KUALA LUMPUR (March 4): The European Union's (EU) directive to phase out palm oil from transport fuel by 2030 may not go as planned, leading vegetable oils analyst Thomas Mielke said, noting that there has been an increased consumption of biodiesel in the region of late.

Mielke, who is executive director of Oil World, said biodiesel consumption in Europe has increased by over two million tonnes last year.

"Biodiesel consumption in Europe increased by more than two million tonnes last year, silently, because biodiesel has lost its good reputation in Europe," he said at an annual palm oil and ringgit seminar organised by UOB Kay Hian held here today.

"If this is being shaved off, and the benchmark being 2019 remaining stable until 2023, and the plan is to level this off to zero in 2030, I don't believe it's (phase out) going to happen," he said.

He also noted that several exemptions have been formed, including an exemption for additional palm oil produced in independent small plantations (less than 5ha) or produced on 'unused' land.