BARBADOS HAS made a switch from high to ultra low-sulphur diesel (ULSD) for automobiles and boats – a move that is expected to improve air quality across the island.
The switch to the cleaner fuel started at petrol stations on November 27 but Prime Minister Freundel Stuart used a media briefing yesterday at Government Headquarters to highlight the change.
He shared the platform with officials from the Division of Energy, the Barbados National Oil Company Limited (BNOCL), Rubis Eastern Caribbean and ESSO Barbados Limited.
BNOCL chairman Dr Leonard Nurse said Barbados was the first Caribbean country dispensing this type of diesel.
He said the price was one cent per litre cheaper than diesel with a high sulphur content but BNOCL, as an importer, had no control over the final price of the commodity.
He pointed out that while one major result would be an improvement in air quality, the onus would still be on vehicle owners/operators to maintain engines to reduce harmful emissions.
Stuart called the switch “a great step forward for Barbados” and said it was in keeping with Government’s commitment to turn Barbados into “the most advanced green economy” in the Caribbean and Latin America.
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