Vietnam not likely to reach 2018 goal for E5 blending mandate

In Vietnam, ethanol distilleries are running into technical troubles, which are putting into doubt the E5 blending mandate postponed until January 1, 2018. Currently, Tung Lam Co is the only ethanol producer nationally, with a capacity of 150,000 metric tons per year, far from enough to supply the national mandate. What’s more, its southern location makes it expensive to ship the fuel to demand centers in the north. No solution has been found yet to revive the other three ethanol plants currently sitting idle despite joint installed capacity of 300 million liters.