To reduce our carbon footprint, Wienerberger is constantly exploring the use of alternatives to traditional fossil fuels. Following a successful trial, all mobile plant at Wienerberger’s concrete roof tile site Sandtoft now run on Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (HVO).
Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (HVO) is a cleaner burning ‘drop in’ alternative to diesel that is made from crop-based waste materials.
Wienerberger conducted a 2-month trial to monitor the efficiency and cost of running Sandtoft’s mobile plant (such as forklifts) on HVO compared to diesel. After HVO proved viable, a new tank and delivery system was installed. Since January 2022, all Sandtoft’s mobile plant has transitioned to running on HVO.
The switch will reduce the Sandtoft site’s carbon emissions by 200 tonnes (CO2e) per year. That is based on an annual diesel consumption of 80,000 litres of diesel, and the HVO fuel having a carbon impact 90% lower (well-to-wheel) than diesel. In addition, HVO is a cleaner burning fuel so this fuel switch also reduces emissions of nitrogen oxide and particulate matter, resulting in improved air quality.
Simon Thompson, Process Improvement Manager at Wienerberger UK said: “Whilst there was a lot of work behind the scenes, the implementation was seamless thanks to teamwork and collaboration across the whole site. We are proud to have found an alternative to diesel.”
Wienerberger UK will now assess the use of HVO on other operational sites, to further reduce the company’s carbon emissions.
