British Airways criticises UK Government for stalling its green fuel project
British Airways (BA) has blamed the UK government for stalling the launch of its £340m green fuel project which would have turned the UK’s household waste into jet fuel, saying the reduction in CO2 emissions from the biofuel project would be the same as taking 150,000 cars off the road.
The airline criticised 10 Downing Street for a lack of policy engagement over the ambitious project which would produce more than twice the green fuel needed to power all of its yearly flights from London City airport; the equivalent to taking 150,000 cars off the road.
The Green Sky Project was scheduled to open in 2017 at an ex-oil refinery in Thurrock, Essex, where it would have transformed 575,000 tonnes of household waste heading for landfill sites into gas.
BA told the Guardian that the project was now in limbo due to low crude oil prices, apprehensions among investors, and a lack of policy engagement from 10 Downing Street.
The UK government has caused a headache for BA by failing to bring jet biofuels under its Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation which helps companies in the production of biofuels that won’t damage the environment.
If it were to do so BA believes that it could trigger the building of a dozen green fuel plants by 2030 which would in turn lead to airlines signing deals to buy the fuel.
Cathy West, a BA spokeswoman, told The Guardian that “the government needs to support innovative aviation biofuels projects such as this if they are to progress.”
“Aviation fuels are not eligible for incentives that road transport fuels receive, making it difficult to build a business case to invest in UK aviation fuels projects. This affects investor confidence.”
West added that “the UK is currently losing out to countries that have prioritised and incentivised developments in the sustainable aviation fuels market.”
Chris Malins, the fuels programme manager of the International Council for Clean Transportation, said “things could have been done on the policy side here to help these plants get built which were not done.”
He pointed out that “investments won’t go to alternative aviation fuels without policy certainty and access to the same incentives as road diesel.”
“It’s a shame as this project looked like a great opportunity to do something genuinely sustainable on a ground-breaking scale.”
From an image point of view BA will be keen to be seen as innovative in the green energy sector after recent reports suggested it was lagging in comparison to rivals. The International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT), the group that exposed VW emissions-rigging scandal, published a study in November 2015 that showed BA and Lufthansa were emitting 51 per cent more carbon dioxide than the cleanest flyers.