Biodiesel, bioethanol and biomethane together saved around 9.5 million tons of CO2 in 2018 in Germany. They avoided more than 20% more emissions than in 2017, when the reported savings amounted to 7.7 million tons of CO2. This emerges from a published report of the Federal Agency for Agriculture and Food (BLE). “Biofuels are currently the most important element in road transport to reduce greenhouse gas emissions”, said Elmar Baumann, Managing Director of the Association of the German Biofuels Industry (VDB).

Additionally, the saving of greenhouse gases by biofuels compared to fossil diesel and gasoline rose again to around 84% (previous year: 81%). Reasons for the higher greenhouse gas avoidance are higher savings in biofuels from cultivated biomass and the increasing proportion of waste and residual materials as a raw material for biodiesel production. Their share rose by around 20% to almost 36% in 2018.

The BLE report shows that a new European standard for the evaluation of fossil fuels has led to higher volumes of biofuels and increased greenhouse gas savings. According to Baumann, the federal government should already set a clear expansion path for renewable fuels by 2030 and steadily increase its share.

Further information (in German)