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

The UK's "unreasonable" usage of biofuels will cost vehicle drivers around ₤ 460 million over the next 12 months, a think tank says.

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

The author states that biodiesel made from veggie oil was worse for the climate than nonrenewable fuel sources.

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

Since 2008, the UK has needed fuel providers to add a growing proportion of sustainable products into the fuel 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 means that UK vehicle drivers will have to pay an additional ₤ 460m a year because of the greater cost of fuel at the pump and from filling 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 drivers is likely to increase to ₤ 1.3 bn per annum by 2020.

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

"Biofuels increase costs and they are an extremely expensive way to reduce carbon emissions," he said.

The EU biofuel mandates are likewise having hugely distorting results in the market. Because used cooking oil is considered as one of the most sustainable kinds of biodiesel, the rate for it has actually risen rapidly. Rob Bailey says that towards the end of 2012 it was more costly than refined palm oil.

"It creates a financial incentive to purchase refined palm oil, cook a chip in it to turn it into used cooking oil and then offer it at profit,"

"It is crazy but the incentives are there."

There are also worries that taking EU land out of production to grow rapeseed oil in particular is developing more environment problems than it fixes. The more fuel of this type that is taken into cars the larger the deficit produced in the edible oils market. This had resulted in increased imports of palm oil from Indonesia, typically produced on deforested land.

"Once you consider these indirect results, biofuels made from vegetable oils in fact result worldwide in more emissions than you would get from using diesel in the very first location," stated Rob Bailey.

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

Biofuel advantages

The European Biodiesel Board (EBB), which represents the industry, external throughout the EU, said it understood the problems triggered by the required. But it believes that biofuels have numerous positives.

"Blaming biofuels for all the difficulties worldwide is a bit too exaggerated," said Isabelle Maurizi, task manager at the EBB.

"It has actually brought great deals of advantages. 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 hits the 5% of liquid fuels mark, the federal government deals with some tough decisions on how to move on on this problem as it deals with tripling the costs for drivers by 2020.

Insiders suggest its choice would be to try and get contract in Brussels on the impacts of indirect expenses which may constrain what counts as biofuel. However getting arrangement from nations with powerful farming sectors who gain from the present plan will be challenging.

"When you have a lobby that includes the agricultural sector and the oil sector it is extremely difficult for Governments to make a U-turn," said Rob Bailey.

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