Abengoa Bioenergy suspends palm oil purchases from Sinar Mas

Spanish biofuel and energy producer Abengoa Bioenergy, a subsidiary of Abengoa SA has joined major consumer product companies Unilever NV and Nestle SA in cutting off palm oil purchases from Indonesia’s Sinar Mas Group until the palm oil producer can prove it fully complies with sustainability policies. The company has adopted a greenhouse gas (GHG) measurement system that records direct and indirect emissions during production of products and services it purchases from third parties, meaning all of Abengoa’s suppliers need to measure their GHG emissions or do so within a specific timeframe. The Spanish firm has a combined installed capacity of more than 1.5 billion liters of biofuel production in the United States, Europe and Brazil. (May 11, 2010)