Transition 21
UKIFDA has revealed it will be donating £2,000 to National Energy Action (NEA) from the proceeds of this year’s UKIFDA EXPO and Future Fuels conference being held on 7-8 July.
“We are delighted to announce our plans to donate £2,000 to NEA from the profits of our UKIFDA EXPO 2021,” says Ken Cronin, UKIFDA chief executive.
Redruth-based Mitchell and Webber, the first company in the UK to put HVO fuel to the test during the successful trials started last November, has supplied the renewable hydrotreated vegetable oil to heat a primary school in Gwinear.
Mitchell and Webber director John Weedon commented: “We all appreciate the need to help the environment as a priority and these trials are to ensure the fuel will work well when converting existing set-ups.
“We are pleased that only a low-cost conversion is needed in many cases and so far tests are extremely promising with all boilers performing well.”
Gwinear Community Primary School is the first in the country to use the renewable liquid fuel. Head teacher, Lee Gardiner, said: “Since our school is such a historic building it is extremely difficult to insulate using more modern techniques. Installing a completely new system would likely be disruptive to daily school life and could possibly damage such an important structure.
“So when I saw the success of Mitchell and Webber’s HVO conversions in other settings across Cornwall, I knew I had found the perfect option for Gwinear.”
Local MP and Secretary of State for environment, food and rural affairs, George Eustice, said on visiting the school: “It could be a very important stepping stone on the way to net zero in rural areas like this.
“There are a lot of people still reliant on old oil-fired boilers and this is a more environmentally-friendly fuel.
“They’re getting good results on boilers large and small.”
Fuel Oil News looks forward to seeing more success stories highlighting the positive future for alternative liquid fuels.
Despite objections, Certas Energy’s plans for a new £1.5 million fuel depot on the Isle of Wight have been given the go ahead, with Certas promising to be on the Island “for the long-haul”.
Hazchem Safety, a technical workwear provider to the fuel & gas distribution industry for the past 25 years, explains to fuel oil news some of the ways in which it is working to supply sustainable variations of hi-vis workwear, footwear and PPE as well as ways to recycle end-of-life garments.
Working in an industry where carbon emissions are, for now, inevitable, the small efforts which businesses make to become more sustainable are crucial. Slight changes in operations from paperless transactions to eco-friendly uniforms are some of the ways to work towards net zero.
Whatever your specification of workwear or PPE, Hazchem believes that you don’t have to be left out of the Green Revolution and is working to offer sustainable solutions.
Why should you consider sustainable garments?
The clothing industry contributes a shocking 10% of the planet’s greenhouse gas emissions, which is more than the entire aviation or shipping industries. Most unwanted clothing ends up in landfill or is incinerated when the raw materials could be reused in further garment production, a process which uses less fossil fuel and produces less emissions, than if they were to be made from brand new materials.
Sustainable garments are set to become permanent fixtures within technical workwear product lines, offering the same necessary safety specifications with less damage to the planet.
In response to end users’ needs for ‘green’ solutions to everyday operations, Hazchem is expanding its product lines to give customers a choice of sustainable options, such as the Ecovis range of hi-vis EN ISO 20471 garments, produced with 100% recycled polyester, with the same visibility and added environmental considerations, such as bio-degradable product packaging.
Something new – FR Fabrics with sustainable sources and processes
Taking advantage of innovations such as ModacrylicECO™ blend fabrics, Hazchem product manager, Rick Clark, explained how the company is developing inherent flame resistant and ARC Workwear using a sustainable and natural fibre. With customers at the focus point, Hazchem is keen to source and develop environmentally conscious workwear options which can be used seamlessly within the industry.
ModacrylicECO™ fabrics from HAZTEC® include a substantial content that is from sustainable materials and sources, and produced with eco-friendly processes requiring less transportation than that needed for the production of cotton. This content has minimal environmental impact, and even solvents used in the process are captured to be used again.
Sustainable safety footwear
Committed to providing customers with what they need, Hazchem is seeking out sustainable workwear options such as the COFRA GreenFit footwear range, constructed with eco-friendly materials.
Using COFRA’s own innovative material, ‘Poly-Green’, a blend of virgin and recycled Polyurethane used in various parts of the shoe, makes for a perfect combination of support and shock absorption. Without compromising on necessary technical specifications, this carefully considered material is also antistatic, antibacterial, and anatomic, keeping the feet dry and the wearer safe and comfortable.
Chosen for its commitment to sustainability, the COFRA footwear range features laces and labels made from 100% recycled bottles. In addition, each pair from this range is packaged in a 100% recycled paper carton.
Want not? Waste not! End of life garment recycling
Responding to common problems experienced with technical workwear by their customers, Hazchem has developed a 100% sustainable and traceable system for securely disposing of company branded garments – through shredding end-of life garments so they are ready to be re-used as Geotextiles, special papers, and other innovative products.
Recycling technical workwear may seem a complex, specialised process, but Hazchem’s system is simple, with a straightforward collection service from your site. Whether this collection is a one-off, weekly, monthly or every 6 months, your end-of-life garments are safely shredded, re-purposed, and a certificate is issued to prove it.
Croftamie based James D Bilsland recently shared images of its brand new tanker, running on HVO.
Jodie Allan, manager, James D Bilsland commented: “We have just purchased a new truck from RTN and have made the decision to run this vehicle on HVO, enabling us to reduce our carbon emissions by up to 90% with this vehicle and start decarbonising the rest of our fleet. We are pleased to be able to offer this fuel to customers looking to decarbonise, as it is a great product that produces positive results without any modification to vehicles.”
