EU May Extend US Biodiesel Duties

STREATOR, Ill. (DTN) -- The European Commission published a notice Thursday, July 10, to investigate extending duties on biodiesel imports originating from the United States.

The European Biodiesel Board, representing biofuels producers in the European Union, applauded the decision in a news release issued Thursday, saying the decision to initiate the investigation "looking into factual grounds for a potential extension of duties on biodiesel duties" originating in the U.S. was lodged by the EBB in April.

"EBB asked for a renewal of the anti-dumping and countervailing duties imposed on U.S. biodiesel in 2009 through Council Regulation (EC) 599/2009 and Council Regulation (EC) No 598/2009, respectively," EBB said.

Given that the required level of overall EU industry support for the expiry request has been largely met, the European Commission has been provided with all of the legal grounds for initiating the investigation, which is forecast to last between 12 and 15 months, EBB said.

The U.S. National Biodiesel Board called the EU duties "protectionist" policy and plans to fight it.

"We are not surprised by the protectionist approach being pursued by the European Biodiesel Board," Anne Steckel, NBB vice president of federal affairs, said in an emailed statement to Schneider Electric.

She said biodiesel trade is "dramatically different" in 2014 than it was in 2009, when the U.S. biodiesel program was just getting started.

"In 2013, the U.S. marketplace for biodiesel was nearly 1.8 billion gallons; in Europe it was more than 3 billion gallons," she said. "Today, European biodiesel producers are sending biodiesel to the United States, taking away domestic markets from U.S. producers and receiving the same benefits under the RFS and tax credit program that U.S. biodiesel producers receive while at the same time the punitive tariffs that were put in place against U.S. producers in 2009 have all but eliminated U.S. biodiesel trade opportunities with Europe."

She added NBB will "vigorously oppose the reinstatement of tariffs by the European Commission and expect that at the end of the 12-15 month review process, the European Commission will better understand that the U.S. tax credit, which was the principal reason the duties were initially imposed in 2009, has actually expired, and that users of biodiesel in Europe would like access to duty-free biodiesel from the United States."

Myke Feinman can be reached at myke.feinman@dtn.com

(BM/AG)

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