Section 1: Biofuels
Published 9 December 2021
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1.1 UK grown crops used for production of biofuels for supply to the UK road transport market
Figure 1.1 summarises UK sourced biofuels reported under the Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation (i.e. the biofuels used in the UK that are made from UK feedstocks). Crops and by-products have been included to show differing proportions of feedstocks. Figures relating to biofuel used for road transport in 2020 (year runs start of January to end of December) are provisional based on data currently available; for more information on the Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation (RTFO) see Annex B.
Figure 1.1: Volume of UK sourced biofuels supplied to the UK road transport market by crop type and waste/residue, 2020 (a)(b)
| Type | Million litres/kilograms(c) |
|---|---|
| Biodiesel: Brown grease (d) | 2.3 |
| Biodiesel: Food waste | 19.7 |
| Biodiesel: Soapstock acid oil | 1.0 |
| Biodiesel: Tallow | 39.1 |
| Biodiesel: Used cooking oil | 62.0 |
| Other biodiesel | 1.8 |
| Bioethanol: Sugar beet | 41.0 |
| Bioethanol: Wheat | 73.7 |
| Other bioethanol | 1.0 |
| Other (e) | 51.8 |
Source: Department of Transport RTFO data
(a) 2020 figures are as of 30th October 2021 and are subject to revision.
(b) Year relates to January 2020 – December 2020.
(c) Biodiesel and bioethanol volumes are reported in litres and biogas volumes are reported in kilograms.
(d) Brown grease is fat and oil removed from grease traps and sewers.
(e) “Other” is biomethane, biopropane, biopetrol, off road diesel, diesel (origin bio) and pure vegetable oil.
The total volume of UK sourced biofuels used in the UK in 2020 was 293 million litres / kilograms. This was a 5% increase on the 2019 figure.
In 2020 the volume of UK sourced biodiesel for UK road transport was at 126 million litres. For bioethanol the figure was 116 million litres.
1.2 Implied crop areas based on supply of biofuel to the road transport market
Table 1.1 and Figures 1.2 to 1.3 focus on the arable crops used as feedstocks and convert the biofuel volumes reported under the Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation (RTFO) into equivalent UK crop areas. These crop areas are based only on biofuel from UK grown crops sold into the UK road fuel market, and therefore do not include UK grown crops which are processed into biofuels and then exported (and not re imported), those which go to markets other than road transport, or those that are exported to be processed into biofuels elsewhere.
Conversion factors for litres to tonne of crop are in Annex A.
Table 1.1: Total UK crop areas used for biofuels (biodiesel and bioethanol) supplied to the UK road transport market, 2015/16 - 2020
| All UK crops used as biofuels (RTFO Year(e)(f)) | Total volume of biofuels from UK grown crops(million litres) | Implied tonnage of crop (‘000 tonnes)(a) | Implied area ‘000 ha | % of UK total arable area(b) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015/16(c) | 195.5 | 960 | 49.3 | 0.8% |
| 2016/17(c) | 217.3 | 757 | 69.2 | 1.2% |
| 2017/18 | 217.0 | 921 | 61.5 | 1.0% |
| 2018/19(d)(e) | 110.2 | 639 | 27.2 | 0.5% |
| 2019(f) | 98.8 | 722 | 19.1 | 0.3% |
| 2020 prov. | 114.7 | 605 | 35.8 | 0.6% |
Source: Department for Transport RTFO data, Agriculture in the UK
(a) Based on conversions from the Department for Transport and The National Non-Food Crops Centre (details provided in Table 1.1) and Defra crop yield statistics.
(b) UK arable area is defined as the area of arable crops, uncropped arable land and temporary grassland. Data from the 2008 June Survey of Agriculture have been used in conjunction with RTFO year 1 (2008-2009). Subsequent years follow the same pattern.
(c) Includes bioethanol from UK grown maize.
(d) 2020 figures are as of 30th October 2021 and are subject to revision.
(e) Due to changes to the RTFO dataset, 2018 covers 15th April to 31st December 2018 and is not directly comparable to previous years which covered a time period from April to April.
(f) From 2019 onwards RTFO data is representative of full calendar years.
In 2020 just under 36 thousand hectares of UK crops were used for biofuels supplied to the UK road transport market which equates to 0.6% of the total arable area of the UK.
