1998L0070 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 003.001 — 1
This document is meant purely as a documentation tool and the institutions do not assume any liability for its contents
►B DIRECTIVE98/70/ECOFTHEEUROPEANPARLIAMENTANDOFTHECOUNCIL
of13October1998
relatingtothequalityofpetrolanddieselfuelsandamendingCouncilDirective 93/12/EEC
(OJ L 350, 28.12.1998, p. 58)
Amended by:
Official Journal
No page date
►M1Commission Directive 2000/71/EC of 7 November 2000 L 287 46 14.11.2000
►M2Directive 2003/17/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of
3 March2003L 76 10 22.3.2003
►M3Regulation (EC) No 1882/2003 of the European Parliament and of the
Council of 29 September 2003L 284 1 31.10.2003
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DIRECTIVE 98/70/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
ANDOFTHECOUNCIL
of13October 1998
relating to the quality of petrol and diesel fuels and amending
CouncilDirective 93/12/EEC
THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE
EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and
in particular Article 100a thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (1),
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social
Committee (2),
Acting in accordance withth e procedure laid down in Article 189b of
the Treaty (3) in the light of the joint text approved on 29 June 1998 by
the Conciliation Committee,
(1)Whereas disparity between the laws or administrative measuresadopted by the Member States on specifications of conventionaland alternative fuels used by vehicles equipped with positive-ignition and compression-ignition engines creates barriers to
trade in the Community and may thereby directly affect the
establishment and functioning of the internal market and theinternational competitiveness of the European vehicle andrefining industries; whereas in accordance with the provisionsof Article 3b of the Treaty, it therefore appears necessary toapproximate the laws in this field;
(2)Whereas Article 100a(3) of the Treaty envisages that Commis-
sion proposals aimed at the establishment and functioning of
the internal market and concerning, inter alia , health and envir-
onmental protection will take as a base a high level ofprotection;
(3)Whereas primary air pollutants such as nitrogen oxides, unburnthydrocarbons, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, benzenesand other toxic exhaust emissions which contribute to the forma-tion of secondary pollutants suchas ozone are emitted in
significant amounts through the exhaust and evaporative fumes
of motor vehicles thereby posing directly and indirectly aconsiderable risk to human health and the environment;
(4)Whereas despite the increasing stringency of vehicle emissionlimit values laid down by Council Directive 70/220/EEC (
4),
and by Council Directive 88/77/EEC (5), further measures to
reduce atmospheric pollution caused by vehicles and other
sources are necessary in order to achieve satisfactory air quality;
(5)Whereas Article 4 of Directive 94/12/EC of the European Parlia-ment and of the Council (
6) introduced a new approachwith
regard to emission reduction policies for and beyond the year2000 and required the Commission to examine, inter alia ,t he1998L0070 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 003.001 — 2
(1) OJ C 77, 11.3.1997, p. 1 and OJ C 209, 10.7.1997, p. 25.
(2) OJ C 206, 7.7.1997, p. 113.
(3) Opinion of the European Parliament of 10 April 1997 (OJ C 132, 28.4.1997,
p. 170), Council Common Position of 7 October 1997 (OJ C 351,
19.11.1997, p. 1) and Decision of the European Parliament of 18 February
1998 (OJ C 80, 16.3.1998, p. 92). Decision of the European Parliament of
15 September 1998 (OJ C 313, 12.10.1998). Decision of the Council of 17
September 1998.
(4) OJ L 76, 6.4.1970, p. 1. Directive as last amended by Directive 98/69/EC of
the European Parliament and of the Council (see page 1 of this Official
Journal).
(5) OJ L 36, 9.2.1988, p. 33. Directive as last amended by Directive 96/1/EC of
the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 40, 17.2.1996, p. 1).
(6) OJ L 100, 19.4.1994, p. 42.
