Laois head of Irish Road Haulage Association seeks urgent regulatory action on fuel

The Laois man at the head of the Irish Road Haulage Association has called for urgent regulatory intervention in relation to the use of biofuels in diesel. 

IRHA President and Laois haulier, Ger Hyland, said his organisation had 66 fuel samples tested and 23% of them failed due to the high levels of biofuel they contained and a further 30% of the samples “just got over the line”. 

“When there is too much of it added it destroys the injector systems on our vehicles,” Mr Hyland explained. 

At the heart of the issue is the increasing use of non fossil fuel components i.e. FAME (Fatty Acid Methyl Ester) and HVO (Hydro-treated Vegetable Oil) in modern diesel fuel, he said. 

Under the European standard fuel EN 590, the maximum allowable percentage of FAME, which is made up primarily from Used Cooking Oil (UCO) and tallow in diesel is 7% (By Volume).

However, Mr Hyland doesn’t believe these levels are being strictly adhered to and he wants more oversight on the quality of mixed fuel. He said agricultural, or green diesel, does not contain such biofuels. 

“We don’t mind who tests our fuel so long as we get the right stuff,” he said. 

According to the IRHA, “this lack of regulatory oversight has led to breakdowns from fuel starvation and mechanical failures, greatly increased emissions, and considerable financial losses for the transport industry. Too much FAME in diesel increases emissions by reducing engine efficiency and increased fuel consumption due to its lower calorific or burn value, while it can also clog filters, degrade rubber/plastics/surface coatings, can introduce microbe growth and potentially may void a vehicle warranty if the fuel being used is not EN 590 compliant.”

“While fuel suppliers, report compliance, through FFI, to the Department of Environment on a semi-annual basis, there is no real-time third party monitoring to ensure consistency across all tanker loads or batches and with nearly 100,000 fuel tankers per annum delivering across the country, this current oversight, which involves 100 samples annually (Minimum allowed as per ETC Fuel Quality Reporting) all taken at forecourts only, is totally unacceptable as it equates to a sampling rate of 0.1% of Tanker movements, with some outlets presumably excluded as not members of FFI,” the IRHA claimed in a statement. 

Independent Offaly TD Carol Nolan said she is increasingly concerned about the lack of Government oversight surrounding non-fossil fuel components like Fatty Acid Methyl Ester (FAME) and Hydro-treated Vegetable Oil (HVO) that are being used as part of efforts to reduce carbon emissions and reliance on traditional petroleum-based fuels.

Deputy Nolan said there is growing evidence that a lack of oversight, specifically on the percentage of FAME that is being blended with diesel is leading to significant adverse and costly outcomes for engine performance and vehicle maintenance, particularly for long-haul fuel intensive vehicles.

“As I understand it, under current EU law the maximum percentage of FAME that can be blended with diesel is about 7%. Unfortunately, what is now becoming very clear, at least in Ireland’s case, is that there is effectively zero national oversight in place, beyond self-reporting, to ensure that the blend levels do not exceed this percentage. This is turn is creating enormous sector wide concern among hauliers and indeed motorists who own older vehicles and for whom the negative impact of FAME biofuel is already well established,” said Dep Nolan.

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“We know that EU targets are in place to ensure that there is at least 14% renewable energy in transport by 2030, often via biofuel blending. What I am saying is that we need to rethink that policy if the use of biofuels is being shown to generate widespread operational challenges and repair costs for motorists and industries who must continue to use diesel powered vehicles for the foreseeable future,” concluded Dep Nolan.