Brazilian diesel fuel specifications are established by the National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels (ANP—Agência Nacional do Petróleo, Gás Natural e Biocombustíveis). The following were some of the important steps in the evolution of diesel fuels in Brazil:
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- From December 2001, ANP Resolution 310/2001 defined the specifications for two types of on-road diesel fuel: Metropolitan and Interior. Metropolitan diesel fuel was the only diesel fuel permitted for sale in a number of cities in Brazil (first to those cities with poor air quality then to cities with more than 200,000 inhabitants) and limited sulfur to 2000 mg/kg. Interior diesel fuel was intended for the other parts of the country and had a sulfur limit of 3500 mg/kg.
- In December 2005, ANP Resolution 12/2005 introduced a third type of diesel fuel, S500, which had a sulfur limit of 500 mg/kg. It replaced Metropolitan diesel fuel in a number of municipalities in Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Campinas, Baixada Santista, Sao Jose dos Campos, Belo Horizonte and Vale do Aço.
- In July 2006, a new diesel fuel specification was introduced, ANP Resolution 15/2006, that replaced ANP Resolution 310/2001. The S500 type of diesel fuel was dropped but the sulfur limits of Metropolitan and Interior diesel fuels were lowered to 500 and 2000 mg/kg respectively. It also required the sulfur limits for Metropolitan and Interior Diesel fuel to drop to 50 and 500 mg/kg to coincide with the introduction of exhaust emission standards equivalent to Euro 4 in 2009. The goal of introducing 50 mg/kg sulfur diesel in Metropolitan diesel was not achieved as planned for January 2009 due to technical problems at refineries and with the automotive industry.
- In November 2008, CONAMA (National Council on the Environment) issued resolution 403/2008 which required ANP to develop a fuel standard to enable the introduction of diesel fuel with a 10 mg/kg maximum sulfur limit (S10) by January 1, 2012.
- In December 2009, ANP Resolution 42/2009 replaced the Interior and Metropolitan grades of diesel fuel defined in ANP Resolution 15/2006 with S50 (50 mg/kg sulfur), S500 (500 mg/kg sulfur) and S1800 (1800 mg/kg sulfur). It also required S50 to be sold exclusively in a number of metropolitan areas in the states of Pará, Ceará and Pernambuco; in bus fleets in the municipalities of Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Curtiba and in urban bus fleets in many cities in the states of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. Numerous other Brazilian cities were required to exclusively sell S500. S1800 could be used in other parts of the country but would be phased out by January 1, 2014 and replaced with S500.
- In September 2010, ANP Resolution 33/2010 delayed the switch to S500 in some municipalities by up to 15 months.
- In October 2011, a consultation was held to establish a new fuel standard that includes an S10 grade. The proposal would (1) require Type B (containing biodiesel) S50 in many municipalities that previously required S50, (2) replace S50 with S10 starting January 1, 2013 and (3) require numerous states and municipalities to switch from S1800 to S500.
Brazil also has aggressive policies to promote the use of renewable fuels. The following are some of the important steps in the blending of renewable fuels into diesel fuel in Brazil:
- In December 2004, Brazil starts the National Biodiesel Production and Use Program (PNPB) to increase the uptake of biodiesel nationally. The program would require laws, executive orders and other legal and normative measures to introduce the mandates, define the federal tax model for biodiesel, establish the conditions for the registration of producers and importers and other introduce many other measures to allow the program to achieve its objectives.
- Law 11.097 passed in December 2005 (amending Law 9.478 of 1997) mandated a minimum 2% biodiesel by 2008 and 5% by 2013. It also provided a broad definition of biodiesel that can be used to meet this mandate as a biofuel derived from renewable biomass for use in compression ignition engines that can partially or wholly substitute fuel of fossil origin.
- In July 2006, ANP Resolution 15/2006 introduced a voluntary 2% biodiesel allowance into diesel fuel that would remain in effect until the 2% mandate commenced in 2008.
- The National Council of Energy Policy (Conselho Nacional de Politica Energética, CNPE) subsequently introduced a number of resolutions to realize the requirements of Law 11.097. Resolution #2 of March, 2008 set a 3% requirement as of July 2008; Resolution #2 of April, 2009 set a 4% requirement as of July 2009 and Resolution #6 of September, 2009 set a 5% requirement as of January 2010.
- By mid 2011, biodiesel production overcapacity increased pressure by the biodiesel industry to increase the biodiesel mandate to 10%.