M’sia, Indonesia join forces to protest EU Directive 2018/2001

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia and Indonesia will join forces to object to the Delegated Regulation Supplementing Directive 2018/2001 of the European Union Renewable Energy Directive II.

In a statement yesterday, the Ministry of Primary Industries said the two major global palm oil producers will embark on a joint mission to Brussels from April 8-9 under the Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries (CPOPC).

It said the joint mission was agreed during the 6th Ministerial Meeting of CPOPC on Feb 28, 2019 in Jakarta, Indonesia to register the countries’ stand against the Delegated Regulation.

“Malaysia has argued that the law discriminates against biofuels and bioliquids produced from palm oil from other oil crops. There is also significant lack of scientific data and reliable information used in the Delegated Regulation which classifies palm oil production as a high Indirect Land Use Change risk biofuel feedstock,” it said.

The ministry said that such a misleading interpretation of the production of palm oil will be detrimental to countries which depend on this industry to raise the socio-economic well-being of their people, and ignores the sustainable efforts undertaken to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs).

“Malaysia urges the European Union to provide equitable treatment across all oil crop biofuels and bioliquids in line with the World Trade Organisation non-discriminative principles. Malaysia will continue to overcome disruptive and discriminatory practices on suppressing the palm oil trade,” it added.