The company is currently partaking in the first trials of using HVO renewable fuels as an alternative to home heating oil in Scotland, as part of the future fuels trial.
Jodie continued: “We are so far pleased with how HVO is performing as an alternative to Kerosene in the domestic market within a property that we have converted.”
With UK developments in sustainable fuel increasing both the range available, as well as the ways in which they can be used, OTS Group identified the need to ensure that there are appropriate fuel delivery, storage and maintenance systems available for these sustainable fuels. Working with organisations like the Fuel Experts Association (FEA), which represents companies who are developing clean energy and clean liquid biofuels such as HVO, the group has developed its sustainable fuels storage offering.
OTS Group, the UK distributor for the ‘Green’ storage tanks, is leading the way to aid end users with temporary (and permanent) storage solutions for sustainable fuels, which are available for purchase, hire or loan, while they evaluate their desired route for sustainability.
The flagship products are the double-walled polyethylene tanks intended for storage and distribution of HVO (or other biodiesel fuels). These tanks are made of high-quality polyethylene, the main feature of which is resistance to various weather conditions and come with built in dispensing equipment stowed in a secure cabinet.
The AdBlue® tanks are made of special materials compliant with DIN 70 070, a European Chemical Industry standard, due to the corrosive properties of the substance.
“Throughout this constant evolution, innovation has remained the underlying principle to everything we do,” comments OTS Group chairman, Bruce Woodal, and managing director Steve Gain believes that there is a bright future for clean drop-in fuels: “One of the main opportunities for these fuels is that they can be manufactured to directly replace conventional fossil fuels (so called “drop-in” fuels) which means that the uptake is likely to be quick and widespread as it can be used by the existing fleet.”
There are currently in excess of 34 million passenger vehicles on the road in the UK using conventional engines, and more will be added between now and 2035.
Nicholl Fuel Oils has installed Northern Ireland’s first hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) fuelling facility at its Carryduff 24-hour forecourt with plans to make this new, renewable biofuel available across all of the Nicholl Auto 365 forecourts as well as available for bulk purchase in 2021/2022.
Could biomethane hold the key to reduction of HGV emissions?
The Transport Policy Briefing, hosted by ADBA (Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association) has revealed its agenda, including a discussion on the potential of biomethane to decarbonise fleets and cities.
The briefing, taking place on the 9th June 2021, will host panel discussions on the potential of biomethane, why it could be used to fuel vehicles and how switching to biomethane could save money as well as the planet.
Guest speakers include Philip Fjeld, CEO of CNG Fuels, Gary Mason, engineering director of Nottingham City Transport, David Hurren, CEO of Air Liquide and more.
If you would like to find out more about the potential of biomethane to decarbonise fleet operations, click here.
UKPIA welcomes the recent UK Government announcement of £166 million towards green technology projects. The association is particularly pleased to see the investment in hydrogen as a primary decarbonisation technology for manufacturing processes.
As part of this announcement, it has been confirmed Essar Oil (UK) Limited will receive a grant of over £7 million towards the upgrade of a distillation unit with a new, net zero ready furnace at Stanlow. Phillips 66 Limited will also receive a grant of over £500,000 towards research into fuel switching in the Humber refinery’s gas fired heaters, to see how greater use could be made of hydrogen in that process.
Find out more about Essar Oil UK’s project here.
Whilst hydrogen is already an important part of the refining process, use of low carbon hydrogen would result in significant reductions of emissions at the refinery and, therefore, across the lifecycle of all of its products.
UKPIA eagerly awaits the publication of the UK Government’s Hydrogen Strategy to help industry further to align long-term investment decisions with a low carbon future.
UKPIA director-general, Stephen Marcos Jones, comments:
A new project that forms part of Essar’s plans to decarbonise the Stanlow Refinery in North West England has secured a £7.2m grant from the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund.
The funding has been made available through the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and will be invested in a project to install a new furnace in the crude distillation unit at Stanlow that will be able to run on a 100% hydrogen fuel source. It will be the UK’s first refinery-based furnace able to be fuelled entirely by hydrogen.
Once completed and operational, the net zero ready furnace will reduce Stanlow’s CO2 emissions by 11% per year and deliver immediate energy efficiency improvements. The furnace will use hydrogen produced by the HyNet North West project at Stanlow, with the first stage of the initiative set to come on stream in 2025.
The new furnace is another element in Essar’s transition to becoming a ‘Low Carbon Energy Provider’ of the future. This will also include the construction of two blue hydrogen production hubs at Stanlow under the HyNet project, which will attract £750 million in total investment and support a hydrogen economy across North West England and North Wales. HyNet’s hydrogen and carbon capture and storage (CCS) chain represents a major step forward for low carbon energy technology and innovation in the UK.
Together with HyNet, Essar has also announced plans to create a new facility to convert non[1]recyclable household waste into sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) for use by airlines operating at UK airports. The £600m project involves Essar Oil UK, Fulcrum BioEnergy and Essar’s subsidiary company Stanlow Terminals Limited and will convert several hundred thousand tonnes of pre-processed waste, otherwise destined for incineration or landfill, into approximately 100 million litres of low carbon SAF annually.
