Joyce and RFA say that Australia’s major oil refiners will fail to meet this year’s biofuels target and are calling on the Government for action.

A year ago, the four major refiners – BP/Amoco, Mobil, Shell and Caltex/Ampol –delivered a biofuels action plan to the Australian Government, predicting they would use between 89 million litres and 124 million litres of ethanol and biodiesel in 2006.

But RFA has reportedly estimated they will have used just 24 million litres by the end of this year.

According to a report in the Courier Mail, the company sent a letter to Deputy Prime Minister Mark Vaile arguing that this year's biofuels shortfall, which it predicts will be 65 million litres, should be added to the refiners’ target for 2007 and enforced.

RFA’s executive director Bob Gordon was quoted by the newspaper as saying that without government intervention, the companies were unlikely to increase their use of biofuels in the short term.

Senator Joyce also spoke out in favour of mandating the use of biofuels.

“Who's running the country, the oil companies or the Prime Minister?” he reportedly said.