Cleaner fuel to cost motorists, firms

The cost implications of government's new cleaner fuel standards to the industry and motorists need to to be thoroughly reviewed, said the SA Petroleum Industry Association (Sapia) on Tuesday. It welcomed the release of draft fuel specifications and standards by Energy Minister Dipuo Peters.

The energy department's proposed changes include reducing the sulphur content in both petrol and diesel from 500ppm to 10ppm, benzene from five to one percent, aromatics from 50% to 35%, and vapour pressure from 45-75 to 45-65kPa maximum, with a 5kPa waiver allowed when bio-ethanol is used.

Earlier on Tuesday, Peters told a briefing at parliament government hoped to start introducing the cleaner fuel by 2013.

She said full introduction of the Clean Fuels Two (CF2) draft fuel specifications and standards was expected by 2017.

CF2 is the equivalent of the current European Five fuel specifications (Euro V).

Peters said the modernisation of South Africa's liquid fuels was a continuation of the process that in 2006 resulted in a ban on lead in all grades of petrol, and the reduction of sulphur levels in diesel from 3 000 to 500 parts per million.

Among others, allowable levels of benzene - a known carcinogen - would be reduced from 5% to 1% and sulphur from 500 to 10 parts per million.

The new specifications are underpinned by three imperatives - the need to contribute to public health, environmental concerns, and the need to enable more advanced combustion engines on South African roads.

The low sulphur levels would allow for the introduction of more efficient engines with less carbon dioxide emissions.

"As responsible citizens of the world, we cannot continue using fuels that result in more greenhouse gas emissions than those partners with whom we trade," she said.

"A speedy process is encouraged so that regulatory certainty can be obtained without further delay to enable the very substantial investments that will need to be made by the oil companies," Sapia said in a statement.

"The industry is going to play an active role in finalising future fuel specifications and standards for South Africa," it said.

Source: fin24, Wednesday, 9 March 2011