DORSET households could soon be offered a greener solution to heating, with a newly developed liquid fuel alternative to kerosene.

The new fuel, called Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO), is made from fossil free, certified sustainable waste materials sourced without harming the environment and reduces emissions by almost 90%.

Initially, 19 properties across the UK have successfully adopted HVO and there are plans to expand the trials further over the coming months.

The trial initiative has been launched by heating industry trade associations OFTEC and UKIFDA, as the government ramps up its commitment to achieving net zero emissions by 2050.

Malcolm Farrow from OFTEC said: “The initial trial results are highly encouraging and add further evidence to show that HVO offers oil heated households an attractive, low cost, practical option for reducing carbon emissions.

“Converting properties to fossil-free HVO is a simple process that costs around £500 compared to the thousands of pounds it currently costs to install a completely new low carbon heating system, plus the additional improvements that would need to be made to many older, poorly insulated homes”.

It’s hoped the new fuel in will be introduced in 2022, subject to the completion of successful trials and government approval.