Boosting biofuels

saab biofuelToday, policy-makers are grappling with a range of tough environmental and social challenges: the need to reduce road transport emissions, to ensure security of energy supply, and to diversify the rural economy. The emerging biofuels industry in the UK has the potential to help address each of these challenges.

Emissions from road transport are increasing. But there are currently few readily available - and affordable - renewable alternatives to the conventionally powered internal combustion engine. Considering that today's vehicles can run on high blends without major engineering alterations, biofuels can make an immediate and substantial contribution to reducing CO2 output from road transport.

The promotion of biofuels in the road transport sector can help to reduce our economic reliance on fossil fuels by diversifying the supply of energy. General Motors believes that biofuels should be produced in a sustainable and carbon efficient way.

For more information on biofuels and GM's commitment pleaseDownload a PDF to read more

CO2 graphics

The UK is far behind Sweden and Brazil in terms of government support for the biofuel industry. The expansion of the UK biofuel industry could be greatly accelerated if government backing included the necessary tax breaks and legislation to make it commercially viable. Already government support of the biofuel industry in other countries around the world has shown how successful this alternative fuel can be.
GM has been actively lobbying the UK government to recognise the benefits of vehicles such as the Saab BioPower which is equipped to run on bioethanol E85 - a blend of 15% petrol and 85% renewable bioethanol, which can reduce life cycle CO2 emission by up to 70%. In particular, in advance of the 2007 budget GM provided a submission to HM Treasury calling on the government to implement strong signals to encourage fuel providers to make E85 more widely available. Furthermore, GM asked for stronger signals to fuel suppliers to take the necessary steps to develop 2nd generation biofuels as soon as possible in order to harness the lower well-to-wheel emissions profile that 2nd generation biofuels offer.

More specifically, General Motor's submission requested an integrated package of consumer incentives, encompassing vehicle excise duty, fuel duty, and company car tax. Having undertaken some detailed analysis, GM requested;
  • a minimum 3% discount from company car tax for vehicles equipped to run on high blend biofuels
  • that the current fuel duty rebate for biofuels should be prolonged and increased well above its current rate of 20 pence per litre
  • a significant reduction in vehicle excise duty to reflect well-to-wheel CO2 emissions from flexfuel vehicles.

In relation to biofuels, the UK government announced the following changes in its 2007 budget:

  • On company car tax: an annual discount of 2% for those vehicles which are capable of running on bioethanol E85
  • On Vehicle Excise Duty: an increase in the discount for alternatively fuelled vehicles from £10 to £20
  • On fuel duty: an extension of the current rebate of 20 pence per litre from 2009 to 2010

More from Dods
Advertise

Spread your message to an audience that counts, with options available for our website, email bulletins and publications including The House Magazine.