The Renewable Fuels Agency (RFA) has reported on the impacts of the biofuel supplied in the first year of the UK’s Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO). Several fossil fuel suppliers are shown by the report to have failed to demonstrate the sustainability of their biofuels. Morgan Stanley and Topaz both missed all three UK government performance targets, while Chevron, Murco and Topaz failed to report any fuel meeting the RTFO’s Environmental Qualifying Standard. As well as companies with poor results, there were several that failed to have their data verified to the RFA’s satisfaction. BP, Murco and Prax reported meeting at least one target, but according to the RFA their data was not properly assured and the RFA could not confirm this.
ConocoPhillips, Greenergy and Mabanaft are identified for meeting all three government targets. ConocoPhillips and Mabanaft sourced feedstock certified to the UK’s ACCS sustainability standard, Greenergy undertook independent sustainability audits of Brazilian sugar cane, and Mabanaft and Greenergy supplied much of their fuel from wastes and by-products. There are also a large number of companies supplying only biofuels and meeting all three sustainability targets, and this includes all companies supplying biodiesel from used cooking oil.
The report also follows up on the Agency’s ‘Gallagher Review’, which calls for indirect effects of biofuels to be addressed by proposing a new methodology to identify biofuels with a low risk of causing indirect land use change. The study identifies example cases where this could be avoided, including palm cultivation on under-utilised but fertile low-value grassland in Indonesia; reducing land demand for cattle pasture by integrating cattle with soy or sugar cane plantations in Brazil; and taking simple measures to improve yields for sugar cane in the Philippines and palm oil in Liberia.
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