BIO Asks Congress to Recognize Algae Biofuels

The Americans are set on using more and more biofuel, and the country needs to become energy independent, as the president himself stated. The administration supports the cause, but apparently not all biofuel producers have the same benefits.

It seems that algae biofuel producers are at disadvantage, because they are not recognized in the tax code as advanced biofuels makers. So the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) decided to take action and urged Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Ranking Member Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) to extend tax code parity to algae-based biofuels as soon as possible.

“Algae-based biofuel technology is advancing rapidly and is ready for commercialization. Production of algae-based biofuels can generate thousands of domestic green jobs in facility construction and operation and have the potential to greatly enhance our country’s energy and environmental security,” Brent Erickson, executive vice president for BIO’s Industrial and Environmental Section, stated.

“The Environmental Protection Agency’s recently released rules for the Renewable Fuel Standard recognize that algae-based biofuels can qualify as advanced biofuels and significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions compared to gasoline. Unfortunately, though, algae-based biofuel developers do not qualify for existing tax incentives for advanced biofuel development.”

“It is extremely challenging for algae-based biofuel start-up companies to attract the capital required for facility construction, due to this disparate treatment under the tax code. Fixing this discrepancy and granting algae-based biofuels tax treatment similar to other advanced biofuels can open the way to greater job creation and economic growth,” Erickson concluded.