Major step forward for UK domestic HVO trials

This month, Watson Fuels has been proud to progress our involvement in UK-wide trials for HVO as a replacement for home heating oil.

We’ve been a part of the trials, run jointly by OFTEC and the UK and Ireland Fuel Distributors Association (UKIFDA), since 2021. The boiler within our own Louth depot has been running on HVO for the past 12 months, and this month we’re proud to extend our involvement by converting 25 of our customers’ home heating systems to HVO.

The trial is part of the wider Future Ready Fuel campaign, which we’re proud to support. This campaign is working to find practical low-carbon fuels that can be used to help the UK meet its net zero targets.

Results have confirmed that this fossil-free fuel works in almost all existing home heating systems with some simple modifications, resulting in up to a 90% reduction in GHG emissions, according to UK Government GHG scope 1 conversion factors per litre fuel figures.

OFTEC and UKIFDA will continue to expand the project over the next few months and have applied for government funding to bring another 100 homes onto the trial.

If the trials continue to prove effective, HVO could soon be used to heat homes and businesses across the UK. We believe it is one of the most cost-effective and practical solutions to heating existing properties in a low carbon way.

About HVO

HVO, or Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil, is a liquid fuel made from 100% renewable waste materials, as certified by international accreditation schemes. It is designed to be a direct replacement for fossil fuels across a variety of applications.

Making homes more energy efficient and investing in low-carbon heating systems is a long-term aim to tackle climate change. However, many of the existing lower carbon heating solutions and systems can be expensive and impractical for lots of properties, particularly older homes with period structures and features. Switching to HVO, on the other hand, would require only small adaptations to existing boiler systems, making it a practical alternative for the short to medium term.

Carbon Offset Fuel

We are also offering offset fuel solutions to help our customers work towards reducing the overall footprint of their fuel use. Find out more about our Carbon Offset Fuel and how you can support the Future Ready Fuel campaign to find low-carbon heating alternatives for the UK.