Figure 1.2: UK sugar beet area (a)(d) used for bioethanol supplied to the UK road transport market 2015/16 – 2020
| Year | Implied area ‘000 ha | % of UK total sugar beet area(d) |
|---|---|---|
| 2015/16 | 8.0 | 9% |
| 2016/17 | 3.2 | 4% |
| 2017/18 | 5.5 | 5% |
| 2018 | 6.8 | 6% |
| 2019 (c) | 8.1 | 7% |
| 2020 prov.(b) | 7.0 | 6% |
Source: Department for Transport RTFO data, Agriculture in the UK
(a) Source: yield data and total crop areas, Defra, Agriculture in the United Kingdom and June Survey of Agriculture. Data from the 2008 survey / publication have been used in conjunction with RTFO year 1 (2008-2009). Subsequent years follow the same pattern apart from 2018 (see point (c)).
(b) 2020 figures are as of 30th October 2021 and are subject to revision.
(c) Due to changes to the RTFO dataset, 2018 covers 15th April to 31st December 2018 and is not directly comparable to previous years which covered a time period from April to April. From 2019 onwards RTFO data is representative of full calendar years.
(d) Percentages indicate proportion of UK sugar beet area used for bioethanol each year.
Around 7.0 thousand hectares of sugar beet were used in the production of bioethanol for the road transport market in 2020. This was a 15% decrease on thr 2019 figure. More background on the sugar beet industry and its use for bioenergy can be found at Annex C.
Figure 1.3: UK wheat area(a)(d) used for bioethanol supplied to the UK road transport market 2015/16 – 2020
| Year | Implied area ‘000 ha | % of UK totalwheat area(d) |
|---|---|---|
| 2015/16 | 40.9 | 2% |
| 2016/17 | 66.1 | 4% |
| 2017/18 | 56.1 | 3% |
| 2018 | 22.0 | 1% |
| 2019 (c) | 10.7 | 1% |
| 2020 prov.(b) | 28.8 | 2% |
Source: Department for Transport RTFO data, Agriculture in the UK
(a) Source: yield data and total crop areas, Defra, Agriculture in the United Kingdom and June Survey of Agriculture. Data from the 2008 survey / publication have been used in conjunction with RTFO year 1 (2008-2009). Subsequent years follow the same pattern apart from 2018 onwards (see point (c)).
(b) 2020 figures are as of 30th October 2021 and are subject to revision.
(c) Due to changes to the RTFO dataset, 2018 covers 15th April to 31st December 2018 and is not directly comparable to previous years which covered a time period from April to April. From 2019 onwards RTFO data is representative of full calendar years
(d) Percentages indicate proportion of UK wheat area used for bioethanol each year
An estimated 29 thousand hectares of wheat was used for bioethanol in 2020. This was the first year-on-year increase since 2016/17, up 169% on 2019.
1.3 Biofuels from crops supplied to the UK for the road transport market 2020 [footnote 1]
In 2020, estimates indicate 71% of the crop-derived bioethanol for road transport originated from crops grown outside the UK. An estimated 29% originated from crops grown in the UK, which was mainly made up of bioethanol derived from UK grown wheat.
Figure 1.4 shows the top 6 countries supplying crop derived bioethanol to the UK, a full list of countries can be found in the report dataset.
Figure 1.4: Top 6 countries supplying crop derived bioethanol to the UK 2020 (a)
| Country | Million litres |
|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 115 |
| United States | 64 |
| Ukraine | 62 |
| Brazil | 52 |
| France | 42 |
| Romania | 16 |
| Total (all countries) | 400 |
(a) Due to changes to the RTFO dataset, 2020 covers the calendar year and is not directly comparable to previous years which covered a time period from April to April.
There was no biodiesel produced from crop feedstocks supplied to the UK in 2020. This is in line with the longer-term trend of a decline in biodiesel derived from crops and an increasing use of waste feedstocks.
1.4 Comparison of biofuels to all fuels used for road transport
Table 1.2 compares the volume of biofuel used in UK road transport to the total of all fuels supplied for road transport. They also show the proportion of biofuels that are UK sourced.
Table 1.2 RTFO 2020 provisional figures(a) for biofuel (million litres or Kg(b)) from UK feedstocks
| Fuel type (million litres or kg) | Volume UK sourced biofuels 2020 | Total volume biofuels supplied to UK 2020(c) | Total volume of road transport fossil fuels supplied to UK 2020 | UK sourced biofuels as a proportion of total biofuels supplied to UK | Biofuels as a proportion of total road transport fuels supplied to UK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Biodiesel | 126 | 1,283 | 23,333 | 10% | 5.5% |
| Bioethanol | 116 | 423 | 12,322 | 27% | 3.4% |
| Biomethane (compressed) | 7.8 | 47 | 17% | ||
| Biopropane | 3.5 | 48 | 7.4% | ||
| Biopetrol | 14 | 23 | 62% | ||
| Pure vegetable oil | 7.2 | 0 | 100% | ||
| Diesel (origin bio) | 4.4 | 7.8 | 56% | ||
| Off road biodiesel | 15 | 100 | 15% | ||
| Total | 1,932 | 35,655 | 28% | 5.4%(d) | |
| Annual target (e) | 9.8% |
(a) 2020 figures are as of 30th October 2021 and are not final.
