Biofuels aid scheme: quotas

Italian legislation provides that fossil fuel producers should annually supply a minimum quota of biofuels based on the total amount of fuel supplied. The decree no. 128/2005 established a national indicative target of 2.5% of substitution of traditional fuels with biofuels by 31 December 2010. From 1 January 2007 the quota for that date has been increased to 5.75%.

The Budget law 2007 and its subsequent amendments established an obligation for all traditional fuel producers to supply, each year, a minimum quota of biofuels determined as a percentage of the previous year total supply volume. The initial quota was 1% for 2007; subsequently it has been increased to 2% for 2008 and 3% for 2009 and to 4,5% by 2014 according to the provisions of the Legislative decree No.28/2011.

Non-compliance with the quota is subject to penalties: Starting from 1st January 2013 responsibilities related to the verification of compliance with this obligation has passed from the Ministry of agriculture and forestry to the Ministry of Economic Development which performs such activity through GSE - Gestore dei Servizi Energetici. Biofuel from waste and residues are double counted for the compliance with the quota. 

The 2015 amendments established the trajectory from 2015 (5%) onwards for biofuel blending quota obligation (2016 5.5%, 2017 6.5%, 2018 7.5%, 2019 9%, from 2020 on 10%), updating the provision of previous legislation. A mandatory quota for “advanced biofuels” has been introduced, as well (2018 1.2%, 2019 1.2%, 2020 1.6%, 2022 2%). The concept of “Advanced biofuels” has been introduced by the ministerial decree: those are biofuels produced from materials listed in Annex 3 of the Decree and include agricultural and industrial wastes (apart from UCOs and animal fats), residues, ligno-cellulosic materials, cellulosic materials and algae

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