Green D+ fuel which is a hydrogenated vegetable oil (HVO), sold to the market with the potential of reducing carbon dioxide equivalent emissions by a significant 90 per cent and through testing can achieve up to 6.4 per cent higher fuel efficiency. The fuel is currently used in generators but until now, was yet to enter Keltbray's excavator fleet and is being trialled to assess whether it can reduce the impact from construction plant operations.

The trial consists of running two identical Caterpillar 25t machines, one on standard red EN590 diesel and one on Green D+ fuel. Ongoing analysis will be carried out remotely using the machines own telematics as well as downloads from the machines onboard logging systems. The trial is expected to last approximately eight weeks.

To further reduce the carbon emissions, the fuel will be stored on-site in bowsers with telematics which communicate with the supplier, Speedy, to indicate when the tanks need topping up. This in turn reduces the frequency of fuel deliveries to site.

"This is an important step in our ongoing commitment to sustainable innovation," said Kiro Tamer, group energy manager at Keltbray. "The technology which will allow the industry to carry out this work is yet to exist, but to assist the UK Government's goals to achieve net-zero, Green D+ fuel could provide an immediate solution to reduce carbon emissions in the construction industry until the new technology arrives on the market."

Mike Derome, head of fuel at Speedy, added: "We're delighted to be running this trial with Keltbray. Green D+ HVO fuel is now provided as Speedy's standard low emission fuel and is the only HVO fuel approved for use in Speedy equipment. For every 350 litres of Green D+ HVO fuel used, one tonne of CO₂ is saved versus fossil fuel, so we anticipate seeing significant reductions in CO₂ throughout the trial".