Essar chief operating officer Jon Barden commented: “This year has been about beginning to execute the strategy we’ve put in place to decarbonise Stanlow and position the site as a provider of sustainable fuels for the future. The investment into CD4, alongside the HyNet and Fulcrum projects, demonstrates our commitment to developing low carbon operations, with the ambition of becoming a net zero site by 2040.
“The funding from BEIS is an endorsement of the steps we’re taking, as well as a signal of the Government’s intent to transform the North West into a clean energy hub supporting jobs and economic growth for years to come.”
The key speakers and industry topics have been revealed by UKIFDA for the two-day Future Fuels conference during UKIFDA EXPO 2021 on 7-8 July which will include a ministerial address by Lord Callanan, minister for climate change & corporate responsibility.
“We are very pleased with the plans for this year’s EXPO and what will be our first ever virtual event and Future Fuels conference – and delighted to reveal the line-up of speakers and talks for the two days,” says Ken Cronin, UKIFDA chief executive.
“At its core, this year’s exhibition is focused on Future Fuels – the incredible investment our industry is making in renewable liquid fuels and the central issues associated with it, including the role of next generation renewable fuels in helping both the UK and Irish Governments achieve net zero targets and the transition to renewable liquid fuels.”
Across the two days of the conference there will be a number of breaks to allow delegates to visit exhibitors’ booths and also for exhibitors to make announcements or invite people to specific presentations.
The programmes for the two days are sponsored by Aon and Cobo Tankers and Services Ltd, who will each sponsor a day together with EXPO headline sponsor Phillips 66 Ltd.
Ken Cronin will launch UKIFDA EXPO 2021 with an overview of how the two days will run, to make it as easy as possible for exhibitors, visitors, members, and delegates, to make the most of what’s on offer virtually this year.
UKIFDA membership and events manager, Dawn Shakespeare, comments: “We will kick off day one with sponsors Aon who are providing our keynote speech to get everyone geared up for a great two days of knowledge sharing, networking, and business deals.
“James Spencer, managing director of Portland, will then present an analysis of market trends that includes key trends of the past 2 years and highlights for the future, followed by an EU-focussed roundtable discussion on key events in the EU that will impact our industry over the next decade. Participating in these discussions are Kevin McPartlin of Fuels for Ireland, Nick Hayes of UKIFDA, and Thierry Javit of the European Confederation of Fuel Distributors.
“There will also be a policy roundtable with the Department for Transport, BEIS and the treasury on the key themes of the current policy landscape covering heat, transport and taxation.
“In the afternoon of day one a discussion on fuel poverty will take place, focusing on the goals for fuel poverty and how our industry help. This will feature representatives from the UK Government’s Committee on Fuel Poverty, National Energy Action, The Home Group, and the National Housing Federation.
“Towards the end of the day, representatives of the trade associations and countries will be setting the scene for future fuels, what needs to be done and the new norm. Taking part will be Ken Cronin of UKIFDA, Paul Rose of OFTEC and David Blevings of NIOILS.
“The day will end with awards being handed out by UKIFDA president Janet Kettlewell, for depot of the year, driver of the year, green award, and an award for innovation.”
The format for UKIFDA EXPO 2021 is similar to the programme for previous EXPOs that have taken place during the past 40 years – only this time everything has been designed with the virtual experience in mind.
“Day two will be opened with an address by Lord Callanan, who has ministerial oversight of our sector, followed by Simon Holt of headline sponsors Phillips 66 Ltd and a presentation from Fernando Gomis and Joby Clark of day two sponsors Cobo Tankers and Services Ltd,” adds Dawn Shakespeare.
“A discussion on the key trends in the production of biofuels and next generation renewable fuels will be a highlight of the second day, with analytical contributions from representatives of Argus Media, Climate Change Committee and key suppliers Neste, Greenergy, Prax/Harvest, Phillips 66 Ltd and Argent Energy.
“Day two will also feature an important and insightful roundtable Q&A on the how the industry trials of HVO renewable liquid fuel are progressing in UK homes.
UKIFDA CEO Ken Cronin adds: “It’s a busy couple of days, to say the least – and we genuinely cannot wait to engage with exhibitors, members, visitors, and delegates during the exhibition and conference.
“We have all worked extremely hard on the planning of this year’s virtual event and have put together a fantastic line-up of key speakers together with relevant, thought-provoking topics in a range of formats that include presentations, discussions, Q&As and informal exchanges.
“The programmes for the two days will no doubt be fine-tuned between now and 7/8 July but we wanted to share our plans to-date and to encourage as many companies and individuals as possible to join us online and make our first virtual UKIFDA EXPO a huge success. As time gets closer to the event we will be using the conference app more and more to communicate information.”
To register as a delegate please click here.
Being a virtual conference we are able to take bookings to be an exhibitor much closer to the day so it is not too late! For further information please contact Dawn Shakespeare via email.
Diversification is a constant theme of our industry currently as those involved in all aspects of fuel production and distribution find ways to keep pace with the evolving nature of fuel demand. Here we speak with Damian Fusco, owner of Bangor Fuels in Northern Ireland, to learn how the business has grown and diversified since he took the bold step to take it on 20 years ago.
It began with belief
Now a multi-faceted business, Bangor Fuels is where it all started, and where Damian clearly still feels the greatest sense of pride. Damian takes us back:
“Most local people will recall Rayker Fuels, a coal business. Well, I managed them from 1994 and, after a few years there, I saw an opportunity to buy the business.”
