Analysis
The quest to resolve gas oil issues
THE LAST QUARTER OF 2019 SAW A SUDDEN AND SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN FUEL PROBLEMS REPORTED ACROSS THE UK,
AFFECTING BOTH ON AND OFF-ROAD VEHICLES WITH THE RESULTING ISSUES POTENTIALLY LINKED TO THE USE OF FUEL
WITH A HIGH FAME CONTENT
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Reduced cold weather performance with poor flow characteristics and waxing
Decreased stability and shelf life with gradual degradation through oxidation, hydrolysis and separation
Water contamination with greater potential of algae, bug and mould growth
Residual deposits increasing the risk of injector fouling/filter blocking
With concerns growing, Petroineos held a gas oil and diesel workshop at their Grangemouth refinery in November. (For more details visit the Fuel Oil
News website) https://fueloilnews.co.uk/2019/11/petroineos-gasoil-and-biofuel-workshop/
Does FAME forfeit fuel quality?
A Petroineos spokesperson explained:
“Having received dozens of samples
back from customers for analysis, everyone
met the required standard. Whilst confident
in our systems, processes and product sold
to market, we were made well-aware of the
issues experienced and determined to get
stakeholders together to find answers to the
growing problem.”
Hosted by Daniel Brain, commercial
manager – marketing & distribution and
refinery manager, Russell Mann, members
of the quality and technical team were
also on hand. Among the attendees were
representatives from NFU Scotland, Ringlink
Scotland and UKIFDA as well as distributors
and their customers ensuring representation
from all involved in the fuel supply chain.
Fuel Oil News commercial manager,
Margaret Major, who attended the event
witnessed a lively Q&A session as to what could
be done to address the issues.
“It quickly became apparent just how
emotive a subject this was,” said Margaret.
“There was a real sense of desperation
with NFU Scotland expressing concern about
‘the potential threat to the well-being of both
livestock and their members’ and reports
of farmers increasingly frustrated at their
inability to carry out jobs due to clogged filters
causing machinery to breakdown, all of which
was resulting in significant downtime and an
increased financial burden.”
Several fuel distributors gave examples
of frustrated customers refusing to pay their
bills; and, in a bid to find resolution measures,
UKIFDA’s CEO, Guy Pulham, raised a number
of questions on behalf of members.
The event’s large turnout left reassured
14 Fuel Oil News | January 2020
that fuel produced by Petroineos met the
required standards, but what still remained
was an overriding feeling that RTFO standards
imposed by government may not be fit
for purpose. With winter weather on its
way and lower temperatures known to
exacerbate problems with FAME, there was
an overwhelming call for the immediate
suspension of FAME addition at the higher 7%
level until solutions to problems could be found.
FAME – reviewing with a matter of
urgency and resolving this significant
industry issue for the longer term
Immediately following the workshop,
Petroineos communicated an initial plan of
action.
‘We are committed to engaging with our
industry associations and governments and
have already held teleconferences with UKPIA
and appropriate government departments
who have committed to review this issue as a
matter of urgency.
“In order to assist government with this
review, we encourage both representative
bodies present at the workshop – NFUS and
UKIFDA, to collate detailed information on the
reported issues around equipment failures.”
Issuing a further statement at the
end of November, the Petroineos refinery
announced that it had ‘reduced the volume of
FAME blended into our gas oil and diesel – in
recognition of the need for action to ensure
that end-users do not experience further
unnecessary operational issues’.
Petroineos has allocated significant
resource to investigating the root cause(s)
of the issues experienced with investigations
being ‘extensive and ongoing into what is
a complex process with a large number of
variables.’ Speaking in late November, a
spokesperson said:
“At this stage, we remain unable to
identify any specific root cause within our
manufacturing or FAME blending process
and we remain confident that diesel and gas
oil dispatched from Grangemouth refinery
meets or exceeds the applicable specification.
We are monitoring the effectiveness of the
changes made and will communicate this to all
stakeholders as we progress.’
Despite the challenging discussions there
was widespread appreciation that Petroineos
had taken the initiative to bring all those
involved together to seek a solution.
“Although it didn’t provide the answers
that we were all looking for on the day,
Petroineos should be applauded for setting
up the meeting,” said Jodie Allan, assistant
manager at James D Bilsland who welcomed
the Petroineos decision to reduce FAME
content.
Commenting to Fuel Oil News in mid-
December, Jodie added.
“We wait to see if the issues abate as the
newer blended product moves through the
system.
“Since this issue was first raised, UKIFDA
has consistently and professionally represented
the needs of members by utilising its strong
relationships with other trade associations,
industry groups and panels.
“It hasn’t been easy as the issues have
had no discernible patterns. It’s not UK
or Ireland wide; it is not just old tanks and
equipment and it is not one type of distributor
or supplier. UKIFDA will also ensure that the
lessons learnt will be applied to future rollouts
of increased biofuels.”