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Mah to Meet EU Delegates Again Over Palm Oil Resolution
Mah to Meet EU Delegates Again Over Palm Oil Resolution
08/08/2017 (The Edge) - Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Datuk Seri Mah Siew Keong said he will be having another meeting with European Union (EU) delegates, led by Ambassador Maria Castillo Fernandez, to iron out issues relating to the EU’s resolution on palm oil.
Mah said he met Fernandez, who is also the head of the EU delegation to Malaysia, two weeks ago and she had agreed to meet with him and the other EU ambassadors sometime next month. The EU Commission has also officially written to him on the matter through Fernandez, he said.
“I will be meeting them (EU Commission and members of the European Parliament) again. They agreed that several points in the resolution are not wholly accurate.
“They will be having more discussions on this issue until they finalise it as legislation,” Mah told reporters at the first Palm Biodiesel Conference yesterday.
Malaysia is sending six lawmakers to Europe in September to meet and gain the support of the EU members of parliament as well as to defend the palm oil industry.
The resolution targeting palm oil by the European Parliament calls for the EU to discontinue the usage of vegetable oils in biodiesel by 2020 on the grounds that they were allegedly produced in an unsustainable manner leading to deforestation.
“I don’t have the exact figure on how much our palm oil exports would drop, but I know that 60% of EU’s palm oil imports are used for biodiesel and renewable energy, and this is a large sum,” Mah said.
Additionally, the minister pointed out that the resolution also highlighted the need for a single certification that would warrant only sustainably-produced palm oil to enter the EU market.
“[In terms of the EU’s resolution on the commodity], I totally agree on this part (sustainable certification) … this is why we are pushing for the MSPO (Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil) certification,” he said.
The mandatory timeline for plantation industries already possessing the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil certification is Dec 31, 2018, whereas those without certification have until June 30, 2019. Smallholders, meanwhile, are required to get their certification done by Dec 31, 2019.
The implementation of the MSPO scheme, which began on Jan 1, 2015, is presently on a voluntary basis.
Meanwhile, Mah said the proposed implementation of the B10 biodiesel mandate — which is being scrutinised by the ministry, the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) and various industry stakeholders — is “not a matter of if, but when”.
“It is not about whether it will be implemented, but it is a matter of timing. Let’s not rush. We will implement once we are ready,” Mah said in response to a question on when the mandate will be implemented.
Malaysia’s biodiesel programme calls for raising the minimum bio content for biodiesel in the transport sector to 10%, or B10, and in the industrial sector to 7%, or B7.
The biodiesel mandate currently stands at a minimum bio content of 7% for the transportation sector. There is as yet no mandated minimum for industry.
Mah said there was still apprehension among stakeholders, especially car manufacturers and distributors, who have voiced their concern over warranty-related issues as the blend that uses 10% palm oil from the current 7% could cause severe engine damages.
“For the past few years and especially this year, MPOB together with [various industry players] have conducted many tests and results have come out positive, showing that B10 biodiesel will not affect an engine’s performance,” Mah said.
He cited successful initiatives such as the expedition to Cameron Highlands at end-March 2016 involving seven different diesel-powered vehicle brands and the B10 Trans Borneo Expedition in East Malaysia in early March this year as those carried out to address concerns and promote awareness of higher blends of palm biodiesel usage in the transportation sector.
Reuters quoted the Malaysian Biodiesel Association as saying that the country’s biodiesel production for this year was expected to be little changed from last year, less than forecast at the start of the year because of delays in meeting the biofuel mandates.
“[Last year] saw half a million tonnes of biodiesel production. Unless we move to B10 or B7 this year, I imagine it will be more or less the same this year,” UR Unnithan, the association’s president, told the newswire.
Mah said he met Fernandez, who is also the head of the EU delegation to Malaysia, two weeks ago and she had agreed to meet with him and the other EU ambassadors sometime next month. The EU Commission has also officially written to him on the matter through Fernandez, he said.
“I will be meeting them (EU Commission and members of the European Parliament) again. They agreed that several points in the resolution are not wholly accurate.
“They will be having more discussions on this issue until they finalise it as legislation,” Mah told reporters at the first Palm Biodiesel Conference yesterday.
Malaysia is sending six lawmakers to Europe in September to meet and gain the support of the EU members of parliament as well as to defend the palm oil industry.
The resolution targeting palm oil by the European Parliament calls for the EU to discontinue the usage of vegetable oils in biodiesel by 2020 on the grounds that they were allegedly produced in an unsustainable manner leading to deforestation.
“I don’t have the exact figure on how much our palm oil exports would drop, but I know that 60% of EU’s palm oil imports are used for biodiesel and renewable energy, and this is a large sum,” Mah said.
Additionally, the minister pointed out that the resolution also highlighted the need for a single certification that would warrant only sustainably-produced palm oil to enter the EU market.
“[In terms of the EU’s resolution on the commodity], I totally agree on this part (sustainable certification) … this is why we are pushing for the MSPO (Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil) certification,” he said.
The mandatory timeline for plantation industries already possessing the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil certification is Dec 31, 2018, whereas those without certification have until June 30, 2019. Smallholders, meanwhile, are required to get their certification done by Dec 31, 2019.
The implementation of the MSPO scheme, which began on Jan 1, 2015, is presently on a voluntary basis.
Meanwhile, Mah said the proposed implementation of the B10 biodiesel mandate — which is being scrutinised by the ministry, the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) and various industry stakeholders — is “not a matter of if, but when”.
“It is not about whether it will be implemented, but it is a matter of timing. Let’s not rush. We will implement once we are ready,” Mah said in response to a question on when the mandate will be implemented.
Malaysia’s biodiesel programme calls for raising the minimum bio content for biodiesel in the transport sector to 10%, or B10, and in the industrial sector to 7%, or B7.
The biodiesel mandate currently stands at a minimum bio content of 7% for the transportation sector. There is as yet no mandated minimum for industry.
Mah said there was still apprehension among stakeholders, especially car manufacturers and distributors, who have voiced their concern over warranty-related issues as the blend that uses 10% palm oil from the current 7% could cause severe engine damages.
“For the past few years and especially this year, MPOB together with [various industry players] have conducted many tests and results have come out positive, showing that B10 biodiesel will not affect an engine’s performance,” Mah said.
He cited successful initiatives such as the expedition to Cameron Highlands at end-March 2016 involving seven different diesel-powered vehicle brands and the B10 Trans Borneo Expedition in East Malaysia in early March this year as those carried out to address concerns and promote awareness of higher blends of palm biodiesel usage in the transportation sector.
Reuters quoted the Malaysian Biodiesel Association as saying that the country’s biodiesel production for this year was expected to be little changed from last year, less than forecast at the start of the year because of delays in meeting the biofuel mandates.
“[Last year] saw half a million tonnes of biodiesel production. Unless we move to B10 or B7 this year, I imagine it will be more or less the same this year,” UR Unnithan, the association’s president, told the newswire.