In the context that the world energy market is still volatile, promoting the use of biofuels will help diversify supply sources and improve the economy's proactiveness. However, for the implementation process to achieve high efficiency, management agencies need to continue to review and balance domestic and imported ethanol sources to ensure stable supply for the market" - Dr. Giang Chan Tay assessed.
A gas station sells from 4,600 - 4,800 liters of E10 gasoline per day
E10 gasoline is currently sold at many gas stations in Hanoi. According to Lao Dong's records, at PVOIL Nghia Tan gas station (Hoang Quoc Viet street, Nghia Do ward, Hanoi), a fairly large information board has been installed to introduce it, and gas station staff are also actively advising customers on the uses of E10 gasoline for the environment.
Ms. Vuong Thi Kim Thinh - Store Manager of PVOIL Nghia Tan - said that the sales volume of E10 gasoline at this time is quite good: "I often ask customers if they switch to using E10 gasoline or not, and most of them happily agree, only 1-2 people refuse. Many customers also shared that soon the whole country will use E10 gasoline simultaneously, so they should proactively experience it first to check the level of suitability for the vehicle.
According to Ms. Kim Thinh, recently, the number of customers coming to PVOIL Hoang Quoc Viet gas station to refuel has increased sharply, leading to an increase in consumption output. On average, the store sells from 4,600 - 4,800 liters per day, with peak days reaching 5,600 liters of gasoline. The store arranges 4 E10 gasoline pumps to serve customers".
At gas station No. 194 Thai Thinh street (Hanoi), the number of customers coming in and out is bustling, in which many people choose to use E10 gasoline.
Ms. Thuy Trang (Tay Mo, Hanoi) shared that compared to RON95 gasoline, the price of E10 gasoline is about 2,000 VND/liter lower. According to her, this is a significant difference, in the period when fuel prices fluctuate, directly helping people reduce energy costs for daily travel.
A representative of a gas station in Xuan Hoa ward, Ho Chi Minh City, said that the supply of E10 gasoline is currently quite abundant, and key businesses proactively regulate it early, so there is no shortage of goods. Many people choose it because the price is reasonable. Mr. Dai Minh - a technology driver said that he has switched to using E10 gasoline for about 2 weeks now because the price is "softer", helping to save daily travel costs.
Ms. Nguyen Thuy Hien - Deputy Director of the Domestic Market Management and Development Department, Ministry of Industry and Trade - said that the implementation of the roadmap for using bio-gasoline, including E10 gasoline, requires the synchronous involvement of state management agencies, businesses and people.
Ready for the roadmap for E10 gasoline supply
According to Dr. Dao Duy Anh - Deputy Director of the Department of Innovation, Green Transformation and Industrial Promotion (Ministry of Industry and Trade), Vietnam's total demand for gasoline and oil is currently about 28 million cubic meters per year, of which about 11 million cubic meters belong to the group of vehicles in the biofuel program. If E10 gasoline is widely deployed, Vietnam will need about 1 million cubic meters of ethanol per year. The increase in the blending rate of biofuels is expected to contribute to reducing dependence on mineral gasoline in the coming time.
Mr. Le Trung Hung - Deputy General Director of Vietnam Oil Corporation (PVOIL) - said that PVOIL has completed upgrading the blending and storage system at 13 key warehouses nationwide, including improving the tank system, blending equipment and updating modern technology to meet technical standards and legal requirements of E10 gasoline.
Meanwhile, Binh Son Refining and Petrochemical Joint Stock Company (BSR) is ready to produce 60,000 tons of Ethanol to blend E10 RON95 gasoline. This is considered an important solution to enhance Vietnam's proactiveness in ensuring energy security. Dung Quat Oil Refinery managed by BSR with the advantage of modern blending infrastructure and tank and pipeline systems directly connected to the Central Petroleum Biofuel Plant (BSR-BF) will play an important role in supplying E10 gasoline to the market.
According to Mr. Pham Van Vuong - Director of Central Petroleum Biofuel Joint Stock Company (BSR - BF), the Central Petroleum Biofuel Plant has been test-run since January 20, 2026, and by February 6, 2026, it has produced the first batch of ethanol products. In the initial test run phase, the plant produced about 470 tons of ethanol. By February 12, the plant had exported the first 210 tons of ethanol to BSR to serve the blending of E10 bio-gasoline.
After the trial operation phase, the plant continues to review, overcome and optimize technical items to improve operational efficiency. From March 20, the plant runs with a production of about 60,000 tons of Ethanol/year, serving the official sale of E10 gasoline nationwide from June 1 onwards.
For ensuring stable input materials for the plant, BSR-BF has signed contracts with suppliers under long-term contracts, ensuring stable supply for the plant. Regarding product consumption, in the immediate future, BSR-BF will mainly supply ethanol to BSR through a pipeline system directly connected to the tank system of Dung Quat oil refinery. Currently, BSR-BF has also invested in a road product export system to be ready to supply to other partners and customers when the market needs it.
Mr. Ho Ngoc Linh - Deputy Head of Petroleum Technical Department - Vietnam National Petroleum Group (Petrolimex) - shared that Petrolimex has 7 blending warehouses ready to blend E10 gasoline nationwide. In addition, with a network of more than 2,800 gasoline and oil stores, the Group has proactively washed tanks, prepared necessary infrastructure conditions and built a suitable conversion roadmap. In fact, Petrolimex is striving to accelerate the implementation progress earlier than the roadmap of Circular 50. The Group determines that the demand for ethanol to blend E10 bio-gasoline of the entire system is currently about 45,000 - 50,000m3 per month.
Propose flexible mechanisms for manufacturing and distribution enterprises to have reasonable profits
Mr. Pham Van Tuan - Director of Nha Xanh Vietnam Co., Ltd. - said that the enterprise is currently operating an alcohol production plant in Dong Nai province with a designed capacity of about 6,000 - 7,000m3/month, serving many different uses.
The company's ethanol production raw materials currently mainly come from cassava and corn. In which, cassava is purchased entirely domestically through traders and agricultural business enterprises directly purchased from farmers. For corn, businesses use domestic sources and import sources from South American markets such as Argentina, Brazil as well as from the United States in parallel.
To promote the sustainable development of the biofuel industry, Mr. Pham Van Tuan believes that more supportive mechanisms and policies are needed. "The State needs to clearly plan key raw material areas for growing corn and cassava to serve ethanol plants, and at the same time invest in transportation and irrigation infrastructure to reduce logistics costs and purchasing costs" - Mr. Tuan said.
In addition, businesses propose to consider exempting or reducing corporate income tax for about 5-10 years for ethanol production projects to encourage long-term investment. Regarding the current ethanol import tax rate of 5%, businesses hope that this tax rate will continue to be maintained to create reasonable protection for domestic production. Considering reducing the environmental protection tax on E10 bio-gasoline will create price room, helping this product increase competitiveness compared to mineral gasoline in the market.
Mr. Tuan proposed a more flexible price mechanism, linked to input material prices and international ethanol prices, so that both manufacturing and distribution enterprises have reasonable profit margins.
