Lower house approves bill extending support for biofuels

The lower house of Parliament has approved a bill extending support for biofuels. The tax benefits, which should be in place until 2020, should amount to nine billion crowns. According to Agriculture Minister Marian Jurečka the law should help the Czech Republic meet EU requirements in the share of renewables in transport. Failure to do so could result in fines worth billions of crowns, he said. The bill, which still needs to win approval in the Senate and be signed by the president, came under fire from opposition deputies who claim that it benefits the agro-chemical group Agrofert owned by Finance Minister Andrej Babiš.