It turns out that ‘buying the business’ was a different arrangement to the way it would usually be understood. Damian didn’t have the ready cash to invest in the way he wanted to but he did have sufficient belief in the future of the business to propose a bolder arrangement.
“I offered the owners the opportunity to sell to me and for me to pay them back out of annual profits. Accepted, I took over in 2001, and so it began. I had just backed myself to make a success of it and be able to make a living as well as paying for the business!”
A lot of hard work followed over the next 12 months leading to two major developments. January 2002 saw the purchase of a first oil tanker and then the business moved to Gransha Stores later that same year.
The years that followed were about keeping his head down and building a reputation.
“There is no real secret to those years,” Damian admitted. “It was largely down to hard work, making sure that our service was second to none, and holding a keen price. I didn’t have a grand vision of where the business was going, and none at all of me being where I am now.”
An unspoken testimony to the personal graft that Damian has invested over the years is that his hands are black. They are, in fact, ‘permanently black’ due to the number of times he lay under lorries and vehicles until the early hours of the morning putting in new clutches or doing what was needed to keep the wheels moving.
“If it needed done I just did it myself, whatever it was.” A commitment well understood by other self-made businesses but, as Damian is first to acknowledge, family and friends were also a ‘massive support’.
Constant investment and growth
As the company has grown it has continually looked for ways to improve and diversify through investment. By 2007, a new home was needed, and 5 Balloo Way was purchased, which is where Bangor Fuels remains now.
With the rapid growth experienced under his ownership, we asked Damian to explain the principles the business was so successfully built on and he answers without hesitation:
“Quicker, cheaper and more reliable. That’s what I set out to be and how we’ve succeeded. Furthermore, we are now renowned for our respected ‘one price promise’ – irrespective of distance.”
This approach proved to be a successful growth strategy, very popular with customers and, having started in North Down and Ards, BT1 to BT9 and BT16 were soon incorporated, and in time, greater Belfast and beyond as Damian confirms:
“We now go to Antrim and Larne, as demand has pushed expansion.”
Diversification came naturally
Another driving force is the desire to add value to the local area and employ people who are willing and keen to work. Constantly regarding challenges as opportunities has led to natural diversification and the business became businesses, with Damian now proud owner of not only Bangor Fuels, but also Fusco Vehicle Sales, Maypole Garden Services, Maypole Construction Design & Build, Maypole Lawnmowers and, most recently, Wolseys Bar & Restaurant. All are now prosperous, well-known local brands important to the local area with Bangor Fuels employing 35 people and 85 employed in total across the companies.
When asked how these other businesses came about Damian explains:
“What do you do with drivers in the summer when orders are down? How do you keep seasonal factors at bay and keep paying people? Well, we put an ad in the Spectator and opened a gardening company!”
And this ability to create an opportunity from a challenge wasn’t a one-off.
“What happens when you build a fleet of vehicles that need replaced, and need repaired, and lawnmowers that need updated and fixed. Well, you get the drift.”
At each challenge the business has evolved and grown, and we wonder what other developments may be coming.
“The challenges of the future are not just operational, such as the fact that it is now much harder to get qualified tanker drivers, but also how far to expand and develop the business.” Damian replies thoughtfully.
“I’m not necessarily going to grow province-wide, but the business is expanding organically as new customers continue to come to us. And I’m still very passionate about Bangor. All my businesses are in Bangor and I try to support the local community where possible. It would have been easier and less rick to tick along as Bangor Fuels, but I’m keen to invest locally, which is why I’ve expanded into other local areas”.
It seems that Damian is not a man to rest on his laurels and our suspicions are confirmed when we ask about his out of work passions. Damian thinks for a while then admits: “When I’m not working, I’m in work”.
Given this passion for the business and the area we have no doubt there will be more developments to hear from Bangor Fuels soon and we will look forward to sharing them.
The hands may be black, but the future certainly doesn’t appear to be so.
Essar Oil (UK) Limited (EOUK), which owns and operates the Stanlow Refinery, today announced that it has closed new financial arrangements of over US$850 million. This has allowed EOUK to replace its former credit facility as well as access additional capital, thereby strengthening its financial position.
The funding is made up of liquidity from a diversified range of sources, including bilateral arrangements with many of its key customers on enhanced payment terms and other long-term financings, linked primarily to crude supply.
With these financial arrangements now in place, EOUK has more low-cost liquidity to meet its upcoming requirements and can continue to focus its energies on its transition to become a “Low Carbon Energy Provider” of the future. EOUK is already working on delivering two blue hydrogen production hubs at Stanlow, which will attract £750 million in total investment.
Find out more about Essar’s transition to becoming a ‘Low Carbon Energy Provider’ of the future here.
Follow-on capacity growth is planned to work towards the Government’s new target of 5GW of low carbon hydrogen for power, transport, industry and homes. Stanlow is committed to reaching 80% of the Government-set targets. In addition, EOUK remains committed to delivering the necessary operational cost reductions at the refinery over the course of the coming year in order to help secure its long-term future and to ensure it remains competitive in its traditional refining business.
EOUK has also recently completed a review and update of its corporate governance and its board has adopted the recommendations arising out of that review process, which included independent input from Ashurst LLP. As a result of that process, the board has committed to appointing two independent non-executive directors to the board.
Commenting on the recent developments, chairman Prashant Ruia said: “Securing this financing demonstrates the confidence all our stakeholders have in our long-term vision for Stanlow.
