The quality of E5 bio fuel in Viet Nam is ensured and meets international standards. All features, capacity and fuel consumption remain the same, and in some criteria E5 is better than RON 92, officials said.

Nguyen Phu Cuong, director of the Department of Science and Technology under the Ministry of Industry and Trade told a forum held in Ha Noi on Wednesday that E5 is not a new fuel.

“The roadmap to replace RON 92 with E5 has been carefully prepared,” Cuong said.

The nationwide sale of E5 replacing RON 92 was implemented for two weeks. Consumers are becoming accustomed to using this environmentally-friendly bio-fuel. However, some consumers are still unsure of the quality of the fuel, as well as if the new E5 fuel suits their vehicles.

The forum, with participation of authorities from ministries and the Viet Nam Automobile Manufacturers Association (VAMA), therefore helped answer any questions.

Cuong said the ministry in co-operation with relevant agencies and big petroleum producers collected opinions for the replacement in the 2007-12 period.

The country has a Vietnamese national standard to manage the fuel’s quality. It has been continuously updated to match global trends.

“The Ministry of Science and Technology was assigned by the Government to take responsibility for E5 quality management. Petroleum in particular and fuels in general are strictly managed under the Law on Standards,” he added.

Dr Pham Huu Tuyen from the University of Technology, took random vehicle models to test E5 gasoline, and said toxic components in the exhaust gas while using E5 bio-fuel were considerably reduced in comparison with RON92.

“This shows the effectiveness of using E5 in operation, thus improving engine performance and reducing emissions,” he said.

Pham Anh Tuan from VAMA provided a survey of its members showing that E5 petrol did not have bad impacts on vehicles which were produced after 1997. Some, which were produced before 1997, could see some negative impacts, but not affecting quality or safety.

“For vehicles sold in Viet Nam, it is recommended not to use leaded petrol and methanol. E5 bio-fuel does not have an impact on the engine,” Tuan said.

Sharing this opinion, Nguyen Van Phuong, from Viet Nam Register, said information from vehicle producers affirmed that most current vehicles are compatible with E5 and E10 petrol.

E5 selling prices continue to drop

Answering a question about the surge in the price of RON 95 recently, which was rumoured to force consumers to use E5 instead of RON 95, Cuong from MoIT said the Government had not aimed to do that.

The Government only encourages the using of E5 by reducing taxes and fees, thus lowering its selling prices.

The retail price of E5 biofuel is about VND2,000 (8.9 US cents) per litre cheaper than that of RON92 petrol at VND18,243.

Meanwhile, the retail selling price of RON95 petrol has been increased by VND760-810 per litre to more than VND20,690.

“The environmental protection tax of E5 is 100 per cent cheaper than RON 95. The ministry is advising the Government to continue reducing the tax on the E5 environmentally-friendly petrol,” he added.

After nearly two weeks of using E5, Do Huu Tao, head of the Technical Department of Viet Nam Petroleum Group (Petrolimex) said it was estimated that 65 per cent of consumers were changing from RON 92 to E5 and this was increasing.

Nguyen Van Khoi, from the Directorate for Standards, Metrology and Quality said there were no reports of vehicles damaged by using E5 fuel. E5 fuel is a mix of A92 petrol (95 per cent) and biofuel ethanol (5 per cent).

Ministry of Industry and Trade to announce basis price of A95 petrol

The Ministry of Industry and Trade said the global selling price of RON 95 has surged, pushing the country’s retail price higher.

The ministry sent a report to the deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue, who is also head of the price management board of RON 95.

RON 95 has not been subject to announcements of its basis price, and the ministries of industry and trade and finance did not use the price stabilisation fund to lower prices.

It added that they announced basis prices of popular petroleum products which have high consumption in the market.

Previously, consumers mostly used RON 92. Only some expensive, newer vehicles were recommended to use RON 95.

This was the reason that the two ministries used RON 92 for the calculation of basis price in the local market, the ministry said, adding that it would report to the Government on the announcement of the RON 95 basis price when the number of vehicles using the fuel increased. — VNS