Infineum addresses the growing demand for diesel fuel in Asia-Pacific

Tokyo, 2 November 2016: More than 100 participants from across Asia Pacific are set to gather together in Tokyo on 15 November 2016 as Infineum presents its viewpoint on global diesel trends and market developments in the next 25 years at the Japan Fuels Symposium.

At this year’s event, which is held bi-annually in Japan, Infineum will discuss how the impact of growing demand from Asia-Pacific is driving an increase in capacity for diesel and gasoline oil products, which together already account for more than 50% of global demand.

With overcapacity in certain regions meaning the trend for diesel fuel export is set to continue, discussions will also focus on the challenges faced by refiners who will increasingly need to meet various global specifications and ensure vehicle operability as the market shifts towards low sulphur fuels.

John Hong, Global Fuels Business Manager at Infineum, said: “Over the next 25 years, most growth demand is expected for diesel fuels, mainly driven by the expansion of passenger car and commercial vehicle fleets, but in addition by the use of diesel fuel in the marine bunker sector as sulphur emission limits are tightened.

“If we examine where this growth in demand for diesel fuel is likely to come from, we expect to see two-thirds of the new capacity to come from China, the wider Asia-Pacific region and the Middle East – largely driven by strong growth in the road transportation sector.

“However, these figures are down over one million barrels per day on 2014 estimates as sluggish demand and low crude prices mean some projects have been put on hold or cancelled. Improving refinery profitability by squeezing more on-specification diesel from every barrel of crude and then producing the right fuel for the right market is therefore now more important than ever before.”

In an increasingly complex fuels market, an understanding of the global requirements and drivers for change is ever more important to ensure fuels are fit for purpose. Shee-Young Kim, Asia Pacific Fuels Executive Manager at Infineum, said: “Infineum is at the cutting edge of fuel additive technology and we continue to invest in the development of advanced additive solutions to help our customers deal with an increasingly complex fuels landscape.”

Infineum will also share the findings from its latest Winter Diesel Fuel Quality Survey at the event, which features a special focus on Asia and Japan. Commissioned on a bi-annual basis since 1985, the survey offers a unique snapshot of the characteristics of diesel fuel collected from service stations around the world in the winter months.