Biofuels: 'Irrational' and 'worse than nonrenewable fuel sources'

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

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

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

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

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

Deep fried fuel

But research performed for Chatham House states that reaching the 5% level suggests that UK drivers will have to pay an additional ₤ 460m a year because of the greater expense of fuel at the pump and from filling regularly as biofuels have a lower energy content.

The report say that if the UK is to meet its commitments to EU energy targets the expense to motorists is likely to rise to ₤ 1.3 bn per year by 2020.

"It is tough to find any great news," Rob Bailey, senior research study fellow at Chatham House, News.

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

The EU biofuel requireds are likewise having hugely distorting impacts in the market. Because utilized cooking oil is concerned as among the most sustainable types of biodiesel, the price for it has increased rapidly. Rob Bailey says that towards completion of 2012 it was more costly than refined palm oil.

"It develops a financial incentive to buy refined palm oil, cook a chip in it to turn it into used cooking oil and then sell it at profit,"

"It is crazy however the incentives are there."

There are also frets that taking EU land out of production to grow rapeseed oil in specific is producing more environment problems than it solves. The more fuel of this type that is taken into cars the bigger the deficit produced in the edible oils market. This had actually lead to increased imports of palm oil from Indonesia, often produced on deforested land.

"Once you consider these indirect impacts, biofuels made from veggie oils actually result worldwide in more emissions than you would receive from using diesel in the first place," stated Rob Bailey.

"Plus you are asking drivers to pay more for the fuel - it makes no sense, it is a totally unreasonable strategy."

Biofuel advantages

The European Biodiesel Board (EBB), which represents the market, external throughout the EU, stated it was aware of the problems triggered by the mandate. But it believes that biofuels have lots of positives.

"Blaming biofuels for all the problems in the world is a bit too exaggerated," said Isabelle Maurizi, task supervisor at the EBB.

"It has actually brought great deals of benefits. It has improved the security of our diesel