington, 15 July (Argus) — Former president Donald Trump has selected US senator JD Vance (R-Ohio) as his vice presidential pick for his 2024 campaign, elevating a former venture capitalist and close ally to become his running mate in the election. Vance, 39, is best known for his bestselling memoir Hillbilly Elegy that documented his upbringing in Middletown, Ohio, and his Appalachian roots. In the run-up to the presidential elections in 2016, Vance said he was "a never Trump guy" and called Trump "reprehensible." But he has since become one of Trump's top supporters and adopted many of his policies on the economy and immigration. Vance voted against providing more military aid to Ukraine and pushed Europe to spend more on defense. Trump said he chose his running mate after "lengthy deliberation and thought," citing Vance's service in the military, his law degree and his business career, which included launching venture capital firm Narya in 2020. Vance will do "everything he can to help me MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN," Trump said today in a social media post. Like Trump, Vance has pushed to increase domestic oil and gas production and criticized government support for electric vehicles. President Joe Biden's energy policies have been "at war" with workers in states that are struggling because of the importance of low-cost energy to manufacturing, Vance said last month in an interview with Fox News. Trump made the announcement about Vance on the first day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and just two days after surviving an assassination attempt during a campaign event in Pennsylvania. Earlier today, federal district court judge Aileen Cannon threw out a felony indictment that alleged Trump had mishandled classified government documents after leaving office. By Chris Knight Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Panama clears $10bn biofuels project


15/07/24
15/07/24

Panama clears $10bn biofuels project

Kingston, 15 July (Argus) — Panama's government has approved the construction of a $10bn biofuels project owned by US firm SGP BioEnergy. The project is now waiting a final investment decision that the firm expects will be reached by the end of this year. Japan's industrial conglomerate Sumitomo Group will build the Ciudad Dorada biorefinery on 130 hectares (ha) in the Colon free zone, SGP BioEnergy said. The project will produce 180,000 b/d of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) to be exported mainly to the US market and 405,000 t/yr of low-carbon hydrogen. "For the national government, it is important to promote fair and inclusive processes that lead us to migrate to systems dominated by renewable energy or energy from clean sources for the benefit of the country" Panama's commerce and industry minister Julio Molto said. The plant will be developed in three phases of 60,000 b/d each. The first phase is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2027 and the following phases within 15-18 months each. By Canute James Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

France's Annecy Haute-Savoie airport will offer SAF


15/07/24
15/07/24

France's Annecy Haute-Savoie airport will offer SAF

London, 15 July (Argus) — Global airport operator Vinci Airports and TotalEnergies have partnered to provide sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and electric charging stations at France's Annecy Haute-Savoie Mont-Blanc airport. TotalEnergies will supply SAF made from waste and residues such as used cooking oil (UCO) to be blended up to 35pc with conventional aviation fuel. It will also install an electric charging station for light aircraft with minimum power of 22 kW. The installation is expected to be completed by October. Vinci Airports first made SAF available to users of Clermont-Ferrand Auvergne airport in France in 2021. The SAF, produced from UCO, is supplied by Air BP under a refuelling contract with Vinci Airports. The company said five of its airports now offer biofuels. By Evelina Lungu Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

New Mexico statute could make LCFS tricky


12/07/24
12/07/24

New Mexico statute could make LCFS tricky

Houston, 12 July (Argus) — US independent refiner Valero warned other New Mexico's low-carbon fuel standard (LCFS) advisers today that lawmakers may make the program uniquely difficult. The language lawmakers passed earlier this year appeared to require the state's Clean Transportation Fuel Standard to reduce the carbon intensity of blended transportation fuels, said Brian Bartlett, part of Valero's public policy and strategic planning group, in a presentation to fellow advisory committee members on the draft rulemaking. That could mean tougher initial targets for the program if the state sets requirements for finished fuels already blended with biofuels, in addition to requirements for neat gasoline and diesel common to other markets, he said. "We are looking at it from the definition that is in the statute, and that is a different definition than is in any other statute," Bartlett said. Regulators and some other advisers in the meeting did not agree with the interpretation as the only way to read the law. LCFS programs require yearly reductions to transportation fuel carbon intensity. Higher-carbon fuels that exceed the annual limits incur deficits that suppliers must offset with credits generation from the distribution to the market of approved, lower-carbon alternatives. New Mexico lawmakers earlier this year directed the state Environment Department to establish an LCFS by July 2026. The state is speeding toward a formal rulemaking this summer to establish a program on a faster timeline. California's LCFS exists almost entirely through agency rulemakings. The law that led to its creation directs the state to reduce emissions, but legislators did not prescribe a transportation program. Oregon lawmakers, in part building off of that model, referenced a low-carbon fuel standard (LCFS) in 2009 legislation but did not include blended fuels in its definitions. Washington's legislation, passed in 2021 and leading to a program that began enforcement last year, defined regulated fuels as "electricity and any liquid or gaseous fuel" used for transportation. The law explicitly directs reductions using gasoline and diesel baselines, similar to other states. Under the interpretation proposed today, New Mexico would be unique in needing to determine a baseline for blends such as 10pc ethanol gasoline, or 5pc biodiesel. Blended fuels, especially renewable diesel blends, have driven much of the recent credit generation and carbon intensity reductions in west coast programs. "I think that's a novel interpretation that you have presented, and the Environment Department will definitely consider it," the agency's environmental protection division director Department Michelle Miano said. Representatives of ExxonMobil and Phillips 66 suggested that the process may need more time to offer sufficient technical expertise to the department. The Environment Department is seeking to complete a technical report ahead of a planned August petition for a rulemaking establishing the program to the state's Environmental Improvement Board. The advisory committee will meet to discuss the technical report and hold public comment on 26 July. By Elliott Blackburn Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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