Camborne and Redruth MP George Eustice has been visiting a Camborne village to find out more about a scheme to swap boiler fuel over to hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO).

Residents and community leaders in Kehelland explained how the trial – run by local fuel distributor Mitchell & Webber – is part of a National Demonstration project together with UK and Ireland Fuel Distributors Association (UKIFDA) and Oil Firing Technical Association (OFTEC).

Mr Eustice attended a gathering at Kehelland School, a 130-year-old building which has already been converted to run on HVO.

Mitchell & Webber director John Weedon said: “Kehelland is unique as it has the most boilers converted to HVO in the UK, so we’re delighted Mr Eustice is here to see first-hand how quick and easy a HVO conversion is, and how much impact it can have in the fight against climate change.”

Made from certified waste fats and oils, HVO can be used as a direct replacement in conventional oil-fired systems – and reduces carbon emissions by up to 88 per cent.

Mr Eustice said: “It is vital we look to new, greener technologies to heat our homes if we are going to be able to stay on track to hit net-zero by 2050, but this is a challenge in rural areas, which often rely on oil boilers. Finding a way to convert boilers at reasonable cost to a fuel with a lower carbon footprint may well be part of the solution in the medium term. So I’m very pleased to see my constituency is leading the way with this nationally-leading trial of HVO.”

Mr Weedon added: “The rigorous testing we’re doing as part of this trial is gaining evidence that demonstrates the viability of HVO as a fossil-fuel free alternative to oil. Thousands of our customers across Cornwall and the South West will have to change their oil-fired heating systems in the not-too-distant future, and that’s why we’re doing this industry-funded trial – because we want to show the UK government evidence that HVO is a simple solution that is both effective and affordable for our communities.”

Headteacher at the school, Ellie Watkins, said “Because of our school’s age and construction, we weren’t going to be able to make the insulation changes needed for other low-carbon heating systems to be effective – both from a cost and disruption perspective. So, when Mitchell & Webber alerted us to this opportunity, we signed up.”