Joined: Thu Dec 15, 2011 8:45 am
Posts: 9966
Location: Braintree, Essex.
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captain cab wrote: Diesel pumps could run dry says RAC FoundationThere is a danger Britain's diesel pumps could "run dry" because of a growing dependence on foreign fuel, according to the RAC Foundation.
The motoring research group says diesel demand has been rising for decades, but UK refineries are struggling to cope.
There were 11 million diesel cars on the road last year, compared to just 1.6 million in 1994.
The RACF says that, at this rate, diesel will be four times more popular than petrol by 2030.
Yet we consume twice as much diesel as we produce, and that growing reliance on countries including Russia and India to supply the fuel could leave motorists "at the mercy of the global market" in future, the foundation says.
"Even if we are not in conflict with those countries that control the taps, they might simply decide they need more of what they produce for their own markets," RACF director Steve Gooding told the BBC.
"If supply is interrupted, then at best we'll see sharp rises in forecourt prices and, at worst, there is the unlikely but real possibility of pumps running dry."
Regional effect
He also said that any shortage could hit hardest in the most populated area of the country.
"The UK keeps fuel reserves in case of emergencies, but they are not uniformly spread and the South East of England is particularly vulnerable to shocks to the supply chain."
The report says that in 2009 there were nine big refineries in the UK. But since then, three have shut and several others are up for sale. The older refineries were never set up to make diesel because it was a niche product when they were built in the sixties. Converting them is too expensive, Mr Gooding said.
"Retrofitting them is a billion pound decision that has failed to stack up for investors who see refining as a low margin business, despite our sky high pump-prices."
There's a lot of bad press about diesel at the moment, with questions being raised about the fumes that are emitted.
How bad is the problem and what is being done to address it?
In 2001, the Labour government changed the tax regime to encourage people to buy diesel rather than petrol cars. They wanted to cut the amount of CO2 being belched into the air, and petrol cars were the worst offenders.
It worked. Today, half of all new cars built are diesels.
The thing is, the focus on pollution has changed from carbon dioxide to nitrogen dioxide (NO2), which is spewed out by diesel cars. The government is potentially facing massive, daily fines for missing EU levels on NO2 and ministers are under pressure to cut levels in hotspots by 2020.
It is estimated that NO2 could be responsible for tens of thousands of UK deaths each year. Pollution can also exacerbate breathing problems such as asthma.
One idea being floated is to restrict diesel vehicles in six city centres - London, Birmingham, Leeds, Nottingham, Derby and Southampton. In London, dirty diesel drivers could soon be paying an extra £12.50 to drive in town, on top of the £11.50 congestion charge.
As yet, none of this seems to have quenched the thirst for diesel.
source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-34262990 That's b ollocks, the Saudis have got loads of the stuff hence the low price at the pumps. The RAC are way off beam there.
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