Biofuels: 'Irrational' and 'worse than fossil fuels'

The UK's "illogical" usage of biofuels will cost motorists around ₤ 460 million over the next 12 months, a think tank states.

A report by Chatham House, external states the growing dependence on sustainable liquid fuels will likewise increase food costs.

The author says that biodiesel made from vegetable oil was even worse for the climate than nonrenewable fuel sources.

Under EU law, external, biofuels are set to make up 5% of the UK's transport fuel from today.

Since 2008, the UK has required fuel providers to add a growing percentage of sustainable products into the gas and diesel they supply. These biofuels are mainly ethanol distilled from corn and biodiesel made from rapeseed, utilized cooking oil and tallow.

Deep fried fuel

But research brought out for Chatham House says that reaching the 5% level implies that UK motorists will need to pay an additional ₤ 460m a year due to the fact that of the greater cost of fuel at the pump and from filling up more frequently as biofuels have a lower energy material.

The report say that if the UK is to fulfill its responsibilities to EU energy targets the expense to vehicle drivers is likely to increase to ₤ 1.3 bn per annum by 2020.

"It is hard to find any excellent news," Rob Bailey, senior research study fellow at Chatham House, informed BBC News.

"Biofuels increase costs and they are a very pricey way to lower carbon emissions," he said.

The EU biofuel mandates are likewise having hugely distorting impacts in the marketplace. Because utilized cooking oil is regarded as one of the most sustainable types of biodiesel, the cost for it has risen rapidly. Rob Bailey states that towards completion of 2012 it was more costly than refined palm oil.

"It develops a financial reward to purchase refined palm oil, cook a chip in it to turn it into used cooking oil and after that offer it at profit,"

"It is insane but the rewards exist."

There are likewise worries that taking EU land out of production to grow rapeseed oil in particular is creating more environment issues than it fixes. The more fuel of this type that is taken into cars and trucks the bigger the deficit created in the edible oils market. This had caused increased imports of palm oil from Indonesia, often produced on deforested land.

"Once you take into consideration these indirect results, biofuels made from veggie oils in fact result worldwide in more emissions than you would receive from utilizing diesel in the first location," stated Rob Bailey.

"Plus you are asking vehicle drivers to pay more for the fuel - it makes no sense, it is a completely irrational technique."

Biofuel advantages

The European Biodiesel Board (EBB), which represents the market, external across the EU, said it knew the issues triggered by the required. But it thinks that biofuels have many positives.

"Blaming biofuels for all the difficulties in the world is a bit too exaggerated," stated Isabelle Maurizi, project supervisor at the EBB.

"It has actually brought lots of benefits. It has enhanced the security of our diesel; it has decreased EU dependence on animal feed imports, thanks to the rapeseed we grow for biodiesel."

"If there was no biodiesel farmers would simply make their land idle - no food, no feed!"

As the UK strikes the 5% of liquid fuels mark, the government deals with some hard choices on how to move forward on this issue as it deals with tripling the expenses for vehicle drivers by 2020.

Insiders recommend its preference would be to attempt and get agreement in Brussels on the impacts of indirect expenses which might constrain what counts as biofuel. However getting arrangement from countries with powerful farming sectors who benefit from the current plan will be tough.

"When you have a lobby which includes the farming sector and the oil sector it is very tough for Governments to make a U-turn," said Rob Bailey.

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