Bulgarian biofuel manufacturers blamed the number of suspended projects and the lack of market for their product on the Government and its aversion to incentive, Dnevnik daily reports. The remarks were made at a round table, held on March 25, organised by the National Biofuels Association.
Most hardships experienced in the sector stem from legislative failures, according to producers. They added that the Cabinet does show any willingness to address concerns, so rendering investment in biofuel production futile.
According to the current law on biofuels, retailers are required to mix mineral fuels with five per cent biofuel but there is no means of regulating this, producers said. They added that this prevents them selling fuel to the local market.
Nearly one third of Bulgaria's 5 million hectares of agricultural land is currently uncultivated but the government refuses to stimulate growing plant crops for biofuels.
Local company Petrol and Russian Lukoil are the only two retailers offering biofuels at their stations across the country, experts said.
Other major players such as Shell, OMV and Eko Elda reportedly do not offer biofuels due to the lack of quality certification of such fuels in Bulgaria.
