QLD Ethanol petrol mandate suspended

[csv8]

Ethanol petrol mandate suspended
Jessica Marszalek
October 28, 2010 - 11:48AM
A plan to force large petrol companies to include ethanol in their fuel in Queensland has been suspended.

Treasurer Andrew Fraser said the plan, proposed in 2006, would have required retailers with 10 or more sites to include five per cent ethanol in their fuel from December 31.

Under the mandate, regular unleaded petrol could have also been sold, and smaller retailers would not have been affected.

Mr Fraser said the plan was devised at a time when tax arrangements were firmly in favour of domestic ethanol.

But the federal government planned to progressively close that gap, subjecting both domestic and imported ethanol to the same 12.5 cents per litre excise by 2020, he said.

That could see the Queensland policy being frustrated with the mandate being met through imported ethanol, Mr Fraser said.

He said groups were split on the mandate and the public benefit test had concluded the proposal to be essentially neutral.

"The government has therefore resolved to suspend the implementation of the ethanol mandate," he said.

"The initial suspension will be in place for at least 12 months."

Mr Fraser said the suspension did not detract from the government's commitment to renewable fuels but its idea did need reconsideration.

AAP
What??QLD finally does something right!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!