“We believe this confidence will be further bolstered by the updates we have made to our corporate governance, which includes a commitment to appoint two new independent non-executive directors to our board. These appointments will further enhance our overall governance and risk assessment processes, as well as providing insights and strategic inputs to the business as it continues its transition to low carbon operations.
“With a strong economic recovery driven by the UK Government’s roadmap out of the pandemic, I feel that our business has moved into a positive and progressive phase for the benefit of all of our stakeholders and employees. We look forward to furthering our investments in exciting new technologies, securing high-tech jobs and the Stanlow’s future at the heart of the UK’s green revolution.”
Essar was delighted to host a visit to Stanlow Refinery today by Andrew Stephenson MP, minister of state at the Department for Transport. The minister met senior company representatives and discussed plans to create a new facility to convert non-recyclable household waste into sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) for use by airlines operating at UK airports.
Exolum’s CEO, Jorge Lanza, recently addressed the evolution of the business and the new challenges faced in the current energy transition. The company will continue its traditional business of hydrocarbon transport and storage in an efficient and sustainable manner, ensuring that society has access to fuels, while progressing towards the diversification and expansion of logistics services for other products. This will enable the company to leverage its capabilities and guarantee business sustainability.
To support this diversification, a dedicated division, promoting innovation and entrepreneurship within the company under the name of Exolum Ventures, cooperates with other entrepreneurs or start-ups that can contribute to faster and better innovation.
Hydrogen
Exolum has submitted a portfolio of renewable hydrogen-based projects to the call for expressions of interest launched by the Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge and the Ministry of Industry. This portfolio of projects has associated investments reaching over 500 million euros and includes different projects to be developed on the Iberian Peninsula, the Balearic Islands and the Canary Islands.
Exolum focuses on integrating solutions throughout the value chain for the production, transport, storage and distribution of green hydrogen. One of the most ambitious projects is the development of hydrogen corridors that cover the whole Iberian Peninsula, thus allowing the new energy vector to have a uniform penetration. The company is also developing alliances throughout the hydrogen value chain that enable the development of new technologies.
The circular economy
Exolum is looking to use its excellent location and its extensive experience in the hydrocarbon sector to develop projects relating to water and waste treatment. One such project is the building of a waste recycling plant in the port of Algeciras which will make it possible to transform wastewater into fuel for ships.
Eco-fuels
Exolum manages infrastructures in Spain that are fully adapted to biofuel storage and distribution and cooperates with the oil sector in the development and promotion of 2nd generation advanced biofuels.
Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF)
Exolum’s AVIKOR platform offers both individuals and companies flying from Spain the chance to do so more sustainably by enabling them to reduce the emissions from their flights by using sustainable aviation fuel.
Sustainability
Exolum has signed the UN Global Compact committing to making a contribution to compliance with the Sustainable Development Goals established by the UN in 2015 and has a sustainability strategy that aims to reduce its CO2 emissions by 50% in 2025 and to become a zero-emissions company in 2050.
Luc Smets has been appointed general manager of the Prax Lindsey Oil Refinery at North Killingholme, bringing with him more than three decades of experience in the petrochemical industry, with 23 of those years spent with ExxonMobil.
Watson Fuels has recently announced that customers can now purchase Carbon Offset Fuel from the company. A proportion of the price paid for fuel will go towards projects that compensate for the carbon impact of the fuel being used.
The company has stated that it only purchases carbon offsets from projects that have been independently verified against international standards, providing a robust methodology and registry process that ensures emission reductions are real, additional, permanent and unique.
The offsets are currently being procured from a range of solar and wind projects across India through Watson Fuels’ sister company World Kinect Energy Services, with all projects meeting the Gold Standard or Verified Carbon Standard (VCS). The offsets represent reduction happening in the last five years and support UN Sustainable Development goals 7 and 13.
As part of the combustion process, all liquid fuels release greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. CO2E (CO2 equivalent) is a metric used to convert the net impact of these gases into an equivalent amount of carbon dioxide with the same global warming potential. All liquid fuels have a CO2E conversion factor. Buying fuel from Watson Fuels means that a proportion of the price paid for fuel goes towards projects that compensate for the carbon impact of the fuel used.
“We were pleased to launch our Carbon Offset Fuel offering to customers this April,” comments Ian Probert, marketing director. “We’ve been fortunate to be able to leverage the expertise, scale and buying power of our colleagues at World Kinect Energy Services, who have decades of experience in both the carbon markets and the sustainability space.”
Any distributors looking to purchase carbon offsets through World Fuel Services, are invited to call the wholesale fuel desk on 0207 808 5137.
A leading campaign group is launching an industry-wide survey to discover the ‘State of the Hydrogen Nation’ ahead of the expected publication of the UK’s Hydrogen Strategy in June.
Members of the cross-industry Hydrogen Strategy Now (HSN) group, which combined employ more than 100,000 people and have a value of £100bn in the UK, stand ready to invest up to £3bn in hydrogen projects and create thousands of jobs across the country.
The group is launching a survey to find out the true scale of the sector that already exists in the UK – and to highlight the untapped potential that could be boosted by the introduction of an ambitious hydrogen strategy from the Government.
The HSN campaign is encouraging as many organisations as possible with links to hydrogen to get involved – whether they are HSN members or not.
A spokesperson for the campaign said: “Today, industry stands ready to invest, create lots of high-quality jobs and deliver net zero gains, and we’re keen to demonstrate this via our survey.
