European Commission vows action after concluding probe into Chinese biofuel imports

The European Commission (EC) has wrapped up its probe into suspected fraud involving Chinese biodiesel imports flagged by Germany two years ago, uncovering certain systemic flaws and vowing corrective action.

Specifically, the EC said that it has unearthed some weaknesses in the way certification audits have been conducted, which is why the commission plans to address these issues.

As stressed by the EC, however, the evidence collected so far is not enough to confirm the existence of any fraud, due to which German authorities are encouraged to carry out further checks or investigations, should they choose to do so.

Upon obtaining a notification from German authorities in March 2023 of the purported fraud in biodiesel imports from China, the European Commission conducted an assessment of the situation, as mandated under Article 30(10) of the Renewable Energy Directive, under which the EC is obligated to decide whether a country that requests an examination request can still count that fuel toward its national renewable energy goals.

As disclosed, working together with German officials, the EC gathered input from a number of stakeholders