The New Year has begun with a setback to the UK’s hopes of taking a lead in the emerging market for more sustainable jet fuel.
British Airways announced last month that it is shelving a ground breaking £340 million scheme to create 16 million gallons of jet fuel every year from London’s rubbish.
No doubt a number of different factors contributed to BA’s decision. The company said that currently low crude oil prices were partly to blame, but it said that another reason was a lack of clear public policy support from the Government.
A British Airways spokeswoman said the UK was losing out to countries that have prioritised and incentivised developments in the sustainable fuels market - in Norway, for example, Oslo Airport, with support from the Norwegian Government, now offers jet biofuels to all airlines. She added: “The Government needs to support innovative aviation biofuels projects 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”.
The Labour party’s transport team has been trying to get to the bottom of why the Government has so far failed to respond to the industry’s pleas for help.
Last week, during Transport Questions in Parliament, I raised with the Aviation Minister concerns that inaction will undermine on UK jobs and skills and our environmental obligations. His response was less than helpful, referring to the “many ways you can kill a cat”– his words not mine.
It is over a year since the sector’s
Sustainable Aviation
group made a compelling case that with the right policy and investment framework, UK aviation could reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by up to 24% by 2050 through the deployment of sustainable alternative fuels. It argued that the UK should seize on its leadership in global aerospace and aviation and maintain the country’s competitive advantage to boost investment in science, deliver increased jobs and produce significant emissions reductions. What was – and remains - needed to achieve that, according to Sustainable Aviation, were policies that were consistent across transport modes to deliver the necessary investment.
The response from the Department for Transport seems to have been a mixture of generally encouraging words combined with far too little action. The Department’s transport energy task force acknowledged in March 2015 that sustainable biofuels have a valuable role to play in cutting carbon emissions from transport, particularly in sectors like aviation where there were limited alternatives.
Four months later Transport Minister, Andrew Jones, met with Sustainable Aviation representatives to discuss that view. Now Ministers say that they are assessing the benefits of making aviation biofuels eligible for certificates under the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (which is a key industry ask) and aim to include proposals in a public consultation later this year.
I guess we should take some comfort from these warm words, but Labour believe it is time for Government action. Other countries are moving forward with a much greater sense of urgency and we see a real danger that this will turn out to be a huge missed opportunity for the UK, with damaging implications for both the environment and the economy.
That is why we are raising the issue in Parliament and asking Ministers to explain why they haven’t given policy clarity to British Airways’ Green Sky project and what assessment the Department has made of the potential cancellation of that project on the aviation industry’s sustainable aviation agenda.
Let us hope that the British Airways announcement will act as a wake-up call for the Government. Rather than killing cats, Ministers should engage with the sector’s call for aviation fuels to be put on a level playing field with other fuel and energy incentives, and the case for including aviation in the Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation should be examined.
Either way, policy support is needed to help these innovative projects get to commercial scale and to build confidence in emerging technologies. In Labour’s view this is a perfect area for the Government and the private sector to work together for their mutual benefit and that of the country.
It is time for the UK Government to stop talking and start acting.
Richard Burden MP is a Shadow Transport Minister and the Labour MP for Birmingham, Northfield