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contribution that improvements in the quality of petrol and diesel
and other fuels could make to reducing air pollution;
(6)Whereas, in addition to an initial stage of fuel specificationsbeginning in the year 2000, provision must be made for a secondstage, to come into effect in 2005, to enable the industry to make
the necessary investments to adapt its production plans;
(7)Whereas petrol and diesel fuel complying with the specifications
set out in Annexes I, II, III and IV are already available on the
market in the European Community;
(8)Whereas the European auto/oil programme, the details of whichare outlined in the Commission's communication on a future
strategy for the control of atmospheric emissions from roadtransport, contributes towards a scientific, technical andeconomic basis for recommending the introduction at Commu-nity level of new environmental fuel specifications for petroland diesel fuels;
(9)Whereas the introduction of environmental fuels specificationsfor petrol and diesel fuels is an important element of the cost-effective package of Europe-wide and national/regional/local
measures that should be put into effect, taking into account the
costs and benefits of any action;
(10)Whereas the implementation of a combination of Europe-wideand national/regional/local measures to reduce vehicle emissionsis part of the Commission's overall strategy to reduce air emis-sions from mobile and stationary sources in a way that isbalanced and meets cost-benefit criteria;
(11)Whereas it is necessary to obtain in the short term a reduction, inparticular in urban areas, of polluting vehicle emissions,including primary pollutants suchas unburnt h ydrocarbons and
carbon monoxide, secondary pollutants suchas ozone, toxic
emissions such as benzene and particle emissions; whereas thereduction of polluting vehicle emissions in urban areas can beimmediately achieved on motor vehicles through changes infuel composition;
(12)Whereas the incorporation of oxygen and the significant reduc-tion in aromatics, olefins, benzene and sulphur can permitbetter fuel quality to be obtained from an air quality standpoint;
(13)Whereas the provisions of Council Directive 92/81/EEC of 19October 1992 on the harmonisation of the structures of exciseduties on mineral oils (
1), and in particular Article 8(4) thereof,
discourage and may prevent Member States from operating
excise tax differentiation designed to accelerate fuel qualityabove Community-wide fuel specifications;
(14)Whereas the use by Member States of differentiated excise taxa-tion can encourage the introduction of more advanced fuels inline withnational priorities, capacity and requirements;
(15)Whereas the Commission has brought forward a proposal for anEnergy Products Directive; whereas this proposal has the objec-tive of,inter alia , permitting Member States to make more
active use of fiscal incentives through differentiated excise taxa-tion, so as to facilitate the introduction of more advanced fuels;
(16)Whereas fuel specifications aiming at the reduction of bothexhaust and evaporative emissions are generally lacking;
(17)Whereas atmospheric pollution by lead arising from the combus-tion of leaded petrol constitutes a risk for human health and theenvironment; whereas it is a great step forward that by 2000
virtually all petrol-driven road vehicles will be able to run on
unleaded petrol and whereas therefore it is appropriate to restrictseverely the marketing of leaded petrol;1998L0070 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 003.001 — 3
(1) OJ L 316, 31.10.1992, p. 12. Directive as last amended by Directive 94/74/
EC (OJ L 365, 31.12.1994, p. 46).
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(18)Whereas the need for vehicle emission reduction and the avail-
ability of the necessary refinery technology justify the setting of
environmental fuel specifications for the marketing of unleadedpetrol and diesel fuels;
(19)Whereas it seems appropriate to provide for the availability of
two types of diesel and petrol fuel, one of which would be a
higher-quality diesel and one of which would be a higher qualitypetrol; whereas it is appropriate for this higher quality diesel orpetrol to replace diesel or petrol of lower quality on the marketby 2005; whereas, however, appropriate provision should be
made for suchreplacement to be delayed wh en application of
the date of 2005 in a Member State would cause severe difficul-ties for its industries in making the necessary changes in itsmanufacturing facilities;
(20)Whereas, in order to protect human health and/or the environ-ment in specific agglomerations or in specific ecologicallysensitive areas withspecial problems of air quality, MemberStates should be permitted, subject to a procedure established inthis Directive, to require that fuels may be marketed only if they
comply withmore stringent environmental specifications th an
established under this Directive; whereas this procedure is aderogation from the information procedure laid down in Direc-tive 98/34/EC of 22 June 1998 of the European Parliament andof the Council laying down a procedure for the provision ofinformation in the field of technical standards and regulations
and of rules on information society services (
1);
(21)Whereas, in order to ensure compliance with the fuel quality
standards required under this Directive, Member States should
introduce monitoring systems; whereas such monitoring systems
should be based on common procedures for sampling and testingand whereas information on fuel quality collected by MemberStates should be communicated to the Commission according toa common format;
(22)Whereas, on the basis of a comprehensive assessment, theCommission is to submit a proposal complementing the manda-tory specifications for petrol and diesel fuels referred to inAnnexes III and IV to be applied as from 1 January 2005;whereas the Commission's proposal may, as appropriate, also
set down environmental specifications for other types of fuel
suchas liquid petroleum gas, natural gas and biofuels; wh ereascaptive vehicle fleets exist (buses, taxis, commercial vehicles,etc.) which are responsible for a large proportion of urban pollu-tion and would benefit from separate specifications;
(23)Whereas further developments with regard to reference methodsfor measuring the specifications set out in this Directive may bedesirable in the light of scientific and technical progress;whereas to this end, provisions should be made in order to adapt
the Annexes to this Directive to technical progress;
(24)Whereas Council Directive 85/210/EEC of 20 March 1985 on
the approximation of the laws of the Member States concerning
the lead content of petrol (2), Council Directive 85/536/EEC of 5
December 1985 relating to crude-oil savings through the use ofsubstitute fuel components in petrol (
3), and Article 1(1)(b) and
Article 2(1) of Council Directive 93/12/EEC of 23 March1993relating to the sulphur content of certain liquid fuels (
4), should
be repealed accordingly;1998L0070 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 003.001 — 4
(1) OJ L 204, 21.7.1998, p. 37. Directive as amended by Directive 98/48/EC
(OJ L 217, 5.8.1998, p. 18).
