Is E5 gasoline not suitable for mountain roads?

Consumers in Tuong Duong district currently have only one option: using A95 gasoline. Photo: Ho Phuong

Stopping at a gas station, I asked why they weren't selling E5. Rather coldly, the owner curtly replied: "Because the locals don't use it!" When I asked for a full tank of A95 gasoline, he cheerfully explained: "E5 bioethanol contains a small amount of alcohol. If you use it, you have to use your vehicle regularly. If you don't use it regularly, the alcohol in the gasoline will turn into water, which is very harmful to the engine. That's why the locals here don't use it…???"

A gas station in the mountainous district of Tuong Duong. Photo: Ho Phuong

Contacting officials in the mountainous districts of Que Phong and Ky Son, it was confirmed that E5 status is also "very rare" in these areas. When asked why, the answer was always: "We don't know...!!!"

Strange. Although there are still some doubts surrounding the replacement of A92 gasoline with E5 bioethanol, consumers in Vinh City and the delta districts basically use E5 for up to ten days at a time.

Could it be that people in the lowlands are less "intellectual" than those in the highlands? A shrewd senior figure in the petroleum industry chuckled: "It's not difficult to uncover the reason why E5 isn't being sold in the mountains. It's simply a matter of examining the infrastructure of most gas stations!"

Ah. It turns out that most gas stations in mountainous districts only have two fuel pumps: one for gasoline and one for diesel. For a long time, they've only sold A92 gasoline. When A92 is phased out, if they were to sell both A95 and E5 gasoline simultaneously, they would have to invest in an additional fuel pump.

With a broken digital meter, the gas station displays the price of A95 gasoline on a small piece of paper. (Photo taken at a gas station in Xa Luong commune, Tuong Duong district) Photo: Nhat Lan

As a seasoned veteran put it: "Of course, no businessman wants to cut into their own flesh... Therefore, the product line that businesses favorably 'choose' to serve consumers in mountainous areas is A95 gasoline."

Consider that the price of A95 gasoline is 20,690 VND/liter, while the price of E5 bio-gasoline is 18,600 VND/liter. Gasoline is an essential commodity for people in any region.

Having to use expensive gasoline, with a difference of more than 2,000 VND/liter, will further erode the economic resources of people in mountainous areas who are already facing difficult living conditions. Why not think of ways to create opportunities for people in mountainous areas to have the right to choose?