Green groups clash over vegetable oil-fired power plant

04 June, 2008

Environmental groups Biofuelwatch and Greenpeace look set to clash this evening at a local government planning meeting being held in the UK to consider a proposed power plant expected to run on vegetable oil.

In dispute is a plan by Blue-NG to build the first of eight planned 19.5MW power plants in Beckton in east London. The local Newham council is scheduled to consider the planning application in a meeting starting at 7pm UK time tonight, in order to give an advisory decision to the London Thames Gateway Development Corporation (LTGDC), which has final say over the project.

LTGDC is expected to decide whether to approve Blue-NG's combined-cycle power plant on 12 June, although the Mayor of London has the power to make a final decision.

The plant would burn a mixture of rapeseed, palm and jatropha oils from the UK, elsewhere in Europe, India, Malaysia, the US and Brazil.

Blue-NG is a joint venture by National Grid Blue Power, a subsidiary of the UK's National Grid, and 2OC, which promotes the use of the energy released when the pressure of natural gas is reduced during distribution. Blue-NG was unavailable for comment.

Biofuelwatch, which campaigns against the use of bioenergy from unsustainable sources, and Watch Indonesia!, which campaigns on democracy, human rights and environmental issues in Indonesia and East Timor, say that the proposed use of up to 18,800t/year of virgin vegetable oil by Blue-NG "could set a dangerous precedent with serious implications for climate change, food security, biodiversity and communities".

Deepak Rughani of Biofuelwatch said: "We fully support decentralised energy but not the use of virgin vegetable oil as an energy source. There is clear evidence that all agrofuels from vegetable oil currently available are linked to higher greenhouse gas emissions than fossil fuel oil or gas. In view of the current food price crisis which is threatening the lives of millions of people, burning food for energy is irresponsible."

However, Greenpeace is understood to be happy with the use of vegetable oil for power generation, even though it is against the use of oils such as palm oil as feedstock for production of transportation fuels.

Blue-NG said that Greenpeace has discussed the supply of oil for its proposed plant with the company's chief executive and was understood to be locked in further talks this afternoon on approving an acceptable supply chain.

Biofuelwatch expressed disappointment at the support for the project by Greenpeace, which has delivered a formal comment to Newham council backing the project and was expected to appear at the planning meeting.

Biofuelwatch and Watch Indonesia! say that a Blue-NG claim that the plant would reduce carbon dioxide emissions ignores indirect emissions from land use change and also all emissions of the more-powerful greenhouse gas nitrous oxide.