RON92 will not be brought back

Saifuddin: High sulphur level bad for environment

KUALA LUMPUR: The government will not reintroduce RON92 petrol because the high sulphur level in the fuel can pollute the environment, said Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.

He said there were many requests for the reintroduction of RON92 petrol to ease the financial burden of the people but for the sake of the environment, the government opted for RON95 and RON97 due to its lower sulphur level.

“The lower the sulphur content, the higher the cost of the fuel. RON92 is cheaper because of the higher sulphur content.

“However, as a nation bound by the international protocol (pertaining to the environment), we are required to comply with the schedule to move towards the use of fuel containing less sulphur.

“For now, our policy is to retain RON95 and RON97,” he said during the debate on the Supply Bill 2019 at the Dewan Negara yesterday.

Saifuddin Nasution said another factor was the development of the country’s automotive industry with the engines designed to operate on high-quality fuel, at least RON95.

He said the country should have progressed towards tougher emission rules, namely Euro 4, by this month but had to defer the measure because oil refineries needed more time to prepare for that. — Bernama