(2) OJ L 96, 3.4.1985, p. 25. Directive as last amended by the 1994 Act of
Accession.
(3) OJ L 334, 12.12.1985, p. 20. Directive as amended by Commission Direc-
tive 87/441/EEC (OJ L 238, 21.8.1987, p. 40).
(4) OJ L 74, 27.3.1993, p. 81.
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(25)Whereas the transitional measures for Austria referred to in
Article 69 of the 1994 Act of Accession include Article 7 of
Directive 85/210/EEC; whereas the application of this transi-tional measure should, for specific reasons of the protection ofthe environment, be prolonged until 1 January 2000;
(26)Whereas amodus vivendi between the European Parliament, the
Council and the Commission concerning the implementingmeasures for acts adopted in accordance withth e procedure laid
down in Article 189b of the Treaty (
1) was concluded on 20
December 1994,
HAVE ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:
Article 1
Scope
This Directive sets technical specifications on health and environmental
grounds for fuels to be used for vehicles equipped with positive-igni-
tion and compression-ignition engines.
Article 2
Definitions
For the purposes of this Directive:
1. ‘petrol’ means any volatile mineral oil intended for the operation of
internal combustion positive-ignition engines for the propulsion ofvehicles and falling within CN codes 2710 1141, 2710 1145,2710 11 49, 2710 1151 and 2710 1159 (
2);
2. ‘diesel fuels’ means gas oils falling within CN code 2710 1941 (2)
and used for self-propelling vehicles as referred to in Directive 70/220/EEC and Directive 88/77/EEC;
3. ‘gas oils intended for use by non-road mobile machinery and agri-
cultural and forestry tractors’ means any petroleum-derived liquid,
falling within CN codes 2710 19 41 and 2710 1945 (
2), intended
for use in engines referred to in Directives 97/68/EC (*) and 2000/25/EC (
3);
4. ‘outermost regions’ means France withregard to th e Frenchover-
seas departments, Portugal withregard to th e Azores and Madeira,and Spain withregard to th e Canary Islands.
For Member States witharctic or severe winter conditions th e
maximum distillation point of 65 % at 250 ºC for diesel fuels and gasoils may be replaced witha maximum distillation point of 10 % (vol/vol) at 180 ºC.
Article 3
Petrol
1. No later than 1 January 2000, Member States shall prohibit the
marketing of leaded petrol within their territory.
2. (a) Member States shall ensure that, no later than 1 January 2000,
unleaded petrol can be marketed within their territory only if it
complies withth e environmental specifications set out in AnnexI.1998L0070 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 003.001 — 5
(1) OJ C 102, 4.4.1996, p. 1.
(2) The numbering of these CN codes as specified in the CCT, as amended by
Commission Regulation (EC) No 2031/2001 (OJ L 279, 23.10.2001, p. 1).
(*) OJ L 59, 27.2.1998, p. 1; Directive as amended by Commission Directive
2001/63/EC (OJ L 227, 23.8.2001, p. 41).
(3) OJ L 173, 12.7.2000, p. 1.▼M2
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(b) Without prejudice to the provisions of subparagraph (a),
Member States shall, from 1 January 2000, permit the marketingwithin their territory of unleaded petrol complying with the
specifications of Annex III.
(c) Member States shall also ensure that, no later than 1 January
2005, unleaded petrol can be marketed within their territory
only if it complies withth e environmental specifications set outin Annex III.
(d) Without prejudice to the provisions of subparagraph (c),
Member States shall take all necessary measures to ensure thatin due time, and no later than 1 January 2005, unleaded petrol
witha maximum sulph ur content of 10 mg/kg is marketed
within their territories. Member States shall ensure that suchunleaded petrol is available on an appropriately balancedgeographical basis and complies in all other respects with thespecifications set out in Annex III.
However, Member States may, for the outermost regions, make
specific provisions for the introduction of petrol of a maximumsulphur content of 10 mg/kg. Member States making use of this
provision shall inform the Commission accordingly. The
Commission shall develop guidance for recommending what,for the purposes of this subparagraph, constitutes availability onan appropriately balanced geographical basis.
(e) By no later than 1 January 2009, Member States shall ensure
that unleaded petrol may be marketed in their territory only ifit complies withth e environmental specification set out inAnnex III except for the sulphur content which shall be a
maximum of 10 mg/kg.
