Although less damaging to the environment than petroleum derived Diesel-fuel, biodiesel never reached full-scale use because of investors' reticence. It was of no use to spend money on green fuel production as long as oil refineries were supplied with cheap petroleum. During last years, the „black gold“ name attributed to oil was more and more close to a right name, since prices went to record high levels. In these conditions, biodiesel production became profitable and Romanian market's interest on this fuel grew accordingly.
Currently, biodiesel produced in Romania is 10 to 12% cheaper than oil derrived Diesel-fuel. The price difference is likely to grow in the favor of the biodiesel, considering the new investments announced in this field. The first Romanian producer was the Autoelite Ltd company in Baia Mare, which shipped 2.000 tons of biodiesel last year. „We can produce 3.000 tons a month and we plan to increase our sales to 4 or 5 times the amount reached last year“, said Mr. Liviu Titus Pasca, marketing director of Autoelite.
