The stage is set for the annual Biofuels Conference and Expo which will take place on May 16-17.

The event will once again take place at the Hotel Le Plaza in Brussels, which so successfully hosted the conference last year following a two-year absence due to the pandemic.

David Carpintero, the new director general of ePURE, will chair proceedings on the first of the two-day event.

Last year’s show was attended by hundreds of guests, delegates and speakers and this year’s looks like being just as big.

Carpintero will survey the latest developments in EU biofuels policy, highlighting the importance of domestic European production of renewable ethanol for transport decarbonisation, food security and energy independence.

He said: “The way forward should be clear to policymakers.

“However, even after the European Parliament voted to confirm a role for sustainable crop-based biofuels in the transport energy mix last year, the biofuels sector still faces challenges as EU institutions continue to send mixed messages about biofuels’ future importance.

“Crop-based biofuels such as renewable ethanol are the most immediate, cost-effective, sustainable and socially inclusive emissions-reduction solution the EU has.

“Unleashing their potential should be a paramount goal for this year if Europe truly wants to deliver on its 2030 objectives and beyond.

“Whether it’s in the proposed revision of the Energy Taxation Directive to reward climate-friendly fuels, further changes to the Renewable Energy Directive II or in implementing a de facto ban on cars with internal combustion engines, it’s only by sending a clear and consistent message with coherent policies that the EU can achieve our common goal of getting fossil fuels out of transport.”