Vietnam’s first biofuel product registers good sales

PV Oil, a subsidiary of state-owned Vietnam Oil and Gas Group, said sales of its biogasoline product has nearly tripled since its official launch in August.

E5 gasoline, a blend of 5 percent ethanol and 95 percent gasoline, has been welcomed by local consumers because it is cheaper and better for the environment, said Nguyen Thi Dieu Hanh, deputy sales manager at PV Oil.

Hanh said her company is currently supplying around 25,000 liters of the ethanol gasoline to the market every day, up from 8,000-9,000 liters a day in the early days.

E5 was first launched in Vietnam in September 2008 on a trial basis, but sales were halted six days later due to administrative problems. The government issued regulations on quality management of biofuel products last year, allowing PV Oil to begin sales of E5 gasoline officially in August.

Hanh said supply is now falling short of demand because production of the gasoline is still small-scale.

“We want to study more from the response of consumers as well as wait for any support policies from the authorities," she said.

Although PV Oil said it has expanded the distribution system since August, there are now only 29 gas stations that sell the product in large cities. 

Vietnam Oil and Gas Group plans to supply 240 million liters of E5 to local consumers in 2012 at some 4,300 stations.

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Use of biofuels promoted for nation's motor vehicles

Bio-fuel, which emits 30 percent less carbon dioxide than other petrols,
should be more widely used in the country to protect the environment,
experts have said.

Petrol Vietnam Oil Corporation (PV Oil), which makes bio-fuel E5, said the petrol was harmless to vehicles.

Made from biomass, the fuel is a mixture of 95 percent of conventional non-lead gasoline and 5 percent ethanol.

Under a trial run by PV Oil, Da Nang Polytechnic University
and Toyota Ben Thanh, it was found that bio-gasoline E5 had no negative
effects on vehicle engines.

PV Oil also noted that
bio-fuel E5 could increase engine capacity by 3.3 percent compared with
other gasolines, without a change in consumption.

According to results obtained in research projects, bio-fuel E5 can be
used safely for most vehicles made after 1990 and has the same functions
as other kinds of petrols, according to Dr Nguyen Huu Luong of HCM
City Polytechnic University 's Chemistry Department.

Luong also said that not all bio-gasoline was good for the environment because it would depend on the way it was made.

Bio-fuel E5 produced by PV Oil has been on sale since the beginning of August at two gasoline stations in HCM City .

However, many residents lack information about the new petrol and were reluctant to use it.

Nguyen Thanh Nguyen, a seller at Gasoline Station 5 in Thu Duc
disitrict's Hiep Binh Chanh ward, said only one or two out of 10
customers wanted to buy bio-fuel. Every day, the station sells no more
than 100 litres.

He said customers bought bio-fuel because it was 500 VND per litre cheaper than other petrol.

Pham Long, Thu Duc district's Hiep Binh Chanh ward, said that he often used petrol A92 for his motorbike.

"I wouldn't dare use bio-fuel because I lack information about it."

It is estimated that 40 petrol stations will sell bio-fuel in HCM
City by the end of this year, and about 4,000 stations by 2012, of all
which are under PV Oil, Petec and others, said Ly Hong Duc, deputy
director of PV Oil.

Some organisations like PV Oil,
Polytechnic University 's Chemistry Department's Laboratory and the
Dong Xanh Company in Central Quang Nam province are conducting
research on producing bio-fuel with advanced technologies.

Tests show bio-fuel E5 has a higher octane rating than other
conventional gasoline, allowing for better fuel economy, engine and
environmental protection.

The Government has
identified the production of bio-fuel as a pivotal industry to ensure
energy security, reduce dependence on fossil fuels and protect the
environment./.

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