IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/masfgc/v19y2014i2p229-253.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Developing biofuels industry in small economies: Policy experiences and lessons from the caribbean basin initiative

Author

Listed:
  • Kalim Shah
  • George Philippidis
  • Hari Dulal
  • Gernot Brodnig

Abstract

With increasing concerns about rising energy demand and cost, diminishing oil reserves, and climate change, Central American and Caribbean (CAC) nations have the opportunity to become producers of low-carbon sustainable biofuels for domestic consumption and foreign exchange earnings. While the region has a number of comparative advantages for developing a vibrant biofuels sector, including favorable climate and significant agricultural experience, the experience under the favorable Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBI) has exposed significant technical and non-technical barriers that must be overcome. Using information compiled through interviews with industry executives, government policy makers and civil society stakeholders, we provide a critical analysis of this experience focusing on non-technical barriers to investment. Survey results suggest that political uncertainty, poor regulatory frameworks, and lack of institutional commitment and business incentives are the main non-technical barriers. Having laid out the challenges, we propose potential policy positions to stimulate growth of the regional biofuels sector. Results point to the need to prioritize enhancing national legislation, developing risk prevention plans, creating supply and demand side incentives and increasing multilateral collaboration. While these findings are derived from the Caribbean Basin experience, they may also be applicable to small economies in other regions that are considering policies for biofuels industry development. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014

