Demand for controversial fuel ‘could save bioethanol industry’

A NORTHERN ‘blue wall’ Conservative MP says introducing a controversial new fuel made up of 90 per cent unleaded petrol and 10 per cent bioethanol could help save a £1bn industry and thousands of jobs across the region.

Stockton South MP Matt Vickers, whose constituency includes areas of North Yorkshire, is calling for the Government to make so-called E10 fuel available at forecourts nationwide.

He says that the introduction of a fuel made partly from agricultural products such as sugar cane or corn would support job creation through emerging green industries, particularly on the Humber.

Mr Vickers said despite the rise in electric and hybrid cars, vehicles using either petrol or diesel engines still accounted for 83 per cent of new registrations.

Unlike regular unleaded petrol, ethanol fuel is said to be partially atmospherically carbon-neutral. This is because as the plants that will become biofuel grow, they reportedly absorb more carbon dioxide than what will be released into the air during fuel production and combustion

And the co-chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for British Bioethanol, said it was a ‘no-brainer’ to more widely introduce E10 as part of efforts to “make our roads, cities and country cleaner and greener in the short to medium term”.

Current petrol grades in the UK contain up to five per cent bioethanol, known as E5.

The proposed E10 fuel increases the share of the renewable energy produced using crops, to 10 per cent.

But campaign groups say there could be as many as 600,000 vehicles on our roads that aren’t compatible with the fuel.

It is reportedly expected to hit forecourts at the end of 2021 although a firm date has yet to be secured.

Mr Vickers, who became MP for Stockton South in December 2019 after winning the seat from Labour with a majority of more than 5,000, says that E10 “will help make the UK’s ambitions for carbon neutrality much more achievable – especially before electric vehicles can fully deliver on their potential”.

He said: “Drivers want to make cleaner and greener choices, and they should have the freedom to make them next year. The Government also wants to ensure the UK economic recovery in the wake of Covid-19 is rapid and balanced, and E10 would help in that effort on growth and levelling up.”

The Tory MP added: “Without the swift introduction of E10 – by 2021 at the latest – the British Bioethanol Industry will continue to decline and an industry worth £1bn could disappear forever resulting in the loss of thousands of jobs in and around the North of England.

“This isn’t just speculation. In 2018, we witnessed the loss of the Vivergo facility on the Humber, and we cannot see this repeated.”

An industry worth £1bn could disappear forever. Matt Vickers, MP for Stockton South.