By Cho Jin-seo
The government may make the use of biofuel mandatory in trucks and other heavy vehicles from as early as 2012.
The Ministry of Knowledge Economy and Korea Institute of Petroleum Management are considering the adoption of a Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), which makes it mandatory for heavy-duty vehicles to use mixtures of petroleum and biofuels.
The original plan was to introduce the rule from 2013, but it could be implemented a year earlier, the Yonhap News Agency reported Sunday, citing unnamed officials at the ministry.
Biofuel can be made from a variety of crops and animal fat. The ethanol extracted from corn and sugar cane can replace gasoline, while animal fats and vegetable oils can be used to make substitutes for diesel fuels.
The RFS effort was introduced in the United States, enabling it to set out a plan to increase the use of biofuel to 7.5 billion gallons by 2012.
If a similar rule is introduced in Korea, it is likely to be implemented in the four licensed domestic fuel refineries ― SK Energy, GS Caltex, S-Oil and Hyundai Oil Bank ― as well as in a few firms that produce fuels for export. The initial quota is not yet decided but is expected to be around 5 to 7 percent of their total diesel sales, the news agency quoted an official as saying.
The government’s plan is to introduce the rule on refineries from 2013. The oil firms then will have to offer discounts for biofuels in order to meet the mandatory quota, which will eventually encourage truck drivers to switch to vehicles that are capable of running on biofuel.
The schedule is likely to be reset to 2012, as the National Assembly did not renew the tax exemption on biofuel.
In late October, the ministry, related government agencies, think tanks, oil refineries and car makers held a public hearing on the issue. The consensus was that the transition toward biofuel was needed because of the rising petroleum price, but they urged caution in implementing the rule.
Critics worry that Korea has no major production facilities of biofuel, so the hasty implementation of the RFS may only increase the cost of industrial transportation.
Compatibility is another critical issue. Most modern vehicles are made to run on a mixture of gasoline or diesel with biofuel, but still there are cars and trucks on the road that were produced before the introduction of the technology.