3. By way of derogation from paragraph1, a Member State may be
allowed, on a request to be submitted to the Commission no later than31 August 1999, to continue to permit the marketing of leaded petrol,until at the latest 1 January 2005, if it can demonstrate that the intro-
duction of a ban would result in severe socioeconomic problems or
would not lead to overall environmental or health benefits because of,interalia , the climatic situation in that Member State.
The lead content of leaded petrol shall not exceed 0,15 g/l and the
benzene content shall comply with the specifications in Annex I. The
other values of the specifications may remain unchanged compared to
the present situation.
4. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 2, a Member State
may be authorised, on a request to be submitted to the Commission
no later than 31 August 1999, to continue to permit the marketing
within its territory, until at the latest 1 January 2003, of unleaded petrolwith a sulphur content which does not comply with the specificationfor sulphur content in Annex I but which does not exceed the currentcontent, if it can demonstrate that severe difficulties would ensue for itsindustries in making the necessary changes in their manufacturing
facilities during the period of time between the date of adoption of
this Directive and 1 January 2000.
5. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 2, a Member State
may be authorised, on a request to be submitted to the Commissionno later than 31 August 2003, to continue to permit the marketing
within its territory, until at the latest 1 January 2007, of unleaded petrol
with a sulphur content which does not comply with Annex III butwhich does comply with Annex I, if it can demonstrate that severedifficulties would ensue for its industries in making the necessarychanges in their manufacturing facilities during the period of time
between the date of adoption of this Directive and 1 January 2005.
6. The Commission may authorise the derogations referred to in
paragraphs 3, 4 and 5 in accordance with the Treaty.
The Commission shall notify the Member States and inform the
European Parliament and the Council of its decision.1998L0070 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 003.001 — 6
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7. Notwithstanding paragraph 1, Member States may continue to
permit the marketing of small quantities of leaded petrol with thespecifications mentioned in the second subparagraph of paragraph 3 to
a maximum of 0,5 % of total sales to be used by old vehicles of a char-
acteristic nature and to be distributed through special interest groups.
Article 4
Dieselfuel
1. (a) Member States shall ensure that, no later than 1 January 2000,
diesel fuel can be marketed within their territory only if itcomplies withth e environmental specifications set out in AnnexII.
(b) Without prejudice to the provisions of subparagraph (a),
Member States shall, from 1 January 2000, permit the marketing
within their territory of diesel fuel complying with the specifica-
tions of Annex IV.
(c) Member States shall also ensure that, no later than 1 January
2005, diesel fuel can be marketed within their territory only ifit complies withth e environmental specifications set out inAnnex IV.
(d) Without prejudice to the provisions of subparagraph (c),
Member States shall take all necessary measures to ensure that
in due time, and no later than 1 January 2005, diesel fuel with
a maximum sulphur content of 10 mg/kg is marketed withintheir territories. Member States shall ensure that such dieselfuel is available on an appropriately balanced geographical basisand complies in all other respects with the specifications set out
in Annex IV.
However, Member States may, for the outermost regions, make
specific provisions for the introduction of diesel fuel of amaximum sulphur content of 10 mg/kg. Member States makinguse of this provision shall inform the Commission accordingly.
(e) By no later than 1 January 2009, Member States shall ensure,
subject to the provisions of Article 9(1)(a), that diesel fuel may
be marketed in their territory only if it complies with the envir-
onmental specification set out in Annex IV except for thesulphur content which shall be a maximum of 10 mg/kg.
2. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1, a Member State
may be authorised, on a request to be submitted to the Commissionno later than 31 August 1999, to continue to permit the marketing
within its territory, until at the latest 1 January 2003, of diesel fuel
with a sulphur content which does not comply with the specificationfor sulphur content in Annex II but which does not exceed the currentcontent, if it can demonstrate that severe difficulties would ensue for itsindustries in making the necessary changes in their manufacturingfacilities during the period of time between the date of adoption of
this Directive and 1 January 2000.
3. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1, a Member State
may be authorised, on a request to be submitted to the Commission
no later than 31 August 2003, to continue to permit the marketingwithin its territory, until at the latest 1 January 2007, of diesel fuelwith a sulphur content which does not comply with Annex IV butwhich does comply with Annex II, if it can demonstrate that severedifficulties would ensue for its industries in making the necessary
changes in their manufacturing facilities during the period of time
between the date of adoption of this Directive and 1 January 2005.
4. The Commission may authorise the derogations referred to in
paragraphs 2 and 3 in accordance with the Treaty.
