MOSCOW, September 29 (RIA Novosti) - Russian diesel fuel does not correspond to world standards, said vice-president of the association of international automobile carriers Mikhail Nizov at a press conference held in RIA Novosti.
"The fuel problem is now especially acute in Russia since the fuel used in the country does not correspond to the world standards," he pointed out.
According to Nizov, the diesel engines, which meet the requirements of Euro-0, Euro-1 and Euro-2, can work using the standard Russian fuels without seriously worsening the working characteristics, Euro-3 engines require the diesel fuel with a small sulphur content, while engines which correspond to the Euro-4 demands and will be introduced on January 1, 2005 will require low-sulphur fuel.
"Regrettably, today's level of the Russian standards and requirements to the quality of the diesel fuel does not allow to use modern, ecologically friendly transport," the vice-president added. He also pointed out that the absence of appropriate control leads to a low quality of fuel and the presence of admixtures and water in it.
According to Nizov the cost of the diesel fuel in Moscow grew by 50% over two years while in Europe it increased by 15% over four years.
The vice-president stressed that fuel expenditures are the basic in the structure of the Russian international automobile carriers' exploitation spending. "The growing expenditures of transport enterprises lead to the growth of the transportation component of the goods' and services' price and to a new spiral of inflation," Nizov pointed out.
At the press conference he read out data of the poll conducted by the association according to which 36% of carriers are worried about the high fuel price, the low quality of dizel oil does not satisfy 40% of respondents, 20% of the polled point to the underfilling during refueling, 1% -- to the absence of fuel at the gas stations and 1% -- to the small number of such stations.
