BP Amoco Delivers Lower Sulfur Fuels 4 Years Before EPA Deadline
6 March 2000
Detroit Leads World Markets as BP Amoco Delivers Lower Sulfur Fuels Four Years Before EPA Deadline Ford Motor Company Partners with BP Amoco
To Roll Even Cleaner Vehicles off the Assembly Line
DETROIT, March 6 BP Amoco today announced it
is offering lower sulfur gasolines at metropolitan Detroit BP and Amoco
stations. The availability of the newly formulated fuels means that area
vehicle exhaust emissions will be reduced by about seven and a half tons per
month, or more than 176,000 pounds per year.
In conjunction with that announcement, Ford Motor Company
announced BP Amoco's cleaner fuels would be used as the factory fill for
premium-gasoline-fueled Ford Motor Company vehicles that roll off assembly
lines in markets where the low sulfur fuel is made available. Ford Motor
Company will expand its factory fill commitment into more of its assembly
plants as BP Amoco continues to roll out the fuels across all grades in other
markets and expects to have the majority of its assembly plants converted to
the reformulated fuels within the next two years.
"We are very pleased to be lowering the sulfur content of our premium
grades of BP and Amoco gasolines sold in metro-Detroit to 30 parts-per-million
(ppm), which is four years ahead of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
2004 standard," said Doug Ford, BP Amoco Chief Executive for Refining and
Marketing. "This is a dramatic reduction, down from today's industry average
across all gasoline grades of 300 ppm, and demonstrates BP Amoco's support for
the EPA's efforts to reduce smog forming emissions."
The partnering of BP Amoco with Ford Motor Company to introduce cleaner
fuels to the Detroit market emphasizes the commitment of both companies to
offer consumers cleaner products that benefit the environment well ahead of
regulatory timetables.
"As evidenced by our recent actions that have resulted in more than two
million Low Emission Vehicle (LEV) trucks currently on the road, Ford Motor
Company is committed to bringing products to market in volume that ensure
significant, positive environmental impact," said Helen Petrauskas, vice
president, Environmental Safety and Engineering, Ford Motor Company. "We are
pleased that BP Amoco shares Ford Motor Company's values on environmental
leadership and is introducing lower sulfur premium gasoline to the market four
years ahead of the EPA mandated schedule."
Detroit becomes one of the first markets in the nation to receive the new
lower sulfur fuels. The premium cleaner fuels are available at the pump as
Crystal Clear Amoco Ultimate and BP Super 93, and deliver the same quality
performance as the previous formulas. BP Amoco is not passing any additional
cost on to the customer for its new generation of clean fuel, even though
there are added production costs.
"We will continue to give customers the excellent performance they have
come to expect from our gasolines, while also allowing them to take a personal
step toward cleaner air -- and at no additional costs to them," said Doug
Ford.
BP Amoco will spend more than $100 million during the next two years
modifying its refining and associated operations to make its cleaner fuels
available in cities that are most troubled by smog and pollution, including 40
key cities worldwide by the end of 2000. Among the other cities currently
participating in the cleaner fuels initiative are London, Paris, Warsaw,
Atlanta and Chicago. Detroit was chosen because additional pollution control
measures such as cleaner fuels will help the area meet its air quality goals.
Ford Motor Company announced in 1998 that all sport utility vehicles
(SUVs) and Windstar minivans sold in the U.S. and Canada, starting with the
1999 model year, would meet the federal government's stringent criteria for
qualifying as LEV. This industry first was followed by the major announcement
in 1999 that all F-Series pickup trucks would be LEV, starting in the 2000
model year. The combined effect from Ford Motor Company's early-adoption
actions so far is equivalent to eliminating the smog-forming emissions from
350,000 full-size pickups on the road today. On an ongoing basis, the
company's current actions will result in 4,250 tons less of smog-forming
pollutants being released annually into the atmosphere.
During the last month, Ford Motor Company has been recognized twice for
its environmental actions. The Ford F-150 pickup truck was selected as a top
environmental choice in its class by the American Council for an Energy
Efficient Economy (ACEEE), in its annual listing of the most environmentally
friendly vehicles. This past Friday, CALSTART, an advanced transportation
technologies organization based in California, presented Ford Motor Company
with its annual Blue Sky Award(TM) for the company's commitment to advanced,
clean vehicle technology.
"We are especially pleased to be partnering with the pro-green leadership
of Ford Motor Company under the direction of Chairman Bill Ford, and president
and CEO, Jac Nasser," said Doug Ford.
With an average sulfur level of 30 ppm, as opposed to Detroit's average
for all premium grades of gasolines of more than 100 ppm, Crystal Clear Amoco
Ultimate and BP Super 93 meet U.S. EPA proposed national gasoline sulfur
reductions for the year 2004.
"In fact, our goal is to expand our premium offering and have effective
coverage in our entire US system by the end of 2002," said Doug Ford.
BP Amoco intends to play a leading role in providing oil, gas, solar power
and petrochemicals in ways that are more compatible with a natural
environment. The company has committed to reducing its global greenhouse gas
emissions by 10 percent from a 1990 baseline over the period to year 2010.
The "Clean Fuels" program is another example of the company's intention to
provide new cleaner fuels for customers worldwide.
