§ The Earl of Mar and Kellieasked Her Majesty's Government:
How much public money has been spent in 2002 to date by way of grants to establish biodiesel processing plants; and how many grants were made. [HL524]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord Whitty)No such grants were issued in 2002 by government departments in England, Scotland and Wales. Northern Ireland's Department of Environment, Environmental Heritage Service set aside £1 million and, in conjunction with Invest NI, launched a Waste Industry Fund. This has been set up to help establish waste infrastructure in Northern Ireland. Two projects in the biodiesel sector have been awarded funding in principle: £120,000 in principle to Capital Oils Ltd for the manufacture of biodiesel using waste from cooking oils and fats; £11,000 in principle to Grease Trap Services for the manufacture of biodiesel from waste food/fat, oil and grease collected from catering drainage systems.
Funding may be available from regional or local funding bodies, such as the regional development agencies in England, depending on the priorities they identify for the use of their resources. Central records are not kept of the grants issued.