There have been many investments in the biofuels market over the last few years. Many realized that our dependence of crude oils is getting bigger, and that we need an alternative. Five countries that invested the most were United States, Germany, India, Spain and United Kingdom, respectively — and they are seeing results already. Biofuels are slowly entering the world of fuels, but with every step they really make a change.

During 2008, we have seen many changes and fluctuations in the oil market — we’ve seen highs, and we’ve seen lows. In July 2008 natural gas and oil reached their absolute record highs, and that’s one of the reasons why people have turned towards biofuels and, generally, finding an alternative. After that, the oil prices have gone down — and they are still going down slowly. If we take the financial crisis in consideration (we have to), the biofuels market suffered a bit too, like every other market.

However, things are looking good in the renewable energy sector generally, especially in the US. The newly elected president of the United States, Barack Obama, said that he’d like 25% of U.S. electricity to be generated from clean, renewable sources including wind, solar and geothermal. He calls for $150 billion to be invested over 10 years in clean energy and infrastructure to support it. And when things are looking fine in the US, the rest of the world will probably follow.