§ Mr. Jim CunninghamTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions have been held between her Department and its counterparts in the US Administration regarding(a) the future development of biofuels and (b) a reduction in the use of petrol. [110869]
§ Mr. Wilson[holding answer 6 May 2003]: Officials in this Department hold regular discussions with their US counterparts on a wide range of energy issues. In the course of this dialogue, there has been no specific discussion of either the development of biofuels or reduction in the use of petrol. However, the US sees potential for hydrogen as a transport fuel that would displace petrol and thereby reduce consumption. The hydrogen economy and fuel cells are the subject of ongoing discussions between both sides. There have also been detailed bilateral discussions on biomass technologies, including a joint workshop on advanced conversion technologies for biomass which was held in London in 2002.