Wood-based diesel successfully trialled in Finnish buses

Finnish forest industry company UPM says it has successfully tested wood-based diesel fuel both in laboratory conditions and in traffic.

The lab tests of renewable UPM BioVerno diesel were conducted in the VTT Technical Research Centre (VTT) and field tests in bus traffic with Helsinki Region Transport (HSL).

'The use of UPM BioVerno diesel in the current bus fleet instead of fossil diesel would lower emissions from public transport significantly,' said Sari.Mannonen, vice president of UPM Biofuels.

'This is good news as this Finnish wood-based fuel could immediately affect the air quality in the Helsinki region'

According to the company, UPM BioVerno diesel worked well in year-long bus field tests. The test runs were done using 20%, 50% and 100% UPM BioVerno diesel.