BIOFUEL TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER IN IBSA: LESSONS FOR SOUTH AFRICA AND BRAZIL

The policy brief examines how Brazil's success in bioethanol production can be leveraged through the IBSA Forum to support biofuel development in South Africa and Africa. It identifies key barriers in South Africa, including a lack of a coherent national strategy and concerns over food security and land reform. The authors recommend that South Africa develop a balanced biofuel strategy, pursue collaborative R&D on second-generation biofuels, and create specific investment incentives to attract Brazilian expertise and capital.

• Brazil is a global leader in bioethanol, having developed a robust domestic market through the 1975 Proálcool programme, which included mandatory blend targets and the introduction of flex-fuel engines; by 2008, flex-fuelled cars accounted for 75% of light vehicle sales.
• South Africa lacks a coherent biofuel strategy due to concerns that rural development goals may be incompatible with energy policy objectives, and it has no established tradition of bioethanol production.
• Food security is a primary concern for biofuel adoption in Africa, as first-generation biofuels compete with food stocks for fertile land; however, second-generation biofuels produced from cellulosic biomass are proposed as a future-oriented solution, though they are not yet commercially viable.
• Biofuels offer significant climate mitigation potential; for example, Brazil reduced its CO2 emissions through gasoline substitution by nearly 53 million tons in 2008/09, a volume comparable to Switzerland's total 2005 emissions.
• Brazil's 'Selo Combustível Social' (Social Fuel Label) provides a model for South Africa to encourage social responsibility by offering financial incentives to producers who support smallholders.
• Investment in South African renewable energy lacks the strong private sector backing seen in Brazil, where the private sector funds the majority of projects; consequently, IBSA is seen as a mechanism to lower start-up costs by leveraging Brazilian technology.

APA

White, L., & Costa, T. C. (2009). BIOFUEL TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER IN IBSA: LESSONS FOR SOUTH AFRICA AND BRAZIL. South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/Policy-Briefing-7.pdf

Chicago

White, Lyal, and Tatiana Cyro Costa. BIOFUEL TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER IN IBSA: LESSONS FOR SOUTH AFRICA AND BRAZIL. South African Institute of International Affairs, 2009. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/Policy-Briefing-7.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=White |first1=Lyal |last2=Costa |first2=Tatiana Cyro |title=BIOFUEL TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER IN IBSA: LESSONS FOR SOUTH AFRICA AND BRAZIL |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |date=7 November 2009 |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/Policy-Briefing-7.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{white2009biofuel, author = {White, Lyal and Costa, Tatiana Cyro}, title = {{BIOFUEL TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER IN IBSA: LESSONS FOR SOUTH AFRICA AND BRAZIL}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2009}, month = nov, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/Policy-Briefing-7.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }