By Shane Romig /BUENOS AIRES (MarketWatch) — Argentina has asked the European Commission to issue an opinion on whether Spain’s recent decision to block Argentine biodiesel imports violates World Trade Organization rules.

Spain’s actions “shouldn’t be allowed by the European Union as it would be incompatible with the commitments assumed by the bloc in international trade agreements and the rules stipulated by the WTO,” Argentina’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement Monday.

The ministry sent a letter with its request to EC trade director Jean-Luc Demarty.

Last month, Spain started requiring that all biodiesel used there be sourced from European Union producers. The measure effectively blocks imports of the fuel from Argentina, which had dominated Spain’s biodiesel market. Leer más »

By CIARAN GILES/ , Argentina’s President Cristina Fernandez, right, sits with her Vice President Amado Boudou prior to her announcement of a bill to nationalize Spain’s controlled oil company YPF, at Government House in Buenos Aires, Argentina. An Argentine prosecutor asked on May 14, 2012 for a federal judge to open an illegal enrichment probe against Boudou.

MADRID — Spanish oil company Repsol said Tuesday it had made the first step in taking legal action against Argentina for nationalizing its energy firm YPF.

In a statement, Repsol YPF SA said it had sent a letter to Argentine President Cristina Kirchner notifying her that it sees a controversy in the seizure of YPF which should be resolved by the World Bank’s International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes. Leer más »

ACCORDING to new market research report, Global Biodiesel Market (2009 – 2014), published by MarketsandMarkets, the total global biodiesel market is expected to be worth US$12.6 billion by 2014, out of which the European and Americas market will account for nearly 55.6 per cent and 28.6pc of the total revenues respectively.

The global market is expected to record a CAGR of 7.8% from 2009 to 2014. Leer más »

Growing imports of cheap Argentine biodiesel into Europe are replacing U.S. imports hit by European Union anti-dumping duties in March, Swiss-German biodiesel producer Biopetrol said on Thursday.

“Increasing amounts of indirectly-subsidized biodiesel have been coming to Europe from Argentina since the second quarter,” Biopetrol said in a statement in a statement on its first half 2009 results. Leer más »

Last month argentinean exportations of the biofuel were declared for 85.943 tons to an average pondered value of 1227,4 u$s/ton versus 1176,4 u$s/t in March of this year.

In this year the FOB prices of the biodiesel registered an increase of almost 39%. In April of 2008 argentinean exportations of biodiesel were declared for 85.943 tons to an average pondered value of 1227,4 u$s/ton, with a minimum of 1044 u$s/ton and a maximum of 1335 u$s/ton. The 93,6% was destinated to USA and 6,4% to Holland.

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