Brussels, 02/05/2002 (Agence Europe) - The Spanish Presidency has had to decide not to present Tuesday's EcoFin Council with a text on a tax on energy that would have defined "guidelines" for breaking the deadlock in the debate that has been going on for 10 years. After two hours of talks on Thursday, the Permanent Representatives did not manage to agree on the Presidency's text, each pulling their own way. Austria, the United Kingdom, Finland were opposed, for example, to the exemptions requested by Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Luxembourg for steel, cement and ceramics companies. France did not want to commit itself over derogation's for professional diesel, waiting for proposals for harmonising excise duty on diesel, announced by the Transport Commissioner. A majority refuse to commit themselves to taxing bio-fuels, while awaiting the end of the debates in the Energy Council on this subject.