Brussels, 14/05/2001 (Agence Europe) - As indicated earlier, the Commission adopted on Friday a proposal of amendment to the 1998 directive on environmental specifications applicable to fuels marketed in the EU. The proposal provides for the introduction of zero-sulphur petrol and diesel in each Member State from 1 January 2005 in order to accelerate the adoption of the latest fuel-efficient technologies in cars and other vehicles and to thus considerably reduce emissions of carbon-dioxide, an important greenhouse gas. From 2011, the use of sulphur-free petrol will be compulsory. The date when zero sulphur diesel becomes compulsory will be fixed during a later review.
The Commission justifies its proposal by recalling that the sulphur present in petrol and diesel degrades the performance of both new and existing exhaust after-treatment devices such as catalytic converters. The removal of sulphur from petrol and diesel will enable new automotive technologies to be optimised further, leading to significant reductions in emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2). Sulphur-free fuels will also reduce the polluting emissions of older vehicles as the catalytic devices fitted in these vehicles will also operate more effectively. While recognising that the production of sulphur free fuels will involve more processing in refineries and at an increase in carbon dioxide emissions, the Commission considers that the fuel economy improvements of new vehicles will be greater than the increase in emissions of carbon dioxide at refineries, particularly given recent advances in refinery de-sulphurisation processes. It explains, moreover, that the uncertainty surrounding the de-sulphurisation of diesel fuels and the expected fuel economy improvements of new diesel vehicles justifies the difference in the timetable for petrol and diesel.
Saying "this is a good day for the environment", Commissioner Margot Wallström declared: "I hope that the car manufacturers will respond positively to the availability of sulphur-free fuels. It is important that the new fuel-efficient technologies are introduced widely and optimised further in order to make additional significant reductions in the emissions of CO2 from new cars".