Within its Red Diesel Replacement Competition, the UK Government has announced some £32.5 million in funding for phase two of the programme, which aims to support projects that will help industries like quarrying, mining, and construction to move away from using red diesel to fuel their operations.
In phase one of the competition, 17 winning bids were allocated a total £6.7 million in funding. The new funding for phase two will be split between three to five of these.
Northampton’s MAHLE Powertrain Ltd. ran one successful project in phase one in partnership with Clean Air Power and the University of Nottingham. This involved building prototype engines with a view to fuelling heavy-duty engines with hydrogen and ammonia. MAHLE Powertrain’s Head of Research & Advanced Engineering, Jonathan Hall, said about decarbonising some sectors:
“Off-highway industries such as mining, quarrying and construction remain a significant challenge in the transition towards a more sustainable future. These sectors have demanding energy and utilisation requirements and are often in challenging environments far from a power grid connection, making them difficult to electrify.”
He added that there is potential in exploring alternative fuels like ammonia, and the competition funding had enabled them to start this.
If you have a fleet of off-highway vehicles to maintain, one way to ensure their efficient and reliable operation is to use advanced lubricants. At TrAchem, we can supply leading lubricants like the Mobil Delvac range, as well as similar offerings from Petronas and other leading brands, so consult our helpful team to learn more.
