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

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

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

The author states that biodiesel made from grease was worse for the environment 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 include a growing proportion of sustainable products into the petrol and diesel they supply. These biofuels are mainly ethanol distilled from corn and biodiesel made from rapeseed, used cooking oil and tallow.

Deep fried fuel

But research study carried out for Chatham House states that reaching the 5% level means that UK drivers will have to pay an additional ₤ 460m a year since of the greater cost of fuel at the pump and from filling more frequently as biofuels have a lower energy content.

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

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

"Biofuels increase expenses and they are an extremely costly way to minimize carbon emissions," he stated.

The EU biofuel requireds are also having extremely distorting results in the market. Because used cooking oil is concerned as one of the most of biodiesel, the price for it has risen quickly. Rob Bailey says that towards completion of 2012 it was more costly than refined palm oil.

"It develops a monetary reward to purchase refined palm oil, cook a chip in it to turn it into utilized cooking oil and after that sell it at revenue,"

"It is crazy but the incentives are there."

There are likewise stresses that taking EU land out of production to grow rapeseed oil in specific is producing more environment issues than it resolves. The more fuel of this type that is put into automobiles the larger the deficit developed in the edible oils market. This had actually lead to increased imports of palm oil from Indonesia, often produced on deforested land.

"Once you take into account these indirect results, biofuels made from veggie oils in fact result worldwide in more emissions than you would get from using diesel in the first place," said Rob Bailey.

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

Biofuel benefits

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

"Blaming biofuels for all the troubles worldwide is a bit too exaggerated," said Isabelle Maurizi, job supervisor at the EBB.

"It has brought lots of advantages. It has improved the security of our diesel