The UK bioethanolindustry just collapsed.
The May 2025 UK-US trade deal removed the 19% tariff on US ethanol imports. Vivergo closed. Ensus mothballed. Greenward occupies uncontested territory: the only waste-derived bioethanol developer in the UK.
A market forced open
by two crises at once.
The collapse
timeline.
In under two years the UK went from two operating bioethanol plants to none. The demand did not move. The supply did.
UK-US trade negotiations begin. Ethanol tariff reduction discussed.
UK-US trade deal signed. 19% tariff on US ethanol imports removed.
Vivergo Fuels (Hull) closes. 420 million litres of annual capacity lost.
Ensus (Teesside) mothballed. A further 400 million litres of capacity offline.
UK domestic bioethanol production effectively zero. Greenward enters an uncontested market.
Structurally
different.
The forces that closed the incumbents do not apply to a waste-fed, gate-fee-first, policy-advantaged plant.
No grain exposure
We process waste, not wheat or corn. No vulnerability to commodity prices or tariff shifts. Structurally immune to the forces that closed Vivergo.
Six revenue streams
Waste gate fees, bioethanol sales, RTFCs, the double waste-derived certificate rate (classification application with the DfT), carbon credits and CO₂ capture. Revenue begins before a single litre is sold.
Double RTFCs
Eligible waste-derived bioethanol earns 2 Renewable Transport Fuel Certificates per litre, double the crop-based rate. Greenward's feedstock classification applications are with the DfT. A structural policy advantage set by regulation.
Carbon advantage
Around 50,000 tonnes of CO₂ abatement per plant per year (Tunley Environmental). As ETS and voluntary carbon markets align, carbon credits and CO₂ capture represent significant additional upside, subject to LCA and registry approval.
The window is open
and we are already through it.
Investors, offtakers and policy partners: the first UK waste-to-bioethanol plant is being built now. Talk to us about being part of it.