Numerous commercial vehicles approved for biodiesel
New approval list of large engine and commercial vehicle manufacturers for operation with biodiesel (B20 / B30 / B100) published.
A recent survey among commercial vehicle manufacturers shows that many trucks, buses and mobile machines are approved for higher blends of biodiesel. Even the latest Euro VI engines can be operated with standardised biodiesel blends of 20 percent, 30 percent (B20 or B30, standard EN 16709) and pure biodiesel (B100, standard EN 14214). As can be seen from the approval list published jointly by the Association Quality Management Biodiesel (AGQM), Union for the Promotion of Oil and Protein Plants (UFOP) and the Association of the German Biofuel Industry (VDB), heavy-duty road traffic can use increasing quantities of biodiesel in the future. "Our approval list shows that the use of biodiesel in the commercial vehicle sector is technically possible even with the currently most demanding emission standards. It is particularly useful to use climate-friendly biodiesel in heavy-duty transport, because there is no suitable alternative to liquid fuels in the long term”, said Richard Wicht, Managing Director at AGQM. The survey covered 14 well-known commercial vehicle and large diesel engine manufacturers from Caterpillar to Zeppelin.
The mineral oil industry usually markets biodiesel as B7 blend. However, the new approval list shows that biodiesel in modern commercial vehicles can also be used in higher admixtures (B20, B30) and as pure fuel B100.
"Sustainably produced biodiesel is currently contributing significantly to the transport sector's contribution to climate protection. The new list of vehicle approvals shows that significantly more greenhouse gases can be saved, if the existing possibilities were exhausted”, said Stephan Arens, Managing Director of UFOP. Biodiesel and bioethanol currently account for around 90 percent of renewable energy in the transport sector.
Biofuels in Germany are subsidised by the so-called greenhouse gas reduction quota (GHG quota). According to that, oil companies must reduce the greenhouse gas emissions of their fuels by a fixed percentage. Among other things, they use biodiesel, which emits about 70 percent less greenhouse gases than fossil diesel. The GHG quota currently stands at four percent, rising to six percent in 2020. "The commercial vehicle and engine manufacturers have created the conditions in good time so that the rising GHG quota can be met with higher biodiesel mixes," said Elmar Baumann, Managing Director at VDB.
The updated approval list shows at a glance which engine and vehicle types are approved for the use of biodiesel. The approval list is now available here. There you will also find the associated technical reports.
