Oil at $100-The Case for Biofuels is Crystal Clear

OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwire) - The case for biofuels, such as ethanol and biodiesel, has never been stronger, said the Canadian Renewable Fuels Association in response to oil breaking the $100 a barrel mark today for the first time ever.

"Oil at $100 makes the case for biofuels crystal clear. The price of oil is simply too high and too unreliable. We must continue to diversify our fuel supply" said Gordon Quaiattini, President of the Canadian Renewable Fuels Association. "Biofuels, such as ethanol and biodiesel, are real viable alternatives and are better for the environment, prices, and farmers."

The government of Canada is implementing numerous measures to build a homegrown renewable fuels industry in Canada, including requiring 5% renewable content in gasoline by 2010 and a 2% renewable content in diesel and home heating fuel by no later than 2012. The 2007 federal budget also provided $2 billion to produce renewable fuels in Canada, and commercialize next-generation renewable fuels technologies, such as cellulose ethanol.

These renewable fuel measures will help fight global warming by reducing harmful greenhouse gases (GHGs) and result in an annual 4.2 megatonne reduction in net GHG emissions - the equivalent of removing more than one million cars from our roads.

Canada's new biofuels industry will also help wheat and canola farmers in the west, and corn and soy bean farmers in the east. Twenty new world-class biofuels facilities are expected to create over 14,000 new jobs in rural communities, and provide a new market for over 200 million bushels of Canadian grains and oilseeds.

Founded in 1994, the Canadian Renewable Fuels Association is a non-profit organization with a mission to promote renewable transportation fuels through consumer awareness and government liaison activities. The CRFA membership is comprised of representatives from all levels of the ethanol and biodiesel industry, including: grain and cellulose ethanol producers, biodiesel producers, fuel technology providers, and agricultural associations.