Hong Kong to study increasing use of biodiesel: Christine Loh Kung-wai

The Hong Kong government will commission a study and consult the biodiesel industry about widening the use of the clean fuel, including its mandatory blending into fossil diesel.

The study would look at such issues as the cost and benefits of using biodiesel and whether and how to ensure it came from sustainable sources, said the undersecretary for the environment, Christine Loh Kung-wai.

"We are commissioning a study on the potential and implications of the wider use of biodiesel in Hong Kong and will consult the relevant trades before introducing any mandatory measures," she said.

The study was targeted to be completed in the second quarter of next year and biodiesel makers, importers and major users in the transport, logistics and construction sectors would be consulted, she said. Any mandatory adoption would be years away.

"Anything that requires legislation takes several years to get done nowadays," she said.

The idea of introducing biodiesel consumption in Hong Kong is not new. A government-commissioned report in 2003 said 10 vehicles tested saw an average 14 per cent reduction in both carbon monoxide and unburned hydrocarbons emission.