SUPPORTING government’s initiative in the creation of a ‘Green State’, fuel company Guyana Oil Company (GUYOIL) on Wednesday launched the Ultra-Low Sulfur Diesel (ULSD).
The company is also encouraging drivers and other diesel customers to switch to the new product in an effort to reduce the effects of climate change.
The company’s Surinamese partners delivered the first shipment of 5000 barrels of the internationally favoured ULSD fuel here in April, and already it has been favourably received, with commercial automobile importers saying they will now be able to import a wider variety of vehicles which wifere before restricted from Guyana because of the unavailability of the fuel.

Available at GUYOIL’s service stations at Regent Street and Kitty, owners and operators of diesel-run vehicles can now comfortably change their fuel to that which had been catered for in US-made vehicles manufactured after 2006.
According to GUYOIL Sales and Maketing Manager, Mr Eric Whaul, the product’s launch comes at a time when government is moving toward the creation of a Green State and is an indicator of where the Guyoil Company is heading.
He said although there has already been low-sulfur diesel on the local market, there is a major difference between the two.

“In the low sulfur diesel, we have the higher quality (than regular diesel), and now we have the Ultra-low diesel,” Whaul said.
In delivering remarks at the launching ceremony, Acting Chief Executive Officer of Guyoil Reggie Bhagwandin said the ULSD is simply a cleaner diesel, and the reason behind its creation was to reduce the “particulate dispensation” from vehicles into the atmosphere which creates air pollution.
Many times, he pointed out, when vehicles which use regular diesel – mostly heavy vehicles – pass there is a thick smoke emanating from them, which releases sulfur into the atmosphere.

He said the ULSC has been available since 2006 in the United Kingdom and the North America but the process of making it available here started in 2016 when Suriname partners approached Guyoil executives with a proposal to supply Guyana’s market.
Guyoil is hoping to switch totally to ULSD, just as Suriname already has, Bhagwandin said and added that Suriname already has the capacity to supply Guyana the product in greater magnitude.

“It is important to launch the Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel because there is a body of vehicles that actually require the Ultra-Low Sulfur Diesel… We’re not breaking any new ground, we’re just making the product available to the market… The refinery (in Suriname) has the capacity to actually sell us the product… they actually helped us with the technical assistance in storing and distributing the product… We guarantee that the quality control is totally 100 percent,”Bhagwandin said.

The ULSD is being supplied by Staatsolie Suriname, a major oil production company which is responsible for sustainable development through oil refinery. In December 2015 the ULSD and ULSG were launched by Staatsolie in Suriname.
Executive Carlos Hughes CEO of Staatsolie Suriname Refinery said Staatsolie over years have been delivering fuel to various major companies in Guyana, and the first shipment of 5000 barrels of the ULSD has been shipped here in April.

“The Staatsolie Suriname Refinery has the capacity to produce 8000 barrels of Ultra-Low Sulfur Diesel as well as 2300 barrels of Ultra Low Sulfur Gasoline (ULSG) per day. “So there is enough room to supply the immediate need for GUYOIL,” Hughes said.
The Staatsolie ULSD meets the requirement environmentally from both the US and Europe, and is highly recommended for vehicles produced from year 2000 and beyond. It has only 3ppm (parts per million) sulfur present in the product.

According to Hughes, “The Ultra-Low Sulfur (ULS) is a cleaner fuel, it’s environmentally friendly and it’s recommended by engine manufacturers for better performance and for lower maintenance cost. The feedback we get from drivers is that the engine will run smoother and they get more mileage … so they can drive much further.”
Candacy Bowen-Thompson of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said Guyanese should use the ULSD coupled with putting additional key measures in place to ensure a safer and cleaner environment which government, through the Department of Environment (DoE), is working to build.

Vehicle owns must ensure their tires are properly inflated, vehicles well maintained, and try to maintain a constant driving rate. They must not “overfill your tanks” she said, pointing to the common act of drivers rocking vehicles in an attempt to create additional space for fuel. This she said is dangerous to the environment, and if measures are not put in place, then the use of the environmentally friendly diesel alone will not be effective.
“Improve your practices, to adopt green technology which will ensure a cleaner safer Guyana for all of us,” she said.

Bowen-Thomas also urged Guyanese to become innovative in creating a “Green State’ and to take advantage of new opportunities it brings.
“Even as we strive towards a green economy… we as organizations, you as businesses, as individuals or even as communities, look not only for the challenges that comes with climate change or the escalating environmental issues, but you also look at the opportunities. This is a time when people are being very creative and innovative in coming up with measures, in coming up with solutions to address some of these challenges,” Bowen-Thomas said.

Earlier in a statement, Guyoil mentioned that the newly launched fuel reduces emissions, aids in decreased corrosion and helps to maintain engines. It is also a more environmentally friendly product which eliminates exhaust blockage, reduces black smoke, reduces exhaust odor and results in better engine performance.