(ADPnews) - Jul 8, 2010 - Argentina’s government has decided to increase of the obligatory biodiesel content in the local diesel blend to 7% from the current 5%, federal planning minister Julio De Vido announced earlier this week.
The country will need about one million tonnes of biodiesel a year for the 7% blend, compared to 800,000 tonnes estimated for the 5% blend, which was launched this year.
De Vido did not say when the new blend will come into effect. The increased biodiesel consumption will cut Argentina’s diesel imports.
Argentina is among the main biodiesel exporters, with 743,726 tonnes exported in the first half of 2010, compared to 542,521 tonnes in the same period last year, according to customs data.
The country has an installed capacity to produce 2.5 million tonnes of biodiesel a year, according to local biofuel chamber Carbio.