The Commission shall notify the Member States and inform the
Council and the European Parliament of its decision.1998L0070 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 003.001 — 7
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5. Member States shall ensure that gas oils intended for use by non-
road mobile machinery and agricultural and forestry tractors marketedwithin their territory contain less than 2 000 mg/kg of sulphur. By 1
January 2008 at the latest, the maximum permissible sulphur content
of gas oils intended for use by non-road mobile machinery and agricul-tural and forestry tractors shall be 1 000 mg/kg. However, MemberStates may require a lower limit or the same sulphur content for dieselfuels stipulated in this Directive.
Article 5
Free circulation
No Member State may prohibit, restrict or prevent the placing on the
market of fuels which comply with the requirements of this Directive.
Article 6
Marketing of fuels with more stringent environmental specifica-
tions
1. By way of derogation from Articles 3, 4 and 5 and in accordance
withArticle 95(10) of th e Treaty, a Member State may take measures
to require that in specific areas, within its territory, fuels may bemarketed only if they comply with more stringent environmental speci-fications than those provided for in this Directive for all or part of thevehicle fleet with a view to protecting the health of the population in aspecific agglomeration or the environment in a specific ecologically or
environmentally sensitive area in that Member State, if atmospheric or
ground water pollution constitutes, or may reasonably be expected toconstitute, a serious and recurrent problem for human health or theenvironment.
2. A Member State wishing to make use of a derogation provided
for in paragraph 1 shall submit its request in advance, including the
justification for it, to the Commission. The justification shall include
evidence that the derogation respects the principle of proportionalityand that it will not disrupt the free movements of persons and goods.
3. The Member States involved shall provide the Commission with
relevant environmental data for the agglomeration or area in questionas well as the predicted effects on the environment of the measures
proposed.
4. The Commission shall provide this information to the other
Member States without delay.
5. Member States may give their comments on the request and its
justification within two months of the date of the Commission's provi-
sion of information.
6. The Commission shall take a decision on the request of Member
States within three months after the date on which Member States havesubmitted their comments. The Commission will take Member States'
comments into account and will notify them of its decision and inform
the European Parliament and the Council at the same time.
Article 7
Changeinsupplyofcrudeoils
If, as a result of exceptional events, a sudden change in the supply of
crude oils or petroleum products renders it difficult for the refineries ina Member State to respect the fuel specification requirements of Arti-cles 3 and 4, that Member State shall inform the Commission thereof.1998L0070 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 003.001 — 8
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The Commission, after informing the other Member States, may
authorise higher limit values in that Member State for one or morefuel components for a period not exceeding six months.
The Commission shall notify the Member States and inform the
European Parliament and the Council of its decision.
Any Member State may refer the Commission's decision to the Council
within one month of its notification.
The Council, acting by a qualified majority, may take a different deci-
sion within one month of the matter being referred to it.
Article 8
Monitoringcomplianceandreporting
1. Member States shall monitor compliance with the requirements of
Articles 3 and 4, in respect of petrol and diesel fuels, on the basis of
the analytical methods referred to in European standards EN 228:1999and EN 590:1999 respectively.
2. Member States shall establish a fuel quality monitoring system in
accordance with the requirements of the relevant European standard.
The use of an alternative fuel quality monitoring system may be
permitted provided that such a system ensures results of equivalentconfidence.
3. Each year by 30 June, the Member States shall submit a report of
national fuel quality data for the preceding calendar year. The first
report shall be submitted by 30 June 2002. From 1 January 2004, the
format for this report shall be consistent with that described in the rele-vant European standard. In addition, Member States shall report thetotal volumes of petrol and diesel fuels marketed in their territoriesand the volumes of unleaded petrol and diesel fuels marketed with a
maximum sulphur content of 10 mg/kg. Furthermore, Member States
shall report annually on the availability on an appropriately balancedgeographical basis of petrol and diesel fuels with a maximum sulphurcontent of 10 mg/kg that are marketed within their territory.
4. The Commission shall ensure that the information submitted
pursuant to paragraph3 is promptly made available by appropriate
means. The Commission shall publish annually, and for the first timeby 31 December 2003, a report on actual fuel quality in the differentMember States and geographical coverage of fuels with a maximumsulphur content of 10 mg/kg, aiming to provide an overview of thefuels quality data in the different Member States.
