Oil companies strive to give cleaner fuel

PUNE: The inability of oil companies to supply low sulphur content fuel is preventing the domestic automotive sector from complying with internationally accepted emission norms.
"We can introduce Bharat Stage IV norms, equivalent to Euro IV, if the requisite fuel quality were available," Balraj Bhanot, director, Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI), said.He said that tailpipe technology would be needed to meet emission norms under BS IV. Diesel vehicles will need particulate filters or soot filters to meet the mandated requirement of 50 ppm.
The fuel quality issue becomes relevant with the introduction, from April 1,2005, of BS III emission norms, equivalent to Euro III, for all petrol and diesel vehicles in 11 cities across the country. At which point, the BS II, equivalent to Euro II, will be introduced in the rest of the country. The 11 cities are the National Capital Region (NCR), Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Pune, Ahmedabad, Surat, Agra and Kanpur.
However, the plan to extend BS II norms to all two - and three-wheelers is expected to face resistance, particularly from the Japanese two-wheeler manufacturers.
"In India, we have the tightest of norms for the two-wheeler segment since these form the largest chunk of the vehicle population. Japanese companies are opposed to this since they have to sell in other markets where regulations are not so stringent. We have to have stringent emission norms in our country for two-wheelers since this segment comprises 80 per cent of the vehicle population. Two-wheelers in a country like Japan are put to different use, not for everyday commuting," Mr Bhanot pointed out.
Incidentally, that is believed to be one of the reasons Chinese bikes could not enter the Indian market: our tough emission norms!
The ARAI estimates that the national annual consumption of automotive fuel is between 50- 60 million tonnes, 60 per cent of this is used by two- and three-wheelers. This, the institute believes, makes a strong case for the introduction of cleaner fuel by the oil companies and mandatory checks of all vehicles by statutory bodies.
The global move to remove lead from petrol during the 1990s, is now being replicated for diesel, with the aim to reduce sulphur content eventually to 10 ppm, under Euro IV. The norms are slated to come into force by 05 although reaching that level could take till 06.
According to ARAI findings, based on studies done in the field, regular maintenance and servicing of vehicles brings emission levels of a 15-year old two-wheeler on par with those of a more recent vintage. Hence, it is in favour of mandatory six monthly checks, a practice followed in other parts of the world.
"No amount of Pollution Under Check (PUC) certification will control emission. What is needed are mandatory six monthly tests," he said.
The ARAI''s recommendation to set up an inspection and maintenance centre in Delhi has been accepted. The centre will come up in Burari, near Delhi, initially to cater to the heavy commercial vehicle (HCV) segment. It will have a separate line for the inspection of light commercial vehicles (LCV) and later, a centre will come up at Anand Vihar, in south Delhi, for passenger cars.
Mr Bhanot pointed to the opportunity presented by inspection and maintenance, suggesting that it could be privatised over the next four-five years.
Referring to ARAI''s two-city study conducted in 03 in Pune and the National Capital Region (NCR), Mr Bhanot said they used a remote sensing device (RSD) to capture data on polluting vehicles.
"We wanted to find out fleet characteristics, find the vehicles which are the culprit, the most polluting models or vintage, instead of stopping all vehicles," he said. The experiment will be repeated in the NCR in 05, to identify the vehicle model or vintage.
The first study, in 03, identified the most polluting category of vehicles; the next study will find the details in the category.
Among the findings were that operating vehicles on CNG in the NCR has not made much of a difference to CO emissions there. However, this has resulted in lower hydro carbon emissions. Among the vehicles found to be polluting the most were commercial vehicles, two- and three-wheelers.