Suggested Citation

  • Kalim Shah & George Philippidis & Hari Dulal & Gernot Brodnig, 2014. "Developing biofuels industry in small economies: Policy experiences and lessons from the caribbean basin initiative," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 19(2), pages 229-253, February.
  • Handle: RePEc:spr:masfgc:v:19:y:2014:i:2:p:229-253
    DOI: 10.1007/s11027-012-9437-8
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1007/s11027-012-9437-8
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s11027-012-9437-8?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Peters, Jörg & Thielmann, Sascha, 2008. "Promoting biofuels: Implications for developing countries," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(4), pages 1538-1544, April.
    2. Quintero, J.A. & Montoya, M.I. & Sánchez, O.J. & Giraldo, O.H. & Cardona, C.A., 2008. "Fuel ethanol production from sugarcane and corn: Comparative analysis for a Colombian case," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 33(3), pages 385-399.
    3. Rajagopal, Deepak & Zilberman, David, 2007. "Review of environmental, economic and policy aspects of biofuels," Policy Research Working Paper Series 4341, The World Bank.
    4. Stavins, Robert, 2001. "Lessons From the American Experiment With Market-Based Environmental Policies," RFF Working Paper Series dp-01-53, Resources for the Future.
    5. Heinrich Blechinger, Philipp Friedrich & Shah, Kalim U., 2011. "A multi-criteria evaluation of policy instruments for climate change mitigation in the power generation sector of Trinidad and Tobago," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(10), pages 6331-6343, October.
    6. Jumbe, Charles B.L. & Msiska, Frederick B.M. & Madjera, Michael, 2009. "Biofuels development in Sub-Saharan Africa: Are the policies conducive?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(11), pages 4980-4986, November.
    7. Wiesenthal, Tobias & Leduc, Guillaume & Christidis, Panayotis & Schade, Burkhard & Pelkmans, Luc & Govaerts, Leen & Georgopoulos, Panagiotis, 2009. "Biofuel support policies in Europe: Lessons learnt for the long way ahead," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 13(4), pages 789-800, May.
    8. Kalim Shah & Jorge Rivera, 2008. "Export processing zones and corporate environmental performance in emerging economies: The case of the oil, gas, and chemical sectors of Trinidad and Tobago," Policy Sciences, Springer;Society of Policy Sciences, vol. 41(2), pages 181-182, June.
    9. C-C. Tsao & J. E. Campbell & M. Mena-Carrasco & S. N. Spak & G. R. Carmichael & Y. Chen, 2012. "Increased estimates of air-pollution emissions from Brazilian sugar-cane ethanol," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 2(1), pages 53-57, January.
    10. repec:zbw:rwirep:0038 is not listed on IDEAS
    11. Timilsina, Govinda R. & Dulal, Hari B., 2008. "Fiscal policy instruments for reducing congestion and atmospheric emissions in the transport sector : a review," Policy Research Working Paper Series 4652, The World Bank.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Beckman, Jayson, 2015. "Biofuel Use in International Markets: The Importance of Trade," Economic Information Bulletin 262114, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    2. Shah, Kalim U. & Niles, Keron, 2016. "Energy policy in the Caribbean green economy context and the Institutional Analysis and Design (IAD) framework as a proposed tool for its development," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 98(C), pages 768-777.
    3. Bruno Locatelli & Paulina Aldunce & Abigaïl Fallot & Jean-François Le Coq & Eric Sabourin & Jeimar Tapasco, 2017. "Research on Climate Change Policies and Rural Development in Latin America: Scope and Gaps," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(10), pages 1-17, October.
    4. Bundhoo, Zumar M.A. & Shah, Kalim U. & Surroop, Dinesh, 2018. "Climate proofing island energy infrastructure systems: Framing resilience based policy interventions," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 41-51.
    5. Mihail Nikolaevich Dudin & Nikolaj Vasilevich Lyasnikov & Vladimir Dmitriyevich Sekerin & Anna Evgenevna Gorohova & Vyacheslav Viktorovich Burlakov, 2016. "Provision of Energy Security at the National Level in the Context of the Global Gas Transportation Industry Development," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 6(2), pages 234-242.
    6. Dornan, Matthew & Shah, Kalim U., 2016. "Energy policy, aid, and the development of renewable energy resources in Small Island Developing States," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 98(C), pages 759-767.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Vitezslav Pisa & Jan Bruha & Vitezslav Pisa, 2011. "Dynamics of the Commodity Prices and Quantities: An Analysis using a Dynamic Multiregional CGE Model," EcoMod2011 2889, EcoMod.
    2. Curci, Ylenia & Mongeau Ospina, Christian A., 2016. "Investigating biofuels through network analysis," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 97(C), pages 60-72.
    3. Gasparatos, A. & von Maltitz, G.P. & Johnson, F.X. & Lee, L. & Mathai, M. & Puppim de Oliveira, J.A. & Willis, K.J., 2015. "Biofuels in sub-Sahara Africa: Drivers, impacts and priority policy areas," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 879-901.
    4. Andres Quintero, Julian & Ruth Felix, Erika & Eduardo Rincón, Luis & Crisspín, Marianella & Fernandez Baca, Jaime & Khwaja, Yasmeen & Cardona, Carlos Ariel, 2012. "Social and techno-economical analysis of biodiesel production in Peru," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 427-435.
    5. Saraly Andrade de Sá & Charles Palmer & Stefanie Engel, 2012. "Ethanol Production, Food and Forests," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 51(1), pages 1-21, January.
    6. Habib-Mintz, Nazia, 2010. "Biofuel investment in Tanzania: Omissions in implementation," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(8), pages 3985-3997, August.
    7. Schillo, R. Sandra & Isabelle, Diane A. & Shakiba, Abtin, 2017. "Linking advanced biofuels policies with stakeholder interests: A method building on Quality Function Deployment," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 100(C), pages 126-137.
    8. Carriquiry, Miguel A. & Du, Xiaodong & Timilsina, Govinda R., 2011. "Second generation biofuels: Economics and policies," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(7), pages 4222-4234, July.
    9. Perdiguero, Jordi & Jiménez, Juan Luis, 2011. "Sell or not sell biodiesel: Local competition and government measures," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 15(3), pages 1525-1532, April.
    10. Kalim Shah & Jorge Rivera, 2013. "Do industry associations influence corporate environmentalism in developing countries? Evidence from Trinidad and Tobago," Policy Sciences, Springer;Society of Policy Sciences, vol. 46(1), pages 39-62, March.
    11. Yang, Liuqing & Takase, Mohammed & Zhang, Min & Zhao, Ting & Wu, Xiangyang, 2014. "Potential non-edible oil feedstock for biodiesel production in Africa: A survey," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 461-477.
    12. Goswami, Kishor & Choudhury, Hari K., 2015. "To grow or not to grow? Factors influencing the adoption of and continuation with Jatropha in North East India," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 81(C), pages 627-638.
    13. Zhang, Yong & Bao, Xiangtai & Ren, Gang & Cai, Xiaohua & Li, Jian, 2012. "Analysing the status, obstacles and recommendations for WCOs of restaurants as biodiesel feedstocks in China from supply chain’ perspectives," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 20-37.
    14. César, Aldara da Silva & Werderits, Dayana Elizabeth & de Oliveira Saraiva, Gabriela Leal & Guabiroba, Ricardo César da Silva, 2017. "The potential of waste cooking oil as supply for the Brazilian biodiesel chain," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 246-253.
    15. Obsatar Sinaga & Mohd Haizam Mohd Saudi & Djoko Roespinoedji & Mohd Shahril Ahmad Razimi, 2019. "The Dynamic Relationship between Natural Gas and Economic Growth: Evidence from Indonesia," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 9(3), pages 388-394.
    16. Danilo Arcentales-Bastidas & Carla Silva & Angel D. Ramirez, 2022. "The Environmental Profile of Ethanol Derived from Sugarcane in Ecuador: A Life Cycle Assessment Including the Effect of Cogeneration of Electricity in a Sugar Industrial Complex," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(15), pages 1-24, July.
    17. Yuki Kudoh & Venkatachalam Anbumozhi, . "Selecting the Best Mix of Renewable and Conventional Energy Sources for Asian Communities," Books, Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA), number 2014-rpr-26 edited by Yuki Kudoh & Venkatachalam Anbumozhi, October.
    18. James Thurlow & Giacomo Branca & Erika Felix & Irini Maltsoglou & Luis E. Rincón, 2016. "Producing Biofuels in Low-Income Countries: An Integrated Environmental and Economic Assessment for Tanzania," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 64(2), pages 153-171, June.
    19. Mohammed, Y.S. & Mustafa, M.W. & Bashir, N., 2013. "Status of renewable energy consumption and developmental challenges in Sub-Sahara Africa," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 27(C), pages 453-463.
    20. Nelson, Tim & Pascoe, Owen & Calais, Prabpreet & Mitchell, Lily & McNeill, Judith, 2019. "Efficient integration of climate and energy policy in Australia’s National Electricity Market," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 178-193.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:masfgc:v:19:y:2014:i:2:p:229-253. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.