Hanoi (VNA) – Duc Thuan of Hanoi’s Ha Dong districtbought a car with a Euro 4 emission standard after specific regulations wereissued for such models in Vietnam. However, he said, finding Euro 4fuel is “a whole other challenge”.

At present, only the Petrolimex chain sells Euro 4 at its pumps and even then,not at every station.

The supply of Euro 4 fuel is limited since only two local refineries produce itdespite the fact that a regulation issued by the prime minister in response toheavy pollution, which went into effect on January 1, applies Euro 4 andEuro 3 standards for new cars and motorbikes.

The application of the Euro 4 standard is expected to reduce emissions by 30 percent.Since urban air pollution mainly origins from traffic, according to the 2016National Environment Report, it is of importance for the regulation to bestrictly applied.

The new regulation is only applied to newly imported and manufactured cars withoutany change for older vehicles using Euro 2 fuel. Therefore, choosing which typeof fuel is totally up to car owners. Since the price of Euro 4 fuel is two tofive percent higher than Euro 2 and Euro 3, car owners often opt for the morepolluting fuels.

Mai Anh from HCM City told Tuoitre (Youth) Newspaper that though she switched to a Euro 4 car for itsenvironment friendly standards, she was concerned that only a small number ofpetrol stations in the city stock the fuel.

Tran Ngoc Nguyen, Director of the Binh Son Refining and PetrochemicalCompany Limited, said that Dung Quat Refiner can only meet Euro 2 standardssince it came into operation in 2009, prior to the new regulation. Onlyonce the refiner finishes upgrading its facility in 2021 will it be able to supplycleaner fuel. 

“The refiner continues to supply Euro 2 fuel for more than 45 million vehicles.It is not prohibited to produce and distribute Euro 2 fuel,” said Nguyen.

One refiner asked that the application of Europe 4 be phased in gradually, but PrimeMinister Nguyen Xuan Phuc rejected the request, citing deteriorating urbanpollution.

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment predicts that the cost forenvironment-related health issues will account for 1.2 percent of GDP by 2020.An expert from the Vietnam Standards and Quality Institute thus recommendsthat owners of Euro 2 vehicles be encouraged to use Euro 4 fuel.

Cao Hoai Duong, Director of the PetrolVietnam Oil Corporation (PVOil), says thecompany is implementing the new regulation. However, according to him, it isnearly impossible to distribute different types of fuel at the same timebecause each type needs its own tank and pipeline and PVOilneeds to calculate the demand and supply at urban petrol stations.

According to Nguyen Phu Cuong, head of the Science and TechnologyDepartment under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, a detailed report isbeing written on the types of fuel on the market and on limiting the numbers ofsuch products. The ministry is working with refiners to set up an upgradingplan to meet emission regulations.

In addition, Dinh Trong Thinh of the Finance Academy recommends negotiatingwith foreign investors on technological innovation in producing high-qualityfuel.-VNA