Biofuel quota

Updated: 23.01.2019

Author: Ivana Naydenova

Persons introducing liquid fuels of crude oil origin for transportation shall be obliged to offer market fuels for diesel and petrol engines blended with biofuels.

Eligible technologies

According to Art. 1 Additional Provisions of ERSA, “biofuels" are liquid or gaseous fuels for transport produced from biomass, including:

  • "Biodiesel": methyl ester produced from vegetal or animal fat, having diesel fuel grade, intended to be used pure or blended with fuel for diesel engines; 
  • "Bioethanol": ethanol produced from biomass and/or from biodegradable fractions of waste, intended to be used pure or blended with fuel for petrol engines;
  • "Ethers produced based on bioethanol": 
    • Oxygen containing compounds (ethyl-tertio-butyl-ether, or ETBE), produced based on bioethanol given that the percentage by volume of the bio-ethyl-tertio-butyl-ether, calculated as biofuel is 47. 
    • "Biodimethylether": dimethylether produced from biomass and intended to be used as biofuel, and "bio-methyl-tertio-butyl-ether": fuel produced based on biomethanol given that the percentage by volume of the bio-methyl-tertio-butyl-ether, computed as biofuel is 36 intended to be used pure or blended with fuel for petrol engines.

Amount

Amount of quota and period of application

Persons introducing liquid fuels of crude oil origin for transportation shall be obliged to offer market fuels for diesel and petrol engines blended with biofuels in the following proportion (art. 47 par. 1 ERSA):

  • Fuel for diesel engines with a biodiesel content of at least 6%;
  • Fuel for petrol engines with a content of bioethanol and/or ethers produced from biomass of at least 7%;
  • from 1 April 2019 - diesel fuel with a biodiesel content of at least 6% by volume, with at least one per cent volume of biodiesel being biofuel of a new generation;
  • from 1 September 2018 - fuel for gasoline engines with a content of bioethanol and/or ethers produced from biomass of at least 8% by volume;
  • from 1 March 2019 - petrol for petrol engines with a content of bioethanol and/or ethers produced from biomass of at least 9% by volume.

Adjustment of quotas

The targets are prescribed by law and may be amended by law.

Fees and penalty charges

Penalty charges

  • A person, who launches in the market liquid fuels of crude oil origin in violation of the quota provisions, shall be sanctioned by a financial penalty in the amount of BGN 200,000 (approx. € 102,298) (art. 67 par. 1 ERSA).
  • A distributor, who offers on the market liquid fuels of petroleum origin in violation of the provision of Art. 47 par. 2 or 3, shall be sanctioned by a financial penalty in the amount of BGN 50,000 (approx. € 25,564) or a pecuniary sanction amounting to BGN 100,000 (approx. € 51,129) shall be imposed (art. 67 par. 2 ERSA).
  • A distributor, who makes available liquid fuels of crude oil origin on the market in violation of the obligation to display in the points of sale information on the percentage content of biofuels in the liquid fuels of crude oil origin, where it exceeds 10% by volume for bioethanol and 7% by volume for biodiesel, shall be sanctioned by a financial penalty in the amount of BGN 50,000 (approx. € 25,574) (art. 67 par. 3 ERSA).

When an infringement of the rule on the sale and distribution of biofuels is found, the head of the State Agency for Metrology and Technical Surveillance (SAMTS) shall apply the following administrative enforcement measures (art. 55 ERSA):

  • to temporarily suspend the sale and supply of liquid fuels on the market and to seal the outlets which have not submitted declarations of conformity, or submitted declarations which do not contain the information required under the law;
  • to prohibit the sale and supply of liquid fuels on the market and to seal the outlets whose fuel has been found not to conform with the legal requirements after testing at a stationary laboratory and the relevant report issued;
  • to order the withdrawal of fuel from the market when the test results from a control sample found not to comply with the law have not been contested within 7 days of its receipt or, if following an appeal, the test results of an arbitration test and a test report confirm these results.

Addressees

Persons who make available on the market liquid fuels of crude oil origin for transportation (art. 47 par. 1 ERSA)

Procedure

Process flow

  • The persons who make available on the market biofuels and their blends with liquid fuels of crude oil origin in transport, shall draw up for each lot an affidavit for compliance with art. 18a par. 2 of ZChAV (art. 48 par. 1 ERSA). 
  • The persons who place on the market biofuel blends of petroleum-derived liquid fuels in transport shall indicate in the declaration of conformity the percentage of biofuel in petrol or diesel engines as well as the percentage of new generation biofuel in diesel (art. 48 par. 2 ERSA).
  • Distributors shall be obliged to provide for each subsequent distribution in the market a copy of the affidavit for compliance of the distributed lot of biofuels and their blends with liquid fuels of crude oil origin, on which they indicate the amount of liquid fuel, the person to whom it is provided, the date and number of the shipping document, and to enter the number and date of the affidavit for compliance of the lot of liquid fuel in all other accompanying documents (art. 48 par. 3 ERSA). 
  • The ultimate distributors shall be obliged to provide to the officials a certified copy of the affidavit as well as a copy of the shipping document of the inspected fuel (art. 48 par. 4 ERSA).

Competent authority

Control over the quality of biofuels and their blends with liquid fuels of crude oil origin, as well as of bioliquids, shall be exercised by the Chairman of the SAMTS (art. 51 par. 1 ERSA).

Distribution of costs

Consumers

The costs are borne by the consumers.

Bulgaria

Further information

  • Държавната агенция за метрологичен и технически надзор (ДАМТН) – State Agency for Metrological and Technical Surveillance (SAMTS)
  • +359 2 980 89 20
  • SAMTS website
  • damtn(at)damtn.government.bg

Basic information on legal sources