Biodiesel producers celebrate their openness to Europe, but demand a reduction in source deductions

In addition, the Chamber of Petroleum Industry of the Argentine Republic (CIARA) also referred to the "good news". However, they took the opportunity to demand the government cut back on the by-products of cereals, sunflower and industrialized soybeans because "they were penalized in a discriminatory way".

The countries that make up the European economic bloc have supported a price commitment with Argentine companies producing biodiesel, proposed by the European Commission in the context of an anti-subsidy investigation. Thus, the negotiations were concluded and the agreement of price and volume was implemented from February.

For the management of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Argentine Chamber of Biofuels, reduced tariffs of 6.5% have been set, competitive minimum prices for European biodiesel and a cap on exportable quantities: the last levels can not exceed a rate of growth of 2%. % per year for the next five years. Under this agreement, the biofuels sector would earn between US $ 900 billion and US $ 1 billion.

It should be remembered that in 2013, the European Union imposed anti-dumping duties on Argentine biodiesel At the time, they had been questioned by the government before the World Trade Organization (WTO).

At the same time, the European Commission (EC) has opened an investigation into alleged subsidies granted by Nation and the provinces. Although this investigation is not yet complete, the EC has given the green light to the agreement.

In this context, Luis Zubizarreta, president of CARBIO, said that "the Argentine industry is celebrating the approval of the agreement because it is the only way to achieve a return to the l & # 39; 39, export to the European Union ". The owner of the chamber of producers also said that "we have been working for several months to reach a mutually beneficial agreement.

The Argentine industry is celebrating the approval of this agreement as it is the only way to return to export to the European Union, "said Luis Zubizarreta, president of CARBIO.

For its part, CIARA took advantage of this news to postpone the government's last year's tax on grains and oilseeds.

Even if, from the chamber of oil mills, they celebrated the novelty because "it will stimulate the specific market", they returned to the charge for having been "discriminated" with the payment of additional deductions at source.

CIARA has argued that the payment of an additional $ 4 per dollar exported "discourages the creation of value-added at the source" while affirming that "it favors today the industrialization of the purchasing countries from Argentina ".

L & # 39; economist Paula Español highlighted the fact that the EU has chosen to reopen the doors of local biodiesel. "The reopening of the markets for the export of Argentine products is always good news.It was expected on the basis of the WTO decision in favor of Argentina almost a year ago, although the application took a long time "he maintained.

In this regard, he recalled that exports of "They are rising to about 1,200 or 1,300 million US dollars and 80% of them are destined for the European Union and the United States, added".

"Biodiesel has no major problem in finding a market for its product.When barriers arise in a market, it is aimed at someone else.But in the end, the reopening is It is important and not minimal: exports account for 5% and 10% of exports to the EU, and although they do not move the ammeter, it is still good news, "he concluded.