Abstract
In 2007 the South African government released the country’s National Biofuels Industrial Strategy targeting a biofuels market penetration of 2% of liquid road transport fuels by 2013. Contrary to the international situation, the main driver for the development of a biofuels industry in South Africa is neither the economic threat of increasing oil prices nor mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions, but the need to create a link between the country’s first and second economies. Specifically, the government hopes to stimulate economic development and to alleviate poverty through the promotion of farming in areas previously neglected by the apartheid system. Before the release of this strategy, commercial sugar producers and maize farmers represented the majority of the parties looking to drive the South African biofuels industry. But, 2 years after its release none of the ventures by these stakeholders have been able to take off, mainly due to the Strategy’s restrictions on the type and source of feedstock as well as on the type of farmers whose participation in the industry would be subsidised. This chapter presents a critical scientific-based analysis of the implications and results of South Africa’s National Biofuels Industrial Strategy. Firstly, an update is presented on the state of the biofuels industry in the country, highlighting the current production statistics and the major investment activities, and how these were affected by the release of the Strategy. Then the ambiguities in the Strategy are outlined and critically analysed with reference to the current state of the biofuels industry in the country. The chapter concludes with lessons leant from the South African experience by those African countries which are yet to develop their respective biofuel policies.
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- 1.
South Africa’s 1st and 2nd economies: the 1st is integrated with the global economy through modern industrialisation and produces the bulk of the country’s wealth, whilst the 2nd is isolated from the first and global economies and is characterised by poverty, underdevelopment and marginalisation resulting from years of apartheid rule.
- 2.
Homeland areas (homelands) were semi-autonomous areas that were set aside for black South Africans under the apartheid regime, and only became integrated fully with the rest of South Africa in 1994.
- 3.
Average 2010 Rand to 1US$ exchange rate = 7.33 (X-rates 2010).
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Letete, T., von Blottnitz, H. (2012). Biofuel Policy in South Africa: A Critical Analysis. In: Janssen, R., Rutz, D. (eds) Bioenergy for Sustainable Development in Africa. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-2181-4_16
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-2181-4_16
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