People have their motorbikes fuelled at a petrol station on Tran Quang Khai Street, Hanoi. (Photo: VNA) Hanoi(VNA) – Vietnam will replace RON 92 petrol with E5 bio-fuel from the beginningof next year.
Accordingly, the supply of RON 92 petrol will be halted in all localitiesacross the country. This was announced by the Government Office following thelatest decision passed by Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung concerning thebio-fuel development project and the roadmap for shifting to bio-fuel mixedwith fossil fuels.
RON 92 petrol and E5 bio-fuel, a mix of RON 92 (95 percent) and bio-fuelethanol (5 percent), will co-exist by December 31, 2017.
From January 1, 2018, only E5 bio-fuel and RON 95 will be produced andavailable for purchase.
“The ban of RON 92 grade is in line with the Government’s effort to boost salesand consumption of environment-friendly E5. The shift will also contribute toensuring energy security, reducing dependence on fossil fuels and implementingthe commitments made by the Vietnamese Government to reduce greenhouse gasemissions, among others,” said the Government statement.
The decision is expected to facilitate petrol dealers in the trading of E5bio-fuel, as consumers will no longer have access to RON 92 petrol.
The Deputy PM also directed the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) tosupervise petrol wholesalers to ensure a stable supply and quality of bio-fuelto the market.
The MoIT is required to cooperate with the Ministries of Science andTechnology, Finance (MoF) and Transport; the Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group(PetroVietnam); and the Vietnam National Petroleum Group (Petrolimex) topropose the application of petrol products quality to ensure they meet thestandards of EURO 2, EURO 3, EURO 4 and EURO 5.
Meanwhile, the MoF was told to control the price of bio-fuel to avoid priceincreases while developing policies to avoid the monopoly of ethanolproduction.
The MoF would cooperate with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Developmentand MoIT to build a floor buying price of cassava, the main raw material in theproduction of ethanol.
It would also research to build and promulgate tax policies for importedethanol to prevent monopoly of local ethanol producers.
Previously, many plans on the wide use of E5 bio-fuel were set but missed theirdeadline. The Government last year confirmed that plans to start compulsorysales of E5 in eight provinces and cities had been delayed because domesticconsumers had shown little interest in making the switch from RON 92 petroleum.
In the latest move, the MoIT said on its online portal that it “may completelyreplace all RON 92 with E5 by mid-2017”. However, this timeline was moved tothe beginning of 2018.-VNA
VNA
