In the United Kingdom (UK), the Department for Transport has announced that four advanced biofuel projects will receive funding towards building green transportation biofuel plants. "Whether you’re commuting to work or travelling on a family getaway, we want that journey to be as green and environmentally friendly as possible. This funding will help encourage innovative technology using today’s waste to power tomorrow’s green transport revolution," said Transport Secretary Grant Shapps.
Household waste, unused straw from farmland and old wood will be amongst the components used by four world-leading UK-based plants to produce green fuels with support from government funding announced December 30, 2019.
Between 2018 and 2032 low carbon fuels are expected to save nearly 85 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) – equivalent to taking nearly 18 million cars off the road. This equates to around a third of transport’s projected contribution to UK carbon savings during the 2020s.
Over the next decade, the UK advanced fuels industry is expected to be worth over GBP400 million (≈ EUR 468.3 million) and create 9 800 jobs.
We made a legally binding commitment to reaching Net Zero. Now we are delivering. The UK is reducing CO2 emissions faster than any other G20 nation. We are doing it by investing in research and development, supporting the uptake of low emission and electric vehicles, new inner-city Clean Air Zones and the world’s first comprehensive Transport Decarbonisation Plan. This global leadership is helping create a 21st-century transport network that is better for our environment, our health and our economy: with the potential to deliver high-skilled jobs in the green economy to all corners of the nation, said Future of Transport Minister George Freeman.
Two of the projects announced today are being funded under the government’s GBP20 million (≈ EUR 23.41 million) Future Fuels for Flight and Freight Competition (F4C).
KEW Projects and Rika Biogas have been awarded a share of GBP6.5 million (≈ EUR 7.6 million) to build plants that aim to provide fuel for heavy goods vehicles (HGVs). The project at KEW will also begin research which could pave the way for low carbon aviation fuel.
A further two projects, which are being funded under the GBP25 million (≈ EUR 29.3 million) Advanced Biofuels Demonstration Competition (ABDC), are also driving towards their final stages of development. This includes Nova Pangaea Technologies, who will focus on the production of bio-ethanol from wood waste that can be blended with existing petrol used in road transport.
These latest investments build on the government’s push to go further and faster to harness innovation, drive down emissions and improve air quality – including through the ground-breaking Transport Decarbonisation Plan which will set out plans to end the UK’s transport emissions by 2050 and measures to rapidly increase electric vehicle infrastructure.
