Month: April 2019

GFW Forest Data for 2018: Room for Optimism Global Forest Watch has released its tree cover loss data for 2018. Although media reports have made much of the updated data – according to some, the world’s forests are in an… Read more

China, Russia Deal With MY on Palm Malaysia and China are renegotiating an agreement on the country’s East Coast Rail Link (ECRL). The resumed negotiation process will be indirectly tied to an agreement by China to purchase more palm oil… Read more

Memo from Brussels Delegations from Malaysia and Indonesia visited Brussels last week in order to make their positions clearer on the ban of palm oil from the European Union’s Renewable Energy Directive (RED). The delegations were led by Indonesia’s Economic… Read more

RED gets even hotter Just when we thought it wasn’t possible for the RED issue to gain more traction, it has done precisely that. The Indonesian actions against imports of alcohol have caused major ructions in Brussels (more details on… Read more

Indonesia blocks imports from the EU In a dramatic escalation in the war over palm oil, Indonesia has upped the stakes and this week tightened imports of European spirits as a direct response to the Renewable Energy Directive Delegated Act.… Read more

Malaysia, Indonesia respond to the palm oil ban Both Malaysia and Indonesia have responded aggressively to the final version of the RED Delegated Act. This response isn’t surprising given that palm oil is ASEAN’s largest agricultural export, and Indonesia’s largest… Read more