UK govt to raise renewable fuel obligation to 10% by 2020

The UK government has confirmed it will increase the Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation (RTFO) to 9.75% by 2020 and 12.4% by 2032.

The Renewable Energy Association (REA) welcomed this decision but expressed disappointment with the confirmation that there will be a crop cap decreasing to 2% by 2032.

The Department for Transport today published a response to the consultation on changes to the RTFO, which was introduced in 2008 and obliges fuel suppliers to sell a percentage of renewable fuel. At the moment the percentage is 4.75%. The proposals include introducing a cap for fuels made from agricultural crops starting at 4% in 2018 and falling gradually from 2021 to 3% in 2026 and 2% in 2032. REA said this puts at risk domestic jobs and manufacturing capabilities.

The government also plans an additional target for development fuels, such as aviation fuel and hydrogen, starting at 0.1% in 2019 and rising to 2.8% in 2032. The association is disappointed that renewable gas from anaerobic digestion (AD) has been excluded from the development fuels sub target.

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