BCB International, the Cardiff-based outdoor and survival equipment supplier, has inaugurated a new plant in Llanelli where it will produce FireDragon fuel, a new clean green cooking fuel for the military, camping and leisure markets. BCB successfully applied for a patent and got £150,000 (€176.234-$227,519) from the Welsh Government's Economic Growth Fund, which allowed it to start production. BCB designs and manufactures survival and protective equipment for the British Ministry of Defense and defense organizations worldwide. The company said that FireDragon is the result of five years spent in research and development on the project, looking into ways to produce a safer and cleaner outdoor cooking fuel, and an investment of almost £1 million (€1.2m-$1.5m) since 2009, a significant sum considering the size of the company. The project was also developed with support from Cardiff University. FireDragon is said to be a major advance on existing solid fuels for cooking. An ethanol-based fuel, it has the consistency of candle wax and is therefore safe and easy to transport. It also burns clearly and cleanly, while other products on the market give off cyanide derivatives when burnt, or release formaldehyde in certain situations. FireDragon is expected to have an international market which includes the military for cooking rations in the field as well as the camping, survival, leisure markets and catering sector.

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