“We’re hoping for a high response rate so we can showcase the true potential of the sector and the scale of its economic, job creation and environmental ambitions.
“As a collective, the Hydrogen Strategy Now group believes the UK has what it takes to become a global leader in low-carbon hydrogen technology, but we must move fast to realise this opportunity and achieve the maximum economic benefit.
“Hydrogen will play an essential role in the world’s future, low-carbon economy – and with the government setting even more ambitious climate change targets, now is the perfect time to unlock the UK’s hydrogen potential.”
The group was established last year to call for the government to make a serious commitment to invest in hydrogen technologies and to publish a clear, strategic plan for hydrogen to unlock significant private funding.
They HSN collective, which has 60 members and support from 67 cross-party peers and MPs, believes a UK-wide hydrogen economy will:
UKIFDA has revealed the sponsor for the first day of the two-day Future Fuels conference on 7-8 July as insurance broker Aon, and for the second day of the conference, Cobo Tankers and Services Ltd.
Long standing supporters of UKIFDA EXPO, Aon and Cobo Tankers and Services Ltd will sponsor this year’s inaugural virtual conference – and join headline sponsor Phillips 66 Ltd as supporters of this annual event, which is this year, celebrating its 40th anniversary.
UKIFDA chief executive, Ken Cronin says: “This year’s EXPO promises to be just as positive and rewarding for those involved as all our previous events have been and we’re hugely excited that this will be our first virtual EXPO in its 40-year history.
“Given all that we are doing as an industry to contribute to the Government’s net zero target, we wanted to ensure the opportunity that EXPO presents for exhibitors, Members and delegates to discuss and showcase the transition to renewable liquid fuels, went ahead this year.”
UKIFDA made the decision back in January to make this year’s exhibition virtual for the first time in order to enable everyone to attend and participate in the two days’ programmes in the safest possible way without any Covid-related restrictions or worries.
John Jenkins, Aon says: “It is fantastic to be sponsoring the opening day of the first ever virtual UKIFDA EXPO as Aon. Having been involved in so many of the previous EXPOs over the years as both The John Reynolds Group and Henderson Insurance Brokers, it’s wonderful that as our first year fully integrated into Aon that we are able to support the Future Fuels conference in its new online format.
“We know that exhibitors and visitors will enjoy the virtual experience and get so much from it as it really is the industry’s key event and provides the chance to discuss important issues and connect with others from across the sector.”
Fernando Gomis, Cobo Tankers and Services UK Ltd says: “We’re delighted to be sponsoring day two of the first ever virtual UKIFDA EXPO. It’s such welcome news UKIFDA found a way to make it safe for the annual event to take place in the current climate, and we’re proud to be involved in such a big way in the programme plans for the second day which focuses on the future of the industry and future fuels.”
As well as being sponsors of the 2nd day of the conference Cobo Tankers and Services is also exhibiting and are promising exciting new things to showcase to visitors to their virtual exhibition booth.
Dawn Shakespeare, UKIFDA membership and events manager, comments: “With three months left to go before the exhibition takes place, we have over 25 confirmed exhibitors already. These include longstanding exhibitors such as Phillips 66 Ltd, Cobo Tankers and Services Ltd, Dunraven Systems Ltd, Greenergy, Fuelsoft, Williams Tanker Services, Maygar SA, Oilshield and Mechtronic and new and returning exhibitors such as Commercial Fuel Solutions Ltd, Kingspan Water & Energy and Hospital & Medical Care Association. We are anticipating around 50 exhibitors in total online this year and are looking forward to booking more exhibitors over the next few months.”
Ken Cronin adds: “We’ve turned our initial disappointment at not having a physical EXPO this year into determination to make our first virtual event the best it can be – and just as successful as previous EXPOs have been for the past 40 years. We’ve realised that as well as bigger challenges to arranging a virtual event there are bigger opportunities too, and we intend to seize both and work hard to make this virtual exhibition a real achievement for everyone involved with it.
“We’re excited by the line-up for the two days as it’s varied, current and future-focussed. Every aspect of the days has been designed for easy discussion and interaction with our online audience, both exhibitors and delegates alike.
“Across both days, we will showcase the industry’s hard work with regard to meeting carbon emission targets through the introduction of renewable liquid fuels and a roadmap for a decarbonised future.
“We want as many companies and individuals, exhibitors and visitors, as possible to join us virtually on 7th and 8th July and join our discussions across the two-day event – and can’t wait to connect with everyone.”
For further information on this year’s virtual UKIFDA EXPO, please contact Dawn Shakespeare via email ds@ukifda.org or visit ukifda.org/ukifda-expo to sign up to the exhibition or to book a stand.
This spring sees OTS Group Ltd celebrating its 50th anniversary and, from humble beginnings in 1971 in a farm cowshed to becoming a leader in the fuel industry, the company has never lost sight of its values.
UKIFDA has launched the 2021 UKIFDA Green Awards in collaboration with insurance and risk management solution Oilshield.
Now in its third year, the UKIFDA Green Award is sponsored by Oilshield and raises awareness of environmental initiatives within the liquid fuel distribution industry – recognising and rewarding those who are leading the way in sustainability and environmental performance for a decarbonised future.
The awards will be presented during the first Future Fuels conference at this year’s virtual UKIFDA EXPO on 7th-8th July.
