Renewable Fuels Assurance Scheme

The Renewable Fuels Assurance Scheme (RFAS) is an initiative designed and managed by Zemo Partnership. The Scheme aims to verify claims made by companies supplying renewable fuels to heavy duty vehicle and equipment operators regarding their product’s GHG emission savings and provenance of raw material feedstocks.

The RFAS works alongside the Government’s Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO), providing a mechanism for guaranteeing that fleet operators are purchasing bulk supplies of sustainable low carbon fuels. The Scheme enables fleet operators to receive renewable fuel supply chain specific GHG emission data, thereby ensuring accurate and representative information for company carbon reporting. Furthermore, credible GHG emission savings figures will help inform decision making processes regarding vehicle fleet decarbonisation options by demonstrating the merits of sustainable low carbon fuels.

Transport sectors covered by the scheme are road vehicle and heavy duty off-highway, notably non-road mobile machinery (NRMM) used on construction sites. Example renewable fuel types that can be approved include biodiesel, hydrotreated vegetable oil, biomethane, renewable hydrogen, various development fuels and blends of renewable fuels. The RFAS encompasses the complete renewable fuel supply chain from feedstock cultivation or waste raw material collection, production and distribution of the final product to the customer.

Companies approved under the Renewable Fuels Assurance Scheme

Company Reference Number Renewable Fuels
UK Approved Companies
CNG Fuels Ltd CF/P1/21 Compressed Biomethane
Argent Energy Ltd

AE/P2/21

Biodiesel (various blends)
Air Liquide Advanced Technologies Ltd ABT/P4/21 Compressed and Liquefied Biomethane
Greenergy Fuels Ltd  GF/P7/21 Biodiesel (various blends) and HVO (various blends)

Crown Oil Ltd

CO/P8/21 HVO
Beesley Fuels Ltd BF/P9/21 HVO
Speedy Fuels & Lubricants Ltd SF/P10/21 HVO
Nationwide Fuels Ltd NF/P11/21 HVO
ESL Fuels Ltd EF/P6/21  Renewable Diesel (various blends)
Phillips 66 Limited PH/P13/22  Renewable Diesel
JET Retail UK Limited JET/P14/22  Renewable Diesel
Gasrec Ltd GR/P15/22 Compressed and Liquefied Biomethane (various blends)
Certas Energy UK Ltd CE/P16/22 HVO
Air Products Ltd AP/ P12/22 Liquified Renewable Hydrogen
Valero Energy Ltd VL/P18/23      Renewable Diesel
WFL UK Ltd (Watson Fuels) WF/P20/23 Renewable Diesel and HVO
Prema Energy Ltd                      PE/P21/23 HVO (various blends)
OnBio Ltd OB/P24/23

HVO

BWOC Ltd BW/P28/23 Renewable Diesel

Oil 4 Wales Ltd

OW/P26/23 Renewable Diesel
Highland Fuels Ltd HF/P17/22 Renewable Diesel and HVO
New Era Fuels Ltd NE/P25/23 HVO
Barton Petroleum Ltd BP/P30/23 Renewable Diesel and HVO
Wessex Petroleum Ltd T/A WP Group WP/P27/23 HVO
Airport Energy Services Ltd   AS/P32/23 HVO
645 Services Ltd SE/P35/24 Renewable Diesel and HVO
Prax Petroleum Ltd PP/P33/23 HVO
Ford Fuels Ltd FF/P39/24 HVO
ViGo Bioenergy Ltd VB/P34/23 Bio-CNG and Bio-LNG
Vitol SA VT/P47/24 HVO
Sunbelt Rentals Ltd SR/P38/24 Renewable Diesel and HVO
Oilfast Ltd OF/P41/24 HVO
AID Fuel Oils Ltd AF/P40/24   Renewable Diesel and HVO
Portland Fuel Ltd  PF/P42/24 HVO
BP Oil UK Ltd  BPO/P46/24  HVO
Johnston Oils Ltd JO/P43/24 HVO
Tria Energy UK Ltd TE/P45/24 Renewable Diesel and HVO
Mabanaft Ltd  MB/P50/24 HVO
Shell UK Oil Products Ltd SH/P51/24 Renewable Diesel and HVO
Internationally Approved Companies
BP Energía España S.A.U. BPE/P31/23 HVO
Flogas Enterprise Solutions Ltd FG/P37/24 Compressed Biomethane
 

* Green Biofuels Ltd RFAS approval suspended on 22 November 2023.

For further information about the RFAS please email or contact Gloria Esposito, Head of Sustainability.

What are the scheme’s environmental performance criteria?

Renewable fuel supply chains are required to meeting the following criteria:

Greenhouse gas emission savings thresholds

  • More than 65% GHG savings for the renewable fraction of biofuels
  • More than 65% GHG savings for renewable fuels of non-biological origin (such as renewable hydrogen)
  • More than 10% GHG savings for the total renewable fuel blend based

Greenhouse gas emissions are calculated using a life-cycle methodology and measured against a fossil fuel comparator

Feedstock Sustainability

  • Protection of land and biodiversity
  • Use of waste as a resource, with a chain of custody to show provenance of the biomass wastes
  • Use of renewable energy and resources for producing renewable fuels of non-biological origin such as hydrogen.

Supply Chain Traceability

  • The renewable fuel supply chain shall be traceable from feedstock origin to customer refuelling depot in terms of greenhouse gas emission and sustainability performance.

How to become an approved Renewable Fuel Supplier?

Companies are required to apply to Zemo Partnership to become approved under the RFAS and recognised as Renewable Fuel Suppliers. This entails completing an application form and participating in an independent audit to demonstrate compliance with the scheme performance criteria. Once approved Renewable Fuel Suppliers are requested to undergo continuous compliance monitoring including an annual audit. Technical guidance and an application form are available for companies wishing to become approved under the RFAS.

The RFAS has an application and annual participation fee, please for 2024 fees.

Renewable Fuel Declarations

Once Renewable Fuel Suppliers are approved by Zemo Partnership, they are requested to issue their customers with Renewable Fuel Declarations for batches of renewable fuels that have been sold. The Declaration identifies the types and volumes of renewable fuel purchased, the GHG emission intensity and savings as well as details of the types of raw material feedstocks and certification under the voluntary sustainability scheme. The declaration includes a colour-coded banding system scaled on GHG emission savings, with the top banding (A+) associated with ‘negative’ GHG emissions. This will help fleet operators easily recognise the GHG emission performance of their renewable fuel and strive for greater savings.

The Renewable Fuel Declarations are non-transferable.  In the event of an RFAS approved renewable fuel supplier selling renewable fuel to a fuel distributor or trader, the distributor/trader will need to become approved in their own right, if they wish to benefit from the scheme and issue declarations to their customers.