VIVERGO FUELS BOSS BELIEVES 'TIME IS RAPIDLY RUNNING OUT'

THE UK's largest bioethanol producer has warned it may be forced to shut down within days unless the Government intervenes.

- By ANDREW SPENCE

Vivergo Fuels, which has a plant at Saltend Chemicals Park, near Hull, has written to wheat growing farmers in its supply chain to inform them that wheat purchases will be scaled back from next month to meet only existing contractual obligations. The company says that, without Government action, the plant will no longer be viable, and wheat purchases will have to end.

Bioethanol is used as a renewable alternative to fuels such as petrol and diesel. It is a plant-based material that is produced by fermenting and distilling crops such as wheat and corn.

The US-UK trade deal announced earlier this month included the removal of the 19 per cent tariff on ethanol imports from the United States. Vivergo Fuels claims UK firms will struggle to compete with imports from the US.