Judges (Oilshield and UKIFDA) are looking for a company who can demonstrate:
Essar-owned Stanlow refinery, located in Ellesmere Port, is reportedly facing financial problems, but the company has said it is fully committed to its operations at the Ellesmere Port oil refinery, including plans to decarbonise its activities and produce sustainable fuel there.
It has been reported that the plunging demand for fuel during the pandemic has forced Essar Oil UK to have discussions with the Government with regard to its financial position.
Essar has recently said that there was a ‘material uncertainty’ that could throw doubt over its ability to continue as a going concern. The company also added that a ‘significant drop in demand and poor refining margins, coupled with market volatility caused operating losses’.
A spokesperson for Essar said the company has ‘historically been very profitable, but the pandemic has affected all refiners, with repeated lockdowns leading to reduced products demand and depressed refining margins’.
“We are not a levered business. We remain confident we can manage through this period and come out stronger as the economy continues to recover.”
Essar bought the former Shell refinery at Stanlow in 2011. The site directly employs around 900 staff, with up to a further 800 contractors and produces 16pc of the UK’s diesel and petrol as well as almost 10bn litres of aviation fuel a year.
With reports suggesting that discussions could involve a request for direct financial support, questions would be sure to arise around the ‘optic’ of the government providing such support to the fossil fuel industry in the year of COP26. It will be interesting to see if this could be avoided by placing the emphasis of any support on Essar’s plans to move to more sustainable ventures.
Diversifying to thrive or survive?
In January 2021, plans were announced to create a £760m hydrogen production plant at Stanlow with Essar and Progressive Energy, developers of HyNet North West, joining forces in a venture to produce low carbon hydrogen at the Ellesmere port refinery. The hydrogen will be manufactured for use across the HyNet region and is expected to create hundreds of construction jobs, followed by thousands more across the region once the network is completed.
Stein Ivar Bye, Essar Oil UK chief executive, said at the time:
“Essar is committed to innovative growth as a means to create positive impact to both economy and environment. HyNet and hydrogen production is integral to Stanlow’s strategy and will set it on a journey to be the UK’s first net zero emission refinery with the ambition to avoid emissions of over two million tonnes of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere per year, the equivalent of taking nearly a million cars off the road.
“With the support from government to establish the appropriate business incentives, together with Progressive Energy, we are committed to undertaking the development and the financing of its construction.”
February brought Essar’s announcement that it has joined forces with Fulcrum BioEnergy and Stanlow Terminals to create a new £600m facility which will convert non-recyclable household waste into sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) for use by airlines operating at UK airports.
This project, Fulcrum NorthPoint, will create 800 direct and indirect jobs during the design, build and commissioning process and more than 100 permanent jobs during its operation.
A spokesperson for Essar said:
“Historically, Essar Oil UK has been a very profitable business that has attracted over $1bn in investment since its acquisition in 2011. It is a long-standing private company without public shareholders.
“The global COVID pandemic has affected all refiners, with repeated lockdowns leading to reduced product demand and depressed refining margins.
“We have successfully traded through a very difficult 12 months and are now seeing increased demand for road transport fuels and improving refining margins, which has resulted in increased throughput at the Stanlow Manufacturing Complex.
“We are not a levered business and currently we do not have any short term or long-term bank debt on the company, other than working capital lines.
“Prior to coronavirus, we were generating EBITDA in excess of $300m per year. We remain confident that we can manage through this period and come out stronger as the economy clearly continues to recover.”
This Spring sees OTS Group Ltd celebrating its 50th anniversary and, from its humble beginnings in 1971 in a farm cowshed to becoming a leader in the fuel industry, the company has never lost sight of its values.
In our March issue we reported on a ground-breaking industry trial.
Accepting the inevitability of an end date for the use of fossil fuels in home-heating, industry bodies UKIFDA and OFTEC, as well as tank manufacturers, distributors and many more are coming together to ensure there is a future for liquid biofuels in our industry. The first UK trials of alternative liquid fuels in home-heating were rolled out late last year and our content editor, Stephanie Samuel, caught up with UKIFDA chief executive Ken Cronin, OFTEC CEO Paul Rose and John and Robert Weedon, directors of South West based distributor Mitchell and Webber, to find out more about this forward-thinking approach that could make industry history.
“I have been hugely impressed by the work the industry has done on the winter trials,” said Ken Cronin, president of UKIFDA. “Both the Climate Change Committee (CCC) and the National Grid Future Energy Scenarios (FES) predict a significant proportion of our customers will require some form of biofuel by 2050 to help meet the UK’s net zero commitment. We support these assertions as these homes tend to be rural and therefore difficult to reach for grid purposes and/or of an age and construction that make retrofitting for other technologies difficult technically or economically.”
Enthusiastically embraced
Operating out of Cornwall, distributor Mitchell and Webber was the first company to deliver new, low carbon heating fuel for the UK trials in a partnership with OFTEC and UKIFDA. Commenting on the trials, which have seen a number of customers who previously relied on heating oil trialling HVO since December last year, John Weedon said:
“We pushed hard to be the ones to trial this first because we have thousands of customers who will have difficulty in changing heating technologies. Talking about alternative fuels can only get you so far, you’ve got to get up and make it happen.
“We’ve been in this industry for over 120 years and, even as the end date for fossil fuels gets ever closer, there are still 38,000 homes running on oil in Cornwall. As ever, we are determined to get the best alternative fuel for our customers.”