Article 9
Reviewprocess
1. By 31 December 2005 at the latest, the Commission shall review
the fuel specifications of Annexes III and IV with the exception of
sulphur content and propose amendments, if appropriate, in keeping
withcurrent and future requirements of Community veh icle emissionand air quality legislation and related objectives. In particular, theCommission shall consider:
(a) the necessity of any change to the end date for the full introduction
of diesel fuel, witha maximum sulph ur content of 10 mg/kg, inorder to ensure that there is no overall increase in greenhouse gasemissions. This analysis shall consider developments in refineryprocessing technologies, expected fuel economy improvements ofvehicles and the rate at which new fuel-efficient technologies are
introduced into the vehicle fleet;
(b) the implications of new Community legislation setting air quality
standards for substances suchas polycyclic aromatic h ydrocarbons;
(c) the outcome of the review described in Article 10 of Council
Directive 1999/30/EC of 22 April 1999 relating to limit values for1998L0070 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 003.001 — 9
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sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and oxides of nitrogen, particu-
late matter and lead in ambient air (1);
(d) the outcome of the review of the various commitments by the Japa-
nese (2), Korean (3) and European (4) automobile manufacturers to
reduce the fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions of newpassenger cars in the light of the fuel quality changes introduced bythis Directive and progress towards the Community target of 120 g/km CO
2emissions for the average vehicle;
(e) the outcome of the review required by Article 7 of Directive 1999/
96/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13
December 1999 on the approximation of the laws of the Member
States relating to measures to be taken against the emission ofgaseous and particulate pollutants from compression ignitionengines for use in vehicles, and the emission of gaseous pollutantsfrom positive ignition engines fuelled withnatural gas or liquefied
petroleum gas for use in vehicles and amending Council Directive
88/77/EEC (
5) and the confirmation of the mandatory NOxemission
standard for heavy duty engines;
(f) the effective functioning of new pollution abatement technologies
and the impact of metallic additives and other relevant issues ontheir performance and developments affecting international fuelmarkets;
(g) the need to encourage the introduction of alternative fuels,
including biofuels, as well as the need to introduce modifications
to other parameters in the fuel specifications, both for conventionaland for alternative fuels, for example the modifications to themaximum volatility limits for petrol contained in this Directiverequired for their application to blends of bioethanol with petrol
and any subsequent necessary changes to EN 228:1999.
2. When considering its proposal for the next stage of emission stan-
dards for compression ignition engines in non-road applications, the
Commission shall establish in parallel the required fuel quality. In so
doing, the Commission shall take into account the importance of theemissions from this sector, the overall environmental and health bene-fits, the implications in the Member States regarding fuel distributionand the costs and benefits of a more restrictive sulphur level than iscurrently required for fuel used in compression ignition engines in
non-road applications, and shall then align appropriate fuel quality
requirements for non-road applications withth e on-road sector by acertain date, currently expected to be 1 January 2009, to be confirmedor amended by the Commission in its review in 2005.
3. In addition to the provisions of paragraph 1 the Commission may,
interalia , bring forward:
— proposals taking into consideration the particular situation of
captive fleets and the need to propose levels of specifications forthe special fuels they use,
— proposals setting levels of specifications applicable to liquid petro-
leum gas, natural gas and biofuels.
Article 9a
Penalties
Member States shall determine the penalties applicable to breaches of
the national provisions adopted pursuant to this Directive. The penaltiesdetermined must be effective, proportionate and dissuasive.1998L0070 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 003.001 — 10
(1) OJ L 163, 29.6.1999, p. 41; Directive as amended by Commission Decision
2001/744/EC (OJ L 278, 23.10.2001, p. 35).
(2) OJ L 100, 20.4.2000, p. 57.
(3) OJ L 100, 20.4.2000, p. 55.
(4) OJ L 40, 13.2.1999, p. 49.
(5) OJ L 44, 16.2.2000, p. 1.
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Article 10
Procedure foradaptationtotechnical progress
1. The measurement methods to be applied in relation to the para-
meters specified in Annexes I and III shall be those analyticalmethods set out in European standard EN 228:1999. The measurementmethods to be applied in relation to the parameters specified inAnnexes II and IV shall be those analytical methods set out in
European standard EN 590:1999. Member States may adopt the analy-
tical methods specified in replacement EN 228:1999 or EN 590:1999standards, as appropriate, if they can be shown to give at least the
same accuracy and at least the same level of precision as the analytical
methods they replace. In the event that adaptation of the permitted
analytical methods to technical progress is necessary, amendments
may be adopted by the Commission in accordance with the procedure
referred to in Article 11(2).
2.Suchadaptationmustnotresultinanydirectorindirectmodifica-
tionofthelimitvalueslaiddowninthisDirectiveortoanychangeinthedatesfromwhichtheyapply.
Article 11
Committeeprocedure
1. Where reference is made to this Article, Articles 5 and 7 of Deci-
sion 1999/468/EC (
1) shall apply, having regard to the provisions of
Article 8 thereof.
The period laid down in Article 5(6) of Decision 1999/468/EC shall be
set at three months.
2. The Committee shall adopt its rules of procedure.
Article 12
RepealandamendmentoftheDirectives related tothefuelquality
ofpetrolanddieselfuels
1. Directives 85/210/EEC, 85/536/EEC and 87/441/EEC are
repealed as from 1 January 2000.
2. Directive 93/12/EEC is amended by deleting Article 1(1)(b) and
Article 2(1) as from 1 January 2000.
