L 92/22 Official Journal of the European Communities 9.4.2002 COUNCIL DECISION of 25 March 2002 authorising France to apply a differentiated rate of excise duty to biofuels in accordance with Article 8(4) of Directive 92/81/EEC (2002/266/EC) THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, Having regard to Council Directive 92/81/EEC of 19 October 1992 on the harmonisation of the structures of excise duties on mineral oils (!), and in particular Article 8(4) thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, Whereas: (1) By letter dated 17 November 2000, France requested authorisation to apply a differentiated rate of excise duty to vegetable oil esters incorporated into domestic heating fuel and diesel, and to ethyl alcohol derivatives (where the alcohol component is of agricultural origin) incorporated into premium grade or regular petrol. The ethyl alcohol derivative principally concerned is ethyl tertiary butyl ether (ETBE), an oxygenated compound made up of alcohol of agricultural origin and of isobu- tene, a product resulting from oil refining. (2)  Following the Commission's requests for further infor- mation, France supplied the details necessary for exam- ination of the matter in letters dated 18 January and 21 February 2001. (3)  The other Member States have been notified of this request. (4)  The Commission had to ask for the matter to be raised by the Council, by letter dated 19 April 2001, in accord- ance with the third paragraph of Article 8(4) of Directive 92/81/EEC. (5 The Commission and the Council have been encour- aging the development of renewable energies, and biofuels in particular, since 1985. Council Directive 85/ 536/EEC of 8 December 1985 on crude oil savings through the use of substitute fuel components in petrol () stresses the role of biofuels in reducing Member States' dependence on oil imports and author- ises the incorporation into petrol of up to 5% of ethanol by volume and up to 15 % of ETBE by volume. Under Council Decisions 93/500/EEC (}) and 98| 352/EC (* and Decision 646/2000/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (°)) the Altener programme on promoting renewable energies in the (') Directive published in O] L 316, 31.10.1992, p. 12. Directive as last amené)ed by Directive 94/74[EC (O] L 365, 31.12.1994, p. 46). (3 Directive published in O] L 334, 12.12.1985, p. 20. Directive as last amended by Directive 87/441/EEC (O] L 238, 21.8.1987, p. 40). () O] L 235, 18.9.1993, p. 41. () O] L 159, 3.6.1998, p. 53. () O] L 79, 25.10.2000, p. 1. Community was adopted with the aim of securing a market share for biofuels of 5 % of total motor vehicle fuel consumption by 2005. The 1997 White Paper on renewable sources of energy further recommended setting an objective of the production of 18 million tonnes of liquid biofuels by 2010 as part of an overall goal of doubling the share of renewables in EU energy consumption by the same year. The Commission's Green Paper Towards a European strategy for energy supply security stresses the key role of tax instruments in achieving these aims by reducing the difference in cost price between biofuels and competing products. On 12 March 1997, the Commission submitted a proposal for a directive restructuring the Community framework for the taxation of energy products which envisages the possibility of an exemption for biofuels outside the context of a pilot project within the meaning of Article 8(2)(d) of Directive 92/81/EEC. Lastly, on 7 November 2001, the Commission adopted an action plan and two proposals for directives on encouraging the use of substitute fuels in the transport sector, starting with regulatory and tax measures designed to promote biofuels. The exemption requested by the French authorities is therefore in line with the Community's policy of devel- oping the biofuel sector, in the interests of protecting the environment and ensuring security of energy supply. The French legal arrangement is based on Article 25 of the amending finance law of 1997, on Decree No 98- 309 of 22 April 1998 laying down the requirements for participation in the invitation to tender for the release for home use in France of biofuels giving rise to a reduction in domestic consumption tax, and on the decision of 22 April 1998 setting up the Committee for the examination of authorisation requests by biofuel production units. This arrangement, which has been in force since 1 November 1997, was established on the basis of the Commission decision of 9 April 1997 (hereinafter ‘the decision of 9 April 1997’) declaring that the domestic tax reductions on vegetable oil esters and ETBE consti- tuted State aid compatible with the common market. The 1997 decision stated that the scheme concerned qualified as a pilot project.