Changes in Asia Pacific oil trading
- Global Change Associates, White Plains, NY (United States)
The Asia Pacific product demand still centers on diesel rather than gasoline growth. This makes attention focused on tightening fuel specifications. For example, Japan will not be able to meet all its 0.02 wt% sulfur spec for diesel next year as it reduces sulfur content. These changes will continue throughout the region. Increased demand for all transportation fuels, the lack of alternative fuel development on a major scale, and the nascent development of gas pipeline infrastructure, make oil the dominant transportation fuel in Asia, but some shifts are underway. Gasoline will undergo significant environmentally driven quality changes. Lead phase down will continue to accelerate during the next 5 years, with refiners needing to boost octane by more severe refining or the addition of oxygenates. MTBE is expected to find its next growth market in Asia as the U.S. market has matured. Benzene reduction will also become more pronounced. But total gasoline reformulation which is occurring in Japan also requires RVP, aromatics and VOC reduction. This road makes blending and storage more complex. And it brings major risks to Asian oil markets which have seen dramatic growth over the past decade.
- OSTI ID:
- 426277
- Journal Information:
- Fuel Reformulation, Journal Name: Fuel Reformulation Journal Issue: 2 Vol. 6; ISSN 1062-3744; ISSN FUREEQ
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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