Petroestry in talks to quintuple its methyl ester output

Negotiating with Petroestry is Desmet Ballestra Oleo, a Belgian-Italian group that also supplies production technology to Brasco and Biopaliwa, the two major players in the Polish biofuel market. The deal could give Petroestry, whose current output is 9,500 tonnes per year, the potential to rival the two market leaders in what is a rapidly growing industry whose combined output is predicted to total 200,000 tonnes in 2007. The driving force behind this growth has been the anticipated effects of the new biofuel law which came into force this autumn and will greatly expand the market for biofuel in Poland. However, representatives from the National Chamber of Biofuels (KIB) have recently warned that the sector's long-term profitability could be jeopardized by reckless moves by the Ministry of Finance, which plans to cut the excise duty relief on biofuel. (Puls Biznesu, p. 12) R.M.