Biodiesel reaped from rapeseed

The world’s first carbon certified crop of rapeseed is growing in Cambridgeshire and will soon be harvested to power vehicles.


Low carbon energy supplier Greenergy has teamed up with energy crop promoters United Oilseed and Renewable Energy from Agriculture to launch the first venture between the agriculture community and the green fuels sector.

The end result will be production of Greenergy’s GlobalDiesel, a low emission biodiesel blended fuel consisting of five per cent rapeseed oil mixed with 95% ultra low sulphur diesel (ULSD).

The group claims the fuel provides a five per cent reduction in CO2 emissions, where the rapeseed content reduces emissions by 2.5 to 4% with the remainder coming from carbon credits purchased from responsible energy efficient projects. With 45% of vehicles on the road driven by diesel, GlobalDiesel has the potential to reduce emissions, including a reduction of 28% in particulates, say Greenergy.

The project is carbon certified, meaning that CO2 emissions at every level, from planting to processing the rapeseed, are independently audited.

“The whole purpose of this exercise is to demonstrate that the biodiesel market in the UK is about to really take off,” a Greenergy spokesperson told edie. “This is the first biodiesel people can put into their cars and drive away without making any adjustments to it. In terms of commercial use as well, this could allow great scope for CO2 emission reductions,” he added.

Nook Farm in Cambridgeshire will yield 30,000 litres of rapeseed oil when harvested in summer 2003, which will go into making 560,000 litres of the biodiesel, say the organisers.

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