The first formal votes have been held on the European Union’s (EU) propose ...

The first formal votes have been held on the European Union’s (EU) proposed chemical control system REACH, with amendments being passed by the European Parliament’s environment committee that will generally make life more difficult for petrochemical producers, writes Keith Nuthall. MEPs rejected the idea of a light touch for materials produced only in small quantities of between one to 10 tonnes. Also, the committee approved an amendment saying petrochemicals deemed potentially harmful be approved for only five years and then be subject to further testing. A November plenary meeting of the parliament will decide whether these changes survive, pending agreement with the EU Council of Ministers. In other EU news: *Transport Commissioner Jacques Barrot is to lead another European Commission attempt to harmonise fuel excise duty rates across Europe, with an initiative focusing on diesel sold to commercial vehicles. Barrot told an EU Council of Ministers for transport that his officials were ‘currently preparing a proposal’ setting maximum and minimum rates for diesel duty paid by commercial road transport companies. He is also developing a regulation mandating ‘price review clauses in transport contracts in order to take into account variations in the price of fuel’. Curiously, however, Industry Commissioner Günter Verheugen has announced that the Commission is dropping a similar proposal made in 2002, namely a directive ‘to introduce special tax arrangements for diesel fuel used for commercial purposes and to align the excise duties on petrol and diesel fuel’. Brussels is also abandoning 2001 proposals to cut excise duty on biofuels and mineral oils containing biofuels, under a rationalisation of EU lawmaking. Both proposals have failed to secure agreement from MEPs and European ministers. *EU Industry Commissioner Commissioner Günter Verheugen has told MEPs he will use the CARS 21 high-level group promoting innovation in the automobile sector to boost the use of alternative low-CO2 fuels. Meanwhile, European Environment Agency (EEA) Executive Director Jacqueline McGlade has said hybrid vehicles are the only realistic short-term solution for reducing CO2 transport emissions. *The latest EEA data shows the combined penetration of low and zero-sulphur fuels increased from around 20% to almost 50% between 2002 and 2003, albeit some way off the EU target of 100%, this year. The penetration of biofuels and other alternative fuels is low, with biofuel use in the EU less than 0.4% - way below Brussels’ 2% target for 2005. *The European Court of Justice’s Court of First Instance has approved the European Commission’s blocking of a proposed acquisition of Gás de Portugal (GdP), the country’s gas utility, by electricity producer Energias de Portugal (EdP) and Italian energy company Eni. Brussels has ruled the deal would significantly harm competition, and the court has rejected a bid by EdP to reverse the decision. *The European Investment Bank is planning to lend Britain’s National Grid up to £120mn to help it expand an existing LNG import terminal on the Isle of Grain, Kent. *The European Parliament has criticised the five-point-plan issued by Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs to deal with high oil prices because it failed to consider transport issues.