Speaking about the attitudes of their customers, Robert Weedon confirmed their enthusiastic interest:
“We are getting lots of enquiries from those who would be happy to participate in the trial, and we’ve had feedback that customers are delighted that we are looking towards the future for fuel, especially as so many are still using oil here.”
It is pleasing to see an early confidence in HVO already in Cornwall, as John explained:
“This positive attitude is great news for Mitchell and Webber customers, as the greater the demand for HVO, we very much hope the more affordable it will become. The positive response so far may be largely down to the fact that the cost of conversion to HVO, or other alternative fuels, is very minimal compared to the cost of heat pump installation, for example.”
A huge opportunity for a cost-effective solution
Ken Cronin commented:
“We believe very much in finding the right solution at the right cost with the least amount of disruption for each home. We know that customers are concerned about climate change but equally concerned about cost. What these trials are doing is showing that there is a very simple technical solution and I am delighted at the level of interest being shown.”
Robert Weedon said:
“We have to be practical about what is and isn’t a possibility for our customers. There is fuel poverty here in Cornwall. Not everyone can afford heat pumps which cost over £10k. The government grants will dry up by March this year and questions remain over the capabilities of the grid – especially with electric charging points for vehicles also a key topic here.”
OFTEC CEO, Paul Rose, also expressed a confidence in the biofuel and the necessity of these trials:
“We are extremely confident that HVO will be compatible with virtually all existing oil heating systems. However, undertaking rigorous trials is essential to provide the level of confidence in the new fuel that consumers and government will demand, so this is a key step in the process of bringing the fuel to market. It also enables industry to learn about the characteristics of the new fuel and to prepare the guidance information that heating technicians and fuel suppliers will require.
“The trial is in its early stages, but we have plans to make it much bigger. To do this, we are applying for government innovation funding and are hopeful this will be successful.
“There is increasing recognition by policy makers that many off-gas-grid households will not be able to convert to other types of renewable heating in a cost-effective way, due to the high cost of both the appliance and energy efficiency improvements that will be needed. Consequently, there is a huge opportunity for a renewable liquid fuel such as HVO to heat these hard-to- treat homes.
“Conversion to HVO from kerosene will lower the carbon emissions of the average home by around 88% – a huge reduction and greater than both heat pumps and biomass systems. If our industry can provide governments with the evidence that HVO offers a low cost, reliable and disruption-free solution, then we should be able to retain a significant market share and play a vital role in meeting the net zero target.”
Expansion of trials
The trial is now expanding, with other distributors trialling HVO with their own customer base. Mitchell and Webber has also expanded the appliances that they are testing HVO with, as John confirms:
“It’s working better than expected at the moment, but we are rigorously testing this over an extended period of time and also for 5 different appliances, not just boilers.”
So far, the biofuel has also been used to fuel a customer’s Aga cooker, with a pot burner conversion, and initial results show that more heat is produced with less fuel used.
Financial and policy support will be key to success
Commenting on the expansion of these trials in the UK, Paul Rose said:
“Up to now, the trials have been funded by industry itself, whether by trade associations such as OFTEC and UKIFDA, or by individual companies such as Mitchell and Webber, who are passionate about the potential that HVO offers. The fact that we have done this underlines how serious our industry is, and the good news is that this work is being coordinated by a steering committee covering both fuel distributors and OFTEC. This will enable us to capture the learning outcomes and maximise the PR and policy value of this work.”
Looking ahead to the next stages of the trials, Ken said:
“The next stage for us will be to expand the trial geographically and across the range of possible appliances and talk to government about making this a reality.”
Paul Rose also highlighted how expanding the trials will be expensive, hence the industry bodies bidding for government funding:
“The government has already supported other heating sectors – for example a massive heat pump trial is underway – so given the comparatively modest funding we will be looking for, there’s every reason to be hopeful. The aim will be to have a much-expanded trial underway for the next heating season.
Paul continues:
“This year will be important in terms of determining future heat policy and the role HVO will play. To achieve policy support for HVO, we will need to progress the field trial and overcome outstanding concerns about availability and sustainability. The latter issue should be straightforward – HVO produced in Europe already satisfies very strict sustainability regulations.
“Availability is more of a challenge because other sectors such as transportation also need the fuel. However, HVO production is ramping up rapidly and we are in direct contact with producers who are keen to supply our market. So, we are increasingly confident that supply will be available if HVO is supported in heating by government policy.
“This is essential because, at least initially, some form of subsidy may be necessary to cushion consumers from an increase in cost. However, the need to find a credible solution for hard-to-treat rural homes means that government support should be forthcoming, and this is something that everyone in our industry should be pushing for.”
In Cornwall, Mitchell and Webber continue to see successes with the trial and look ahead to welcoming the G7 leaders, who will be meeting at Carbis Bay in Cornwall, in just over two months. Commenting on why Cornwall was chosen to host this meeting to promote a better, green world, Boris Johnson was quoted in a local paper saying:
“Both these ambitions are summed up in Cornwall where the UK`s renewable energy industry and conservation projects point the way to a green industrial future.”
The visitors will include the new US President as well as the leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Australia, South Korea and the President of the EU. John Weedon commented:
“With the UK also hosting COP26 in Glasgow this November, the UK is very much under the spotlight!”
We look forward to seeing how the trials progress and expand over the next year and to covering more history-in-the-making moves from the fuel oil industry in the UK. Get all the industry insight first by subscribing here.