New petrol and diesel labelling
AS GOVERNMENTS AROUND THE WORLD PUT IN PLACE MEASURES TO IMPROVE AMBIENT AIR QUALITY AND TACKLE
GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS, THE TRANSPORT SECTOR IS SEEING AN INCREASINGLY DIVERSE RANGE OF FUELS AND
PROPULSION SYSTEMS
B
elow Mark Rolph, chairman of the
Downstream Fuel Association (DFA),
details what is happening with respect
to new fuel labelling, which will be introduced
in the UK in the near future.
Following the European standard, the
labels have circles for petrol, squares for diesel
and diamonds for gaseous fuels such as
hydrogen and LPG.
The standard regular petrol and diesel
fuels will have the following labels
Within Europe the Alternative Fuels
Infrastructure Directive (AFID) 2014/94/
EU establishes standard rules on rolling out
the EU’s alternative fuels infrastructure eg.
electric car recharging stations and natural
gas refuelling points.
The directive, which lays down minimum
requirements for building up this
infrastructure, is to be implemented as
part of every EU country’s national policy
framework.
A UK consultation
Whilst BS EN 16942, as represented graphically
alongside, has been agreed by UK industry and
the British Standards Institute, the Department
for Transport (DfT) considers that the standard
may have gone beyond the requirements of
the AFID.
The DfT questions the need to state fuel
grade eg. BS EN 228/BS EN 590, or indeed the
octane/grade Information eg. 97 Octane/B7
Diesel.
Taking the BSI label design t o
consultation, the DfT is seeking industry views
as to whether to implement the BSI version,
or the DfT’s recommended version which is
shown below.
The need for fuel labelling
In the future, it is anticipated that there will
be an increasing choice of fuels available,
particularly as more renewable fuels are
introduced. To help prevent mis-fuelling, and
to ensure that the motorist uses the correct
fuel for their vehicle, the directive calls for the
introduction of a simple labelling system.
Labels will be clearly visible on fuel pumps
and nozzles as well as in the immediate vicinity
of a vehicle’s filling cap; matching these labels
will help ensure that the motorist uses the
appropriate fuel.
The European Committee for
Standardisation – CEN (www.cen.eu) has
developed a standard design for these labels.
Here in the UK, the British Standards
Institute has transposed this directive as:
BS EN 16942:2016
Fuels – Identification of Vehicle
Compatibility
Graphical Expression For Consumer
Information
www.bsigroup.com/en-GB
Covering the labelling of marketed
liquid and gaseous fuels, this new standard
is designed to provide consumers with
information as to their vehicle’s compatibility
with a growing number of fuels.
*measurements in minimum millimetres
At the time of going to press, the DfT
consultation on labelling was due to be
published last month, with a final decision as to
our chosen labelling design being given in the
autumn, once responses have been reviewed.
With industry then needing at least three
months to prepare equipment and print the
new labels, the UK will not be able to meet the
AFID deadline of 12th October 2018.
Whilst the consultation is in process, a UK
government/industry task force is developing
an information campaign to advise motorists
of the impending new labelling, by way of
onsite posters and a consumer information
website with an FAQ’s section.
In the meantime, several Brussels-based
trade associations – ACEA, ACEM, FuelsEurope
and UPEI – have jointly published a consumer
information leaflet.
To view this information please visit the
DFA’s sister association website at UPEI.org.
www.downstreamfuel.org.uk
Fuel Oil News | August 2018 9