The IEA said both biofuels and electric vehicles are complementary options in achieving transport sector decarbonisation with renewables, noting that renewables would only account for 30 percent of electricity consumed by EVs by 2022.

The IEA’s Renewables 2017 report, which provides analysis and forecast for global renewable energy trends, highlights the importance and dominance of global biofuel production and consumption through 2022.

It said global biofuel production is expected to increase 16 percent during this period, with Asia leading this production growth due to increased domestic demand and supportive government policies. Brazil and the United States are also predicted to contribute to global biofuel production growth, with only modest growth expected in the European Union given the lack of industry incentives to invest.

The report said that while advanced biofuels have continued to make important progress, they are not globally competitive with petroleum products as of yet, but are expected to increase sevenfold to a represent 1 percent of total international biofuel production by 2022.

Indeed the report suggests that with a more favorable market and policy landscape, global biofuel production could be up to 13 percent higher and reach up to 5 percent of global transportation consumption by 2022 with strong investments and incentives from local governments.