Driving on Liquid Sunshine - the Brazilian Biofuel Experience: a Policy Driven Analysis

摘要

This paper analyses Brazil's experience with biofuels, focusing on the central role of the federal government as the main force driving the implementation of alternative locally produced ethanol (ethyl alcohol) and biodiesel. The pioneering, large scale ethanol programme that started over 30 years ago can be considered the most successful experience with the use of biofuels to date, as the government was able to rapidly implement the use of ethanol (ethyl alcohol) as a substitute for petrol in the 1970s and 1980s. The work contributes to the general discussion of sustainable and renewable energy sources and sets out the key policy mechanisms used. The paper also innovatively looks at the second large governmental intervention in the renewable fuels market - the biodiesel programme. In addition to the contribution to the debate surrounding command-and-control measures and economic incentive instruments, the paper analyses how lessons learned from the ethanol experiment were taken into consideration in the design and implementation of the biodiesel mandate, including social and environmental facets. It emphasizes the uniqueness of producing sugarcane ethanol in the Brazilian context and how attempts to carry out similar fast growing biofuels programmes may not be possible in other parts of the world.