Biofuels offer a low carbon and cost-effective alternative to traditional fuels, enabling businesses to reduce their carbon emissions and comply with regulations at scale. CFP Energy supplies biofuels across Europe, working with businesses to decarbonise operations.
If you’d like to see how quickly you could transition to biofuels, get started here.
Biofuels are fuels derived from a variety of sources, including food waste and agricultural residue, algae, and crop residues. Once these feedstocks are harvested, they can then be treated using processes like gasification and fermentation, turning them into combustibles that can be then used to fuel cars, ships and airliners.
Biofuels are renewable for two main reasons. In the first place, because biofuels are made from plants, or biomass residue, they help sustain a closed carbon cycle.
A closed carbon cycle works like this: as plants grow, they store carbon in their tissues. This means that any plants that are combusted as fuel can have their carbon emissions captured by the next generation of plants that replace them in a continuous cycle of release and absorption.
Secondly, because biofuels, particularly advanced biofuels like FAME and HVO, made from waste materials or non-food crops, produce less greenhouse gas emissions than traditional fossil fuels, the transition to biofuels helps reduce overall levels of greenhouse gases.
The term biofuels generally applies to fuels derived from feedstocks. The three most common forms of biofuel are biodiesel, ethanol and biogas. Used primarily in transportation and power generation, biofuels are a key component in decarbonising the UK's energy.
Biodiesel is a diesel fuel made from vegetable oils or animal fats. This contrasts with ordinary diesel fuel, which is made from non-renewable extractions of crude oil.
Ethanol is an alcohol-based fuel used mainly as a transportation fuel. Typically derived from corn and sugarcane, it can be blended with gasoline to make ethanol-petroleum blends. These can be used in motor vehicles and small engines.
Biogas is typically made from organic waste, uses microorganisms called methanogens to break down the organic matter into a gas of two main components, methane (CH₄) and carbon dioxide (CO₂).
With biofuels now making up 6.8% of the UK's fuel supply, and with that figure set to increase, renewable fuels are already an established part of the energy mix.
Fossil fuels, however, are likely to make up part of the energy mix for some time in the future, whether mixed with blended biofuels, such as B5, or as unblended petroleum.
A fossil fuel is a combustible solid or liquid made primarily of carbon formed from the remains of prehistoric organisms or from dead plant matter.
There are three main types of fossil fuels - coal, crude oil (petroleum), and natural gas.
Each type of fossil fuel, when combusted, releases CO₂ and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, highlighting the need for low carbon alternatives.
To ensure sustainable growth, businesses must invest in renewables, not only to maintain profitability but to stay compliant in a regulatory environment where failing to meet carbon emissions caps can result in significant financial penalties.
In practice, biofuels have applications in many industries, from energy production to transportation. The predominant user of biofuels, however, is transport: airlines use sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and SAF Credits to reduce CO₂ emissions, while the shipping sector uses biofuels, such as HVO100, for port bunkering and sustainable propulsion.
But investing in renewables is only one part of the equation. In addition to renewable energy, there are many other avenues to consider, such as energy storage, electric grid optimisation, biofuel investment, and carbon credit initiatives, such as reforestation.
Making the energy transition requires a multi-faceted, joined-up approach, with biofuels making up just one component in each sector's decarbonisation strategy.
Renewable energy sources are replenishable forms of energy. Derived from natural sources, such as solar energy in the form of sunlight and kinetic energy in the form of water, renewable energy ensures the consistent supply of power to businesses and homes well into the future.
The fact that renewables are derived from domestic sources also reduces the need for energy imports, an effective form of self-sufficiency that also boosts energy security in turn.
According to a recent United Nations report, biofuels can play a significant role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, while also helping to improve energy access.
Renewable fuels like these, according to the report, help reduce emissions by up to 60–90% compared to fossil fuels so long as sustainable feedstock and production methods are used.
Because biofuels depend on large quantities of biomass, the continual replenishment of this biomass also helps support ecosystems through carbon sequestration.
Another benefit of biofuels is their availability due to their dependence on replenishable feedstocks. In addition, because biofuel feedstocks can be domestically harvested, reliance on energy exports (exports that are often interrupted in times of political unrest) is reduced.
Since some biofuels require farmland, their production also supports rural development. Feedstocks such as corn and soybeans, grown as energy crops, provide a viable source of economic stability for rural communities that might otherwise struggle to utilise land for food crops due to food crop competition from abroad.
Biofuels are now an established part of the global energy supply, providing reliable, sustainable fuels to key industries, from shipping and aviation to power generation and manufacturing.
CFP Energy can help your organisation decarbonise operations. No matter where you’re located in Europe, we can supply and transport biofuels across borders, connecting you with a team of industry experts who can help you today.
Get in touch with our team here.