Client
Greenergy is the UK’s largest independent oil company with a 10% share of the UK road fuel market and half of the total biofuels market. With a £3.9 billion turnover the business and brand are built on sustainability credentials. Retained since 2001, Four Communications worked with Greenergy from April to July 2008 to deliver a strategic programme to protect Greenergy’s corporate reputation in the face of increasingly negative perceptions of biofuels.

Objective
Greenergy’s ‘good biofuels’ proposition infuses the organisation and brand with a strong ethical and social flavour, putting sustainability into its core business function. The proposition was founded on quality products backed by responsible sourcing, minimising environmental impacts and responsible supply chain and market partnerships. Poor understanding of the global fuels market had seen biofuels go from ‘eco saviour’ to, in the eyes of many, ‘unnecessary evil’ - causing habitat damage, oil price rises and food price increases. Working hand in hand with the Head of Communications at Greenergy the project set out to introduce balance in media coverage and re-establish the ‘good fuel’ principle.

Solution
A detailed activity plan brought together CSR and public affairs teams to ensure the skills were in place to ensure that biofuels were seen to deliver tangible environmental, social and economic benefits, that Greenergy was seen to lead in best practice and to cement the role of biofuels in transport, energy and environmental policy.

Outputs included: stakeholder mapping from politicians to trade groups; agreement of simple messages for biofuels including field to wheel cuts in carbon dioxide; provision of fuel security, checking of oil price rises, the related longer term impact on checking food price rises and the opportunity to create wealth in diverse growing regions.

Greenergy prepared a ‘Perspectives on Biofuels’ document giving the facts behind the criticisms. Available in hard copy and online for researchers, it was used for face to face briefings and given to stakeholders to ensure consistency of message. Selective media and political briefings were undertaken on the market, designed to provide influential and impartial journalists and commentators with the non-emotive facts necessary to assess third party views and provide more balanced commentary. Provision of information and liaison with third party commentators included hosting of a Parliamentary Reception aligning Greenergy with ‘good fuels’.

Result
Briefings were held with Financial Times [environment] and The Guardian [economics and industry] and interviews placed with Dow Jones and Reuters targeting economic commentators. A low key ‘commentary release’ on the Gallagher Report warned against oversimplification of the debate.

A Greenergy hosted Parliamentary Reception secured speaker support from the WWF and Phil Woolas Minister for Environment and was addressed by the Greenergy CEO with attendees including customers, MPs and the NFU. Whilst the key messages were effectively fed out the programme kept the focus on issues rather than specific businesses.

Today the biofuel debate is more balanced with coverage exploring biofuel’s role in driving down oil and food prices; providing income opportunities for the world’s poorest communities, and recognising that whilst more food can be grown - more fossil fuels cannot be created.