Article 13
Transpositionintonationallegislation
1. Member States shall adopt and publish the laws, regulations and
administrative provisions necessary to comply withth is Directive not
later than 1 July 1999. They shall immediately inform the Commission
thereof.
Member States shall apply these measures from 1 January 2000.
When Member States adopt these measures, they shall contain a refer-
ence to this Directive or shall be accompanied by such reference on theoccasion of their official publication. The methods of making such
reference shall be laid down by Member States.
2. Member States shall communicate to the Commission the texts of
the main provisions of domestic law which they adopt in the field
covered by this Directive.1998L0070 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 003.001 — 11
(1) Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures
for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission (OJ
L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23).▼M2
▼M3
▼BB▼
▼B
Article 14
Austria
Article 7 of Directive 85/210/EEC, as far as the benzene content of
petrol referred to in Article 4 of that Directive is concerned, shall, until
1 January 2000, not apply to Austria.
Article 15
Entryintoforce oftheDirective
This Directive shall enter into force on the day of its publication in the
Official JournaloftheEuropeanCommunities .
Article 16
Addressees
This Directive is addressed to the Member States.1998L0070 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 003.001 — 12
▼M2
ANNEX I
ENVIRONMENTAL SPECIFICATIONS FOR MARKET FUELS TO BE USED FOR VEHI-
CLESEQUIPPEDWITHPOSITIVE-IGNITIONENGINES
Type:Petrol
Parameter (1) UnitLimits(2)
Minimum Maximum
Researchoctane number 95(3)—
Motor octane number 85 —
Vapour pressure, summer period (4) kPa — 60,0 (5)
Distillation:
— percentage evaporated at 100 ºC % v/v 46,0 —
— percentage evaporated at 150 ºC % v/v 75,0 —
Hydrocarbon analysis:
— olefins % v/v — 18,0 (6)
— aromatics % v/v — 42,0— benzene % v/v — 1,0
Oxygen content % m/m — 2,7Oxygenates
— Methanol (stabilising agents must be
added)% v/v — 3
— Ethanol (stabilising agents may be
necessary)% v/v — 5
— Iso-propyl alcohol % v/v — 10
— Tert-butyl alcohol % v/v — 7— Iso-butyl alcohol % v/v — 10— Ethers containing five or more carbon
atoms per molecule% v/v — 15
— Other oxygenates (
7) % v/v — 10
Sulphur content mg/kg — 150
Lead content g/l — 0,005
(1) Test methods shall be those specified in EN 228:1999. Member States may adopt the analytical method speci-
fied in replacement EN 228:1999 standard if it can be shown to give at least the same accuracy and at least thesame level of precision as the analytical method it replaces.
(
2) The values quoted in the specification are ‘true values’. In the establishment of their limit values, the terms of
ISO 4259 ‘Petroleum products - Determination and application of precision data in relation to methods of test’have been applied and in fixing a minimum value, a minimum difference of 2R above zero has been taken intoaccount (R = reproducibility). The results of individual measurements shall be interpreted on the basis of thecriteria described in ISO 4259 (published in 1995).
(
3) Unleaded regular grade petrol may be marketed witha minimum motor octane number (MON) of 81 and a
minimum researchoctane number (RON) of 91.
(4) The summer period shall begin no later than 1 May and shall not end before 30 September. For Member States
with arctic or severe winter conditions, the summer period shall begin no later than 1 June and shall not endbefore 31 August.
(
5) For Member States with arctic or severe winter conditions the vapour pressure shall not exceed 70 kPa during
the summer period.
(6) Unleaded regular grade petrol may be marketed witha maximum olefin content of 21 % v/v.
(7) Other mono-alcohols and ethers with a final boiling point no higher than that stated in EN 228:1999.1998L0070 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 003.001 — 13
▼M2
ANNEX II
ENVIRONMENTAL SPECIFICATIONS FOR MARKET FUELS TO BE USED FOR VEHI-
CLESEQUIPPEDWITHCOMPRESSIONIGNITIONENGINES
Type:Dieselfuel
Parameter (1) UnitLimits(2)
Minimum Maximum
Cetane number 51,0 —
Density at 15 ºC kg/m3 — 845
Distillation:
— 95% (v/v) recovered at ºC — 360
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons % m/m — 11
Sulphur content mg/kg — 350
(1) Test methods shall be those specified in EN 590:1999. Member States may adopt the analytical method speci-
fied in replacement EN 590:1999 standard if it can be shown to give at least the same accuracy and at least thesame level of precision as the analytical method it replaces.
