Tax-exempt rapeseed oil fuel
March 3, 2006
Belgium legalizes the use of rapeseed oil
as tax-exempt fuel!
Source: http://www.dhnet.be/dhinfos/article.phtml?id=146905
Filling up with rapeseed: legal
The liter costs 70 cents but watch out for DIY jobs! Practical info
BRUSSELS A real revolution is underway. Since this Monday, April 3, the Federal Ministry of Finance authorizes the sale of tax-exempt rapeseed oil (directly from the producer) and the effective use of this oil as fuel in any vehicle: agricultural vehicles, trucks, buses, ordinary cars,... As of today, nothing prevents you from filling up with rapeseed oil at a farmer equipped with a press and driving with this biofuel, significantly cheaper (as an indication, in Belgium it is about 70 cents per liter, compared to 1.1 euros for a liter of diesel). Nothing prevents you from filling up, but you should know that very few diesel vehicles today are capable of running on rapeseed without technical modification. Here are two pages to understand.
A general decision concerns all diesel users. Normally from November 2006, 3.37% of rapeseed derivatives will be mixed into the diesel sold at Belgian pumps. This will gradually increase to 5%. No need here to adapt cars: engines are already designed to accept up to 5% biofuel studied for this purpose and guaranteed by the oil sector.
Here we are talking about another path, authorized as of this Monday, which is more artisanal, voluntary and subject to fewer guarantees. "Yes, it is authorized. But it is at the users' own risk," specifies an advisor to Minister Reynders. "And for most vehicles, a technical adaptation is required, which is expensive." At Finance, the measure was taken to allow Belgian farmers to supply oil to public transport companies (De Lijn in particular) that are launching rapeseed buses, but there is a hint of concern at the idea of Belgian motorists rushing en masse into the breach (rapeseed is not taxed...). In Germany, thousands of cars already run on rapeseed!
"It is entirely possible to drive on rapeseed as of today," assures Jean-Marc Jossart, biofuel specialist at the ValBiom association (*), which distributes a wealth of concrete information, from the list of farmers supplying rapeseed to that of installers of systems for cars. "You find kits on the Internet for 500 euros to install yourself, but you can especially trust installers, in Belgium or Germany, to adapt your car. The prices? 1,500 to 2,000 euros approximately."
Depending on the type of vehicle (diesel only), it is possible to drive with 5% oil in the engine without modification. But the viscosity of rapeseed oil can cause problems, particularly on new diesel engines (and the mechanic can withdraw his guarantee, read the Febiac opinion opposite). To drive with higher proportions of rapeseed, it is in any case imperative to seek advice from a specialist. Several preheating and mixing systems are possible.
ValBiom
: 081/62.71.84 and
Filling up with rapeseed: legal
The liter costs 70 cents but watch out for DIY jobs! Practical info
BRUSSELS A real revolution is underway. Since this Monday, April 3, the Federal Ministry of Finance authorizes the sale of tax-exempt rapeseed oil (directly from the producer) and the effective use of this oil as fuel in any vehicle: agricultural vehicles, trucks, buses, ordinary cars,... As of today, nothing prevents you from filling up with rapeseed oil at a farmer equipped with a press and driving with this biofuel, significantly cheaper (as an indication, in Belgium it is about 70 cents per liter, compared to 1.1 euros for a liter of diesel). Nothing prevents you from filling up, but you should know that very few diesel vehicles today are capable of running on rapeseed without technical modification. Here are two pages to understand.
A general decision concerns all diesel users. Normally from November 2006, 3.37% of rapeseed derivatives will be mixed into the diesel sold at Belgian pumps. This will gradually increase to 5%. No need here to adapt cars: engines are already designed to accept up to 5% biofuel studied for this purpose and guaranteed by the oil sector.
Here we are talking about another path, authorized as of this Monday, which is more artisanal, voluntary and subject to fewer guarantees. "Yes, it is authorized. But it is at the users' own risk," specifies an advisor to Minister Reynders. "And for most vehicles, a technical adaptation is required, which is expensive." At Finance, the measure was taken to allow Belgian farmers to supply oil to public transport companies (De Lijn in particular) that are launching rapeseed buses, but there is a hint of concern at the idea of Belgian motorists rushing en masse into the breach (rapeseed is not taxed...). In Germany, thousands of cars already run on rapeseed!
"It is entirely possible to drive on rapeseed as of today," assures Jean-Marc Jossart, biofuel specialist at the ValBiom association (*), which distributes a wealth of concrete information, from the list of farmers supplying rapeseed to that of installers of systems for cars. "You find kits on the Internet for 500 euros to install yourself, but you can especially trust installers, in Belgium or Germany, to adapt your car. The prices? 1,500 to 2,000 euros approximately."
Depending on the type of vehicle (diesel only), it is possible to drive with 5% oil in the engine without modification. But the viscosity of rapeseed oil can cause problems, particularly on new diesel engines (and the mechanic can withdraw his guarantee, read the Febiac opinion opposite). To drive with higher proportions of rapeseed, it is in any case imperative to seek advice from a specialist. Several preheating and mixing systems are possible.
ValBiom
: 081/62.71.84 and
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