Low oil prices dampen prospects for ethanol

After spending Php60 million (US$1.26 million) for upgrades that will allow its facilities to handle ethanol, Philippine company Total Corp. Managing Director Anna Whitehouse has expressed apprehension that ethanol-blended gasoline might not be that well received by motorists. “Before, the incentive for buying gasoline with ethanol is the price. But now that oil prices are also going down, there’s no longer that incentive,” said Whitehouse. The Biofuels Act of 2006 requires a minimum 5% ethanol blend in gasoline by February 2009. (December 14, 2008)