(
2) The values quoted in the specification are ‘true values’. In the establishment of their limit values, the terms of
ISO 4259 ‘Petroleum products - Determination and application of precision data in relation to methods of test’
have been applied and in fixing a minimum value, a minimum difference of 2R above zero has been taken into
account (R = reproducibility). The results of individual measurements shall be interpreted on the basis of thecriteria described in ISO 4259 (published in 1995).1998L0070 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 003.001 — 14
▼M2
ANNEX III
ENVIRONMENTAL SPECIFICATIONS FOR MARKET FUELS TO BE USED FOR VEHI-
CLESEQUIPPEDWITHPOSITIVE-IGNITIONENGINES
Type:Petrol
Parameter (1) UnitLimits(2)
Minimum Maximum
Researchoctane number 95(3)—
Motor octane number 85 —
Vapour pressure, summer period (4) kPa — 60,0 (5)
Distillation:
— percentage evaporated at 100 ºC % v/v 46,0 —— percentage evaporated at 150 ºC % v/v 75,0 —
Hydrocarbon analysis:
— olefins % v/v — 18,0
— aromatics % v/v — 35,0
— benzene % v/v — 1,0
Oxygen content % m/m — 2,7
Oxygenates
— methanol (stabilising agents must be
added)% v/v — 3
— ethanol (stabilising agents may be neces-
sary)% v/v — 5
— iso-propyl alcohol % v/v — 10
— tert-butyl alcohol % v/v — 7— iso-butyl alcohol % v/v — 10— ethers containing 5 or more carbon
atoms per molecule% v/v — 15
— Other oxygenates (
6) % v/v — 10
Sulphur content mg/kg — 50
mg/kg — 10(7)
Lead content g/l — 0,005
(1) Test methods shall be those specified in EN 228:1999. Member States may adopt the analytical method speci-
fied in replacement EN 228:1999 standard if it can be shown to give at least the same accuracy and at least the
same level of precision as the analytical method it replaces.
(2) The values quoted in the specification are ‘true values’. In the establishment of their limit values the terms of
ISO 4259 ‘Petroleum products - Determination and application of precision data in relation to methods of test’have been applied and in fixing a minimum value, a minimum difference of 2R above zero has been taken into
account (R = reproducibility). The results of individual measurements shall be interpreted on the basis of the
criteria described in ISO 4259 (published in 1995).
(
3) Member States may decide to continue to permit the marketing of unleaded regular grade petrol with a
minimum motor octane number (MON) of 81 and a minimum researchoctane number (RON) of 91.
(4) The summer period shall begin no later than 1 May and shall not end before 30 September. For Member States
with arctic or severe winter conditions, the summer period shall begin no later than 1 June and shall not end
before 31 August.
(5) For Member States with arctic or severe winter conditions, the vapour pressure shall not exceed 70 kPa during
the summer period.
(6) Other mono-alcohols and ethers with a final boiling point no higher than that stated in EN 228:1999.
(7) In accordance with Article 3(2), by no later than 1 January 2005 unleaded petrol with a maximum sulphur
content of 10 mg/kg must be marketed and be available on an appropriately balanced geographical basis within
the territory of a Member State. By 1 January 2009 all unleaded petrol marketed in the territory of a MemberState must have a maximum sulphur content of 10 mg/kg.1998L0070 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 003.001 — 15
▼M2
ANNEX IV
ENVIRONMENTAL SPECIFICATIONS FOR MARKET FUELS TO BE USED FOR VEHI-
CLESEQUIPPEDWITHCOMPRESSIONIGNITIONENGINES
Type:Dieselfuel
Parameter (1) UnitLimits(2)
Minimum Maximum
Cetane number 51,0 —
Density at 15 ºC kg/m3— 845
Distillation:
— 95 % (v/v) recovered at ºC — 360
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons % m/m — 11
Sulphur content mg/kg — 50
mg/kg — 10(3)
(1) Test methods shall be those specified in EN 590:1999. Member States may adopt the analytical method speci-
fied in replacement EN 590:1999 standard, if it can be shown to give at least the same accuracy and at least thesame level of precision as the analytical method it replaces.
(
2) The values quoted in the specification are ‘true values’. In the establishment of their limit values the terms of
ISO 4259 ‘Petroleum products - Determination and application of precision data in relation to methods of test’have been applied and in fixing a minimum value, a minimum difference of 2R above zero has been taken intoaccount (R = reproducibility). The results of individual measurements shall be interpreted on the basis of thecriteria described in ISO 4259 (published in 1995).
(
3) In accordance withArticle 4(1), by no later th an 1 January 2005 diesel fuel witha maximum sulph ur content of
10 mg must be marketed and be available on an appropriately balanced geographical basis within the territory ofa Member State. In addition, and subject to the review in Article 9(1), by 1 January 2009 all diesel fuelmarketed in the territory of a Member State must have a maximum sulphur content of 10 mg/kg.1998L0070 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 003.001 — 16