Notice of Decisions to Vary Approvals under the Fuel Quality Standards Act 2000 to Mobil Oil, Caltex Australia and Shell Company

FIRST ASSISTANT SECRETARY, ENVIRONMENT QUALITY DIVISION
DEPARTMENT OF THE ENVIRONMENT

NOTICE UNDER SECTION 17A OF THE FUEL QUALITY STANDARDS ACT 2000 CONCERNING DECISIONS TO VARY APPROVALS GRANTED UNDER SECTION 13 OF THE FUEL QUALITY STANDARDS ACT 2000

I, Diana Wright, First Assistant Secretary, Environment Quality Division, delegate of the Minister for the Environment, provide the following information concerning my decision made pursuant to section 17D of the Fuel Quality Standards Act 2000 (the Act) to vary approvals granted under section 13 of the Act.

Name of approval holders

• Mobil Oil Australia Pty Ltd
• Caltex Australia Petroleum Pty Ltd
• The Shell Company of Australia Limited

Period of operation

The period of operation of the varied approvals is from the date of the approval until 30 June 2016.

Details of the approval

The approval varies the fuel standard for automotive diesel set out in the Fuel Standard (Automotive Diesel) Determination 2001 (Diesel Determination) to allow the supply of diesel containing:

• up to five per cent biodiesel content (B5) having a minimum derived cetane number of 46 and a maximum density of 852 kg/m3 and
• more than five per cent but no greater than 20 per cent biodiesel content (B20) having a minimum derived cetane number of 46 and a maximum density of 858 kg/m3 (Shell) or 860 kg/m3 (Caltex and Mobil).

The approval applies to fuel supplied by each company and is subject to the original conditions set out in each original approval instrument or subsequent variation and in section 17 of the Act.

Summary of reasons for the approval

1. Biodiesel blends are already being supplied to the market and the variations to approvals are required to allow suppliers to continue supplying these blends to existing and potential customers.
2. There could be a detrimental effect on the development of the Australian biodiesel industry if the variations to approvals are not granted.
3. The approvals only relate to the variation of the biodiesel content in the Diesel Determination for diesel biodiesel blends containing above five per cent and up to twenty per cent biodiesel.
4. The labelling condition will provide information for consumers about the biodiesel content in the diesel on fuel dispensers. 

Diana Wright

First Assistant Secretary

Environment Quality Division

15 April 2014