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The Fuel Quality Standards Act 2000 defines biodiesel as 'a diesel fuel obtained by esterification of oil derived from plants or animals.' Put simply, it is a fuel derived from plant and/or animal matter rather than petroleum sources.
Internationally, biodiesel is used as a transport fuel in its own right (known as B100) or in blends with petroleum diesel. Most common blends used are 5% biodiesel (B5) and 20% biodiesel (B20).
The process to set a biodiesel standard commenced in 2002.
The Department has developed an Australian fuel standard for biodiesel as part of its responsibilities under the Fuel Quality Standards Act 2000. The Australian Government aims to set fuel quality standards that allow for optimum vehicle and environmental performance.
The process to set a biodiesel standard commenced in 2002, with the appointment of a consultant to produce a technical paper on biodiesel. The paper covered the production and use of biodiesel as a transport fuel in Australia and its impacts on vehicle emissions and engine operation.
The technical paper was used to form the basis of the National Standard for Biodiesel - Discussion Paper 6. The objective of the discussion paper was to inform stakeholders and generate comment on setting a standard for biodiesel.
Following consideration of the submissions received on the biodiesel discussion paper, the Australian Government developed a Draft Standard for Biodiesel.
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In September 2005 the Prime Minister released the report of the Biofuels Taskforce and announced a package of measures to help address market barriers and restore consumer confidence in the biofuels industry.
Among these measures the Prime Minister announced that the Government would work with Australian fuels and transport industries to establish standard forms of biodiesel to provide certainty to the market. The objective of this discussion paper is to seek stakeholder comment on management options for standardising diesel/biodiesel blended fuels.
The Australian Government released a position paper on the preferred management approach to diesel/biodiesel blends to help provide certainty to consumers and industry. The position paper was open for public comment until 31 March 2008. The objective of the paper is to seek stakeholder comment on the position prior to amending the relevant legislation.
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