Engineer Ngo Viet Dung, Vice President and General Secretary of the Vietnam Automobile Sports Association, said that according to his observations, many countries in the world have banned the use of conventional fuels, forcing them to switch to the use of biofuel. The popular type of gasoline currently used by many countries is E 20 gasoline, some countries also use E 85 gasoline.
According to the UK's independent Transport Policy Consulting Association - RAC Foundation, most gasoline cars manufactured from 2011 onwards can safely use E10 gasoline. Even cars manufactured after 2000 are compatible.
In fact, each vehicle has different regulations, so the vehicle owner still needs to carefully study this content in the Handbook of Use (HDSD).
For example, with the Honda CR-V 2021: The Thai version can use E85 gasoline, but the HDSD book in Vietnam does not mention biofuel, only clearly state the requirement for gasoline with a octane index of 91 or higher.
While the 2021 Mazda6 is confirmed to be compatible with the E10 in Europe, the notebook does not mention the Vietnamese market. Toyota Corolla Altis 2022 clearly states that it can be used up to the E85 regardless of the market, impliedly meaning that cars in Vietnam can also be used.
For motorbikes, according to technical experts, most modern motorbike models, especially from large companies such as Honda, Yamaha, Piaggio... have been designed to be compatible with fuel containing ethanol such as E5 and E10.
Regarding the draft to use E10 gasoline from January 1, 2026, information from the Ministry of Industry and Trade said that it has basically completed the work of reviewing, evaluating, and analyzing the implementation of Decision 53 2012 on the roadmap for applying the ratio of biofuel to traditional fuel mixing issued by the Prime Minister.
In particular, the ministry has submitted a report to the Prime Minister requesting the policy of developing a decision to replace Decision 53, proposing a new plan to replace the roadmap for the use of biofuel.
In order to promptly issue and implement a roadmap for the mixing and use of new biofuels, Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien has assigned the Department of Innovation - Green Transformation and Encouragement to coordinate with relevant units to request the Prime Minister's approval on developing a roadmap for the mixing and use of biofuels to replace the content of Decision 53, as well as quickly developing a new plan.
The Department of Domestic Market Management and Development is assigned to ensure the supply of basal gasoline as well as ethanol, coordinate with relevant units and associations to review and consider recommendations to update technical regulations for petroleum types.
In particular, manufacturing enterprises and business units must prepare facilities, equipment, and means to be ready for the production, mixing, transportation, and distribution of E10 biofuel nationwide, expected from January 1, 2026.
Minister Nguyen Hong Dien proposed launching a communication campaign for the whole society to recognize and support the process of converting the use of E10 gasoline from the beginning of next year.
Referring to the supply of E10 gasoline, Mr. Tran Minh - Deputy Director of the Department of Innovation, Green Transformation and Industrial Promotion said that the whole country currently has 6 alcohol factories, of which 2 factories are operating in Dong Nai and Quang Nam, producing about 100,000 m3 per year. If all 6 factories come into operation, the production scale is estimated to reach 500,000 m3.
"To ensure supply when this roadmap is issued, the supply of biofuel will need 1-1,5 million m3. The remaining shortage will be imported from abroad, with abundant sources from the US, Argentina..." - Mr. Minh informed.
E10 is a biofuel that includes 90% conventional non-lead gasoline and 10% Pethanol; the name E10 also comes from that.
Before the E10 was introduced, conventional gasoline only contained a maximum of 5% of ethanol and could be used for all gasoline-powered cars without any adjustments. E5 gasoline is similar to A92 and A95 gasoline. This is a type of gasoline made from 95% A92 gasoline combined with 5% Pethanol deficiency (99.5%).
Ethanol is an alcoholic fuel produced from the fermentation of plants such as sugarcane, grains and their byproducts.
Unlike conventional non-lead gasoline, ethanol is considered somewhat carbon-neutral, because during growth, crops absorb more CO2 than the amount emitted when producing and burning fuel.
This helps compensate partly for the greenhouse gas it generates, but the efficiency is still a controversial topic.
