Africa's refining industry is backing improvements in the quality of refined products allowed in the continent after stinging criticism that air quality has suffered because of fuel with standards lower than the rest of the world.
The African Refiners Association (ARA) this week backed a move to adopt the AFRI-4 specification, which will lower the limits of sulphur allowed in gasoline and diesel by 2020. The new standards will mainly affect imports supplied by trading firms such as Vitol and Trafigura, which have stepped in to meet most of the continent's fuel import requirements from regional refining centres such as the Mideast Gulf because of insufficient refinery capacity in Africa.
ARA acknowledges a critical report by Swiss-based NGO Public Eye last year — "Dirty Diesel: How Swiss Traders Flood Africa with Toxic Fuels" — played a role in its decision.
The continent's leading oil exporters Nigeria and Ghana are drawing up new fuel import standards that will meet the AFRI-4 criteria. Algeria is removing lead from gasoline, while Morocco placed limits on sulphur in gasoil last year.
An import tender for diesel and gasoline issued by Nigerian state-owned NNPC is being delayed as NNPC clarifies the sulphur content in the diesel that it will accept.
Trading firms will have to take note of the new standards in a growing market, as Africa's population surges and vehicle use and urbanisation expand. Africa imported 81.6mn t of refined products in 2016, according to London-based analysts Citac, and this could rise to 148.3mn t in 2030.
Most refineries in Africa are state-owned and as such will have to be mandated by governments to comply with the new regulations.
Ghana is looking to invest $120mn in a new desulphurisation unit at its 60,000 b/d capacity TOR refinery. NNPC has said planned rehabilitation and upgrades at its refineries will take the new fuel specifciations into account.
But investments in desulphurisation units are unlikely to provide the refiners with an adequate financial return, making it the responsibility of governments to take on the cost on public health grounds.
ARA has approached the 54-nation African Union to get broad agreement on the new specifications.
Previous attempts to improve fuel, notably removing lead from gasoline, have made progress in Africa but taken over a decade to implement. AFRI-4 will reduce the sulphur level in gasoline to 150pmm, half of the current AFRI-3 standard. AFRI-4 aims to reduce the amount of sulphur in diesel to 50ppm from the current 600ppm.
ARA also backs a new standard called AFRI-5, which will further reduce sulphur in gasoline to 50ppm by 2030.
African refiners will have to meet higher specifications on marine fuels, including fuel oil, led by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) which has set a limit of 0.5pc in sulphur from 2020.
