The Role of Biofuels in Achieving a National Energy Independence Plan

Biofuel can play a crucial role in achieving energy independence goals. The success story of the Brazil’s ethanol program started in 1976 and during the past four decades it has gained remarkable achievements in terms of economic development and energy independence. The aim of this study is to show how Brazil has achieved its goal of energy independence by implementing and updating its renewable fuel policies over the past 40 years. We adopt an evolutionary policy framework to study the emergence of ethanol as an alternative fuel in Brazil. We propose a dynamic framework for technology diffusion policies that can explain why Brazil chose ethanol as an alternative fuel and how this policy affected the country’s energy market. We argue that the success of the Brazilian ethanol program is due to its flexibility and adaptability over the past four decades. In addition to this, we note that other domestic and international forces such as oil price and domestic politics have been largely responsible for the success or failure of these policies. Lastly, we discuss the key lessons from Brazil which can help the policy makers in other countries in devising a sustainable energy policy in the future.