Representative of the Ministry of Industry and Trade: We should not rush to attribute vehicle incidents to the quality of E10 gasoline

At the discussion on E10 gasoline supply, on June 5, Mr. Dao Duy Anh, Deputy Director of Innovation, Green Transformation and Industrial Promotion (Ministry of Industry and Trade) cited international experience and data from the Vietnam Register showing that most vehicles manufactured after 2000 are compatible with E10 gasoline.

Mr. Dao Duy Anh said that more than 141 million liters of E5 biofuel were consumed in the early days of this type of gasoline completely replacing mineral gasoline on the market. This level accounts for more than 93% of the total gasoline sold nationwide.

“We have not received negative feedback from consumers,” he said, adding that with information on social networks about vehicles having problems after refueling with E10 gasoline, “it is necessary to verify the specific cause, instead of hastily attributing it to fuel quality.”

From the perspective of distribution businesses, Mr. Do Hoang Ha, Head of Petrolimex Business Department, said that E10 gasoline consumption is stable, increasing day by day. “Consumers received the product with caution, with some initial concerns. However, users’ reactions gradually became more positive when they had access to full information,” Mr. Ha said.

According to him, the questions customers ask most relate to E10’s compatibility with older vehicles, fuel consumption and whether it is necessary to clean the fuel tank and replace parts when converting.

According to statistics from the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers Association (VAMA), the majority of car models manufactured, assembled and distributed by association members in Vietnam today are designed to be compatible with biofuels, including E10. Mr. Dao Cong Quyet, Head of the VAMA Communications Subcommittee, said that new model cars use materials that are resistant to the impact of ethanol with pump systems, injectors, pipelines and specialized rubber and plastic parts. Therefore, the risk of corrosion or affecting engine durability is very low, if the fuel meets standards.

For some vehicles manufactured before 2005 or still using carburetors, compatibility with E10 gasoline needs to be carefully checked, because when designing, the manufacturer did not take into account the use of fuel with a high percentage of ethanol. VAMA recommends that car owners take their vehicles to a dealer or genuine maintenance center to have their technical condition assessed.

Regarding fuel consumption of E10according to VAMA, the difference after fuel conversion is not significant. On the contrary, ethanol helps the fuel combustion process take place cleaner, contributing to reducing emissions and improving environmental protection efficiency.

Sharing the same opinion, Associate Professor. Dr. Dam Hoang Phuc, Director of the Automotive Technical Training Program (Hanoi University of Science and Technology), said that the problem of E10 is not in capacity or fuel consumption, but in the descaling ability of ethanol.

According to him, vehicles that have been used for 5-10 years often have sludge accumulated in the fuel tank and fuel delivery system. Ethanol has the ability to dissolve this residue, causing it to flake off and potentially cause operating errors. “Ethanol itself does not cause errors, but acts as a reagent for the fuel system,” he said.

He added that potential errors that would have appeared in a few years are now occurring sooner due to the faster and stronger descaling speed of E10. Therefore, according to him, car owners should proactively check the fuel filter. If it is black and dirty, it is necessary to take timely cleaning and maintenance measures.

Experts say that ethanol actually has hygroscopic properties, but this risk needs to be assessed at two stages, including distribution and use. At the mixing and distribution stage, E10 quality control is much more complicated than regular gasoline, requiring management agencies to tighten supervision of gas stations.

With the stage of storing gasoline in users’ cars, authorities need to provide accurate research data and recommendations to people. For example, with an 80 liter fuel tank, is it 10 days or 1 month for the fuel to start dehumidifying? In foggy weather conditions like Moc Chau (Son La), how does this type of gasoline absorb moisture differently compared to when consumed in Hanoi?.

Selling price and supply of ethanol is also a challenge of the roadmap to use E10 gasoline. According to a Mipec representative, building an E10 price that is both attractive to consumers and ensures business efficiency is a “difficult problem”. According to him, key businesses have had to invest heavily in storage systems, mixing stations, transportation vehicles as well as renovating tanks and pumps at retail stores to accommodate fuel containing ethanol. However, most of these costs are not yet fully included in the retail price.

Regarding domestic ethanol supply, according to calculations by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, with gasoline consumption demand of more than 10 million m3 a year, the market will need about 1 million m3 of ethanol for mixing. Meanwhile, the capacity of domestic factories only meets about 300,000 m3, equivalent to 30% of demand. The rest still depends on imports.

Regarding this issue, Mr. Dao Duy Anh said that the Ministry of Industry and Trade is coordinating with the Ministry of Finance to research solutions on taxes, fees and price structures to create motivation for the biofuel market to develop sustainably. At the same time, the management agency also aims to restore ethanol plants and develop domestic raw material areas to reduce dependence on imports.