The purpose of this webinar was to share information, understanding and some of the ‘good news’ around the development of manufactured fuels. We were delighted to introduce two of the main protagonists from CPL who agreed to take part, giving all a chance to hear their answers first-hand, rather than regurgitated in these pages. We hope that the evening was informative and helped answer some of the questions and concerns around manufactured fuels, the reason why they have come to fruition, and why the development of a fuel targeted as a mainstream domestic product – but fundamentally refined to work as best as possible in steam engine applications – is an important part of the puzzle of fuel for the future of our hobby and preserving steam on the road. It is thanks to those participants in the coal trials, who tested fuels and developed fuels providing valuable feedback that has enabled this to happen, so thank you to those who were a part of this.
There are of course many other avenues of work being undertaken to seek and protect fuels for the future. To reiterate those briefly, here is an important part of sharing our approach to coal and manufactured fuels. There are other providers of manufactured fuels that have worked successfully in road steam applications for some, and information on these has been regularly shared over the last year or so. Work continues to seek if a viable lump coal of the right type and size can be sourced from around the world and imported at a competitive rate, however this is extremely challenging. And of course, there is still coal available right now, including from Ffos-y-Fran where the supply to the heritage sector has resumed and continues to strengthen.
The NTET has good relationships established with all these businesses and is proactively supporting all of them with their various challenges and developments as needed. The future may be complex, but it is at least looking a little brighter!
The recording of the webinar is available, below: