Hart Energy’s predictions are that all the other GCC nations will follow the UAE’s step, but it will take some time. In short, a country’s ability to adopt ULSD isn’t about – in the short term – political will or consumer demand, but the ability of the petroleum refineries to produce it. The IFQC provides annual rankings of countries based on the cleanliness of their diesel fuel.Īdopting low sulphur diesel for a country’s market isn’t as simple as ticking a box on an order form, quite literally it requires massive investment in fuel refinery upgrades, at a cost of hundreds of millions of dollars. To find out by when that is likely to take place, T&FME spoke with researchers at Hart Energy Research & Consulting, international specialists in fuel quality and the firm behind the International Fuel Quality Centre (IFQC). It’s more likely that distributors will change the make-up of the fleets they import once fuel qualities are aligned in all the GCC nations. There’s every possibility that a customer in the UAE could purchase diesel wholesale that had higher sulphur content, or – in the case of on-road vehicles – drive to a neighbouring state, and even machinery crosses borders. And with the new engines, there’s also a danger that the incorrect fuel could be used. In the short-term it seems unlikely, since from a distributor’s perspective, it’s unlikely to make good business sense to import a vehicle or machine that can only be sold into the UAE and not into the other GCC markets, and manufacturers may not have a model variant with the correct specifications on order. Engines will have extra fuel filters, may lack after-exhaust treatments, and may not have the high pressure fuel injection systems which are so fuel efficient.Ĭould we now see vehicles with cleaner burning engines imported into the UAE? In the Middle East, passenger vehicles are typically sold with a petrol engine, while for applications that require diesel, such as heavy vehicles and machinery, they are supplied as Tier 2/3 or Euro 2/3. In those markets, the introduction of cleaner diesel was matched with the introduction of cleaner burning engines from vehicle and construction machinery manufacturers, required by legislation to meet emission targets, in order to improve the general environment and levels of public health. It’s a significant development, not only from the perspective of cleaner air, but also because in the future it could allow machinery and vehicle manufacturers to import the newer, more efficient engines in use in developed markets including Europe, North America, Japan, Singapore and Australia. “As one of the first providers of ultralow- sulphur diesel in the UAE, we will work with all concerned stakeholders – including government departments and – to further promote its usage.” ENOC will continue to be at the forefront in promoting the use of Green Diesel as part of our corporate social responsibility.” “The Federal Government has made it mandatory that the environment-friendly Green Diesel is used by motorists, in turn contributing to a greener and cleaner environment. Therefore, using 10ppm diesel leads to lower emissions, and cleaner air quality,” said Saeed Khoory, chief executive officer of ENOC. “Diesel is graded by its sulphur content as a general rule as removing it implies a reduction in particulate matters and pollutants. The Green Diesel corresponds with a Euro 5 standard, and the decree from the Federal Cabinet was aimed at promoting the UAE’s environmental sustainability by limiting pollution. It follows a decree from the UAE Federal Cabinet last year that UAE should use diesel with only 10 parts per million (ppm) sulphur, rather than diesel with 50 or 500 ppm sulphur that is in use in the rest of the GCC. On 1 of July the Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC) announced that all the service stations in the ENOC/EPPCO network are now providing ultra low sulphur ‘Green Diesel,’ making the United Arab Emirates the first GCC state to introduce ultra low sulphur diesel (ULSD).
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