Starting from November 28, Ho Chi Minh City will sell bio-fuel E5, a mixture of 95 percent petrol and 5 percent ethanol, on a pilot basis at several filling stations around the city, the Saigon Times Daily quoted the municipal Department of Industry and Trade as saying.

Next week, the city will meet with fuel wholesalers, dealers, transport firms, and relevant departments to discuss the pilot launch of E5 bio-fuel in the city, the department’s Deputy Director Le Ngoc Dao told a meeting in the city on November 18 on bio-fuel distribution.

According to the plan, E5 RON 92 petrol will be sold on November 28 and relevant departments will announce the list of stations selling the petrol in the city so that customers can easily buy the product.

Early next month, stations which have registered to sell the bio-petrol with the industry-trade department will start selling the product officially.

Vietnam National Petroleum Group (Petrolimex), the nation’s leading fuel trading firm, has pledged to sell the E5 RON 92 petrol at five of its stations from early next month.

Most wholesalers said they can only support dealers selling the bio-petrol the costs for transferring from the normal petrol to the bio-fuel and cleaning up their petrol tanks.

In the initial phase, the city will sell the new fuel at stations in the registration list only, and will expand the number of stations selling it after a certain period of distributing the product around the city.

Earlier in September, Quang Ngai province took the lead in the sale of the bio-fuel, replacing the traditional Mogas 92. Da Nang city and Quang Nam province also distributed gasoline E5 from October.

From December 1, 2015 onwards, the fuel will be sold nationwide at all filling stations.-VNA