(b) Biodiesel, bioethanol and pure vegetable oil volumes are reported in litres and biogas volumes are reported in kilograms.
(c) Includes volumes of biofuel from other feedstocks in addition to those listed here e.g. palm oil.
(d) The difference in the percentage shown and the annual target is due to some Renewable Transport Fuel Certificates (RTFCs) being issued to double counting feedstocks. Biofuels produced from wastes, non-agricultural residues, non-food cellulosic material, and ligno-cellulosic material receive two RTFCs per litre/kg meaning suppliers using these feedstocks only have to supply half the volume to meet their obligation.
(e) Rising from 2.5% in 2008/09 to 4.75% from 2013/14 onwards. From 15 April 2013, the end uses covered by the Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation were amended to include non-road mobile machinery (including inland waterways vessels), agriculture and forestry tractors and recreational craft when not at sea (known collectively as NRMM). To keep the supply of biofuel broadly consistent the biofuel target level was changed from 5% to 4.75% based on data supplied by industry on the volume of low sulphur gas oil used for NRMM end use. In 2020 the obligation rose from 4.75% to 9.75%.
Provisional figures for 2020 indicate that 1,932 million litres of biofuel were supplied to the UK which is 5.4% of total road and non-road mobile machinery fuel.
1.5 Renewable Energy Statistics (RESTATS) Questionnaire
The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy conduct an annual survey of large scale biofuel production (see Annex B for more details). The survey aims to determine total UK production of biofuels and, from 2012, included questions on the quantity and origin of crops used in UK biofuel production. Because the survey covers all biofuel production (including that subsequently exported and for markets other than road transport) the data can help build a more complete picture of usage of UK crops for biofuel. Figure 1.5 compares total UK biofuel production to total biofuel supplied to the UK road transport market. Figures 1.6 and 1.7 give an estimate of the proportion of biodiesel and bioethanol supplied by end use. The survey is based on calendar years.
Figure 1.5: UK biofuel production and biofuel supply to UK road transport market, 2015 – 2020 (million litres)
Bioethanol
| Year | Total bioethanol consumption: UK road transport market | Total UK production | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 795 | 333 | |
| 2016 | 759 | 468 | |
| 2017 | 753 | 645 | |
| 2018 | 761 | 516 | |
| 2019 | 753 | 262 | |
| 2020 | 598 | 326 |
Biodiesel
| Year | Total biodiesel consumption: UK road transport market | Total UK production | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 669 | 167 | |
| 2016 | 708 | 385 | |
| 2017 | 697 | 524 | |
| 2018 | 1139 | 535 | |
| 2019 | 1597 | 573 | |
| 2020 | 1584 | 421 |
Source: Digest of UK Energy Statistics
At 421 million litres, UK production of biodiesel decreased by 27% between 2019 and 2020. This volume was around 76% of the estimated UK production capacity for biodiesel (557 million litres in 2020).
Bioethanol production increased by 24% to 326 million litres in 2020, 35% of the estimated UK production capacity of 927 million litres.
Figure 1.6: Estimated UK biodiesel supply (from UK production) 2020
| 2020 | UK road transport | Exported(a) | Other | UK non-road transport | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | 26% | 52% | 18% | 4% | 100% |
Source: Renewable Energy Statistics (RESTATS) Questionnaire
Figure 1.7: Estimated UK bioethanol supply (from UK production) 2020
| 2020 | UK road transport | Exported(a) | UK non-road transport | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | 77% | 0.2% | 23% | 100% |
Source: Renewable Energy Statistics (RESTATS) Questionnaire
In 2020, 100% of UK-produced bioethanol was derived from crop feedstocks, as has been the case since 2012. Of this, 66% was known to be produced from UK grown crops.
There was no UK-produced biodiesel derived from crop feedstocks in 2020. This is in line with the decline in crop-derived biodiesel previously discussed.
Supply of UK produced biofuels to various markets is also recorded in the survey (Figure 1.6 and 1.7). In 2020, 26% of biodiesel produced in the UK was supplied to the UK road transport market, with 52% being exported. In contrast, 77% of the bioethanol supply was used in UK road transport in 2020.
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Go to Section 2 - Plant biomass: miscanthus, Short Rotation Coppice and straw
Go to Section 3 - Anaerobic digestion
Go to Annex A, B and C
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2020 figures are as of 30th October 2021 and are not final ↩