HOUSTON (March 5, 2018) – Stratas Advisors, a leading global provider of market analytics and energy solutions, released their annual report last month ranking the top 100 countries limiting sulfur-use in diesel. The report confirms a continued worldwide movement toward lower sulfur content in diesel and identifies several countries that have positioned themselves to make advances in this area in the near future. Since March 2017, 11 countries improved their sulfur levels, either moving up in their ranking or being newly added to the Top 100 list.
For decades, policymakers and industry leaders have placed emphasis on reducing sulfur limits in fuels to prevent environmental and health effects caused by fuel combustion. Since January 2009, the European Union required 100% market penetration of sulfur-free fuels - less than 10 ppm - which has positioned these countries as the top 40 leaders in sulfur reduction. Sweden, which led the way with full market penetration in 1990, continues to reign at No. 1.
“Stratas Advisors’ routine evaluations of sulfur specification changes noted several developments in emerging regions such as Africa, Latin America & the Caribbean over the past few years,” said Huiming Li, Stratas Advisors’ Director of Global Fuel Specifications. “These noticeable improvements point our attention to regional advancements, political changes and developing technologies supporting stricter fuel specifications across the world.”
This year’s ranking highlights 11 countries that moved up or were newly added, compared to the 2017 list. Led by Suriname, which ranks at 50th place with Belarus, the 11 include:
- Bermuda
- Bhutan
- Curacao
- Kazakhstan
- Malawi
- Mayotte
- Mozambique
- Suriname
- Syria
- Ukraine
- Zimbabwe
Five countries of Fiji, Lesotho, Sudan, Saudi Arabia and Ecuador dropped out of the 2018 ranking and were replaced by Bermuda, Bhutan, Curacao, Suriname and Syria as they enter the Top 100 for the first time. This shift is a result of newly surfaced information about the introduction of lower sulfur diesel from 2009-2017. These updated statistics helped Bermuda and Curacao jump the farthest – a total of 100 places - to jointly rank at 62nd place.
To establish the rankings, four primary criteria were applied, in order of importance:
- Maximum approved limits in national standards and legislation
- Year of implementation for sulfur limits as required by legislation, and year of voluntary implementation ─ if any
- Limits in local or regional standards (such as specifications for cities or states)
- Market levels are compared where necessary to help rank countries sharing the same legislated limit
The report summary can be found under Stratas’ Insights, and the full report is available to members of Stratas Advisors’ Global Fuels Specifications service, which holds the complete list of rankings and other key information about sulfur content in diesel.