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Biofuels Use to Surge as Governments Set Consumption Targets
Ethanol and biodiesel production is expected to surge in the next few years as government officials in Europe and the United States set higher targets for consumption and maintain subsidies for producers, a panel of experts predicted at a forum on biofuel policies and trade organized by the German Marshall Fund of the United States.
“The market for bioenergy is political,” said Klaus Schumacher, chief economist for the global commodity trading firm Alfred C. Toepfer International in Hamburg, Germany.Given the current widespread political support for alternative fuels, Schumacher said global ethanol production is expected to grow to 534.6 million barrels in 2012 from 345.9 million barrels in 2005. U.S. production is expected to increase to 195 million barrels from 94.3 million barrels over the same period.For the full story, see the March 26 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.