Oftec Ireland calling for inclusion of HVO as heating oil for decarbonization plans

In Northern Ireland, Oftec Ireland is calling on the Northern Ireland government to consider a realistic approach when ‘The Decarbonizing Heat consultation’ arrives later this year because of the risk of increasing poverty levels if it is done in a way that further pressures household economies. 

Heat pumps and retrofitting will be the right choice for many living in a new, thermally efficient or recently built house, but for those facing financial difficulties and living in an older, colder home, there must be options considered that won’t leave them behind on the road to net zero. 

Heating oil is currently used in more than 500,000 homes in Northern Ireland. A recent analysis by the AECOM engineering company showed that biofuels in home heating could achieve similar emission reductions to retrofitting, quickly and at a much lower cost. 

The current biofuel being promoted as the replacement for kerosene is hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) that offers an immediate 88 per cent reduction in carbon emissions. 

Oftec says the Northern Ireland government must keep all decarbonizations options on the table and not only focus on transition to heat pumps.