Higher sulphur content in oil burnt at Delimara after 2008

Despite the Nationalist administration's policy to start burning fuel oil with low sulphur content at 0.7%, fuel purchased by Enemalta on a number of occasions failed to adhere to these specifications.

Instances when fuel was purchased off specs was also confirmed by Enemalta's petroleum division manager Philip Borg during a meeting of the Public Accounts Committee discussing the Auditor General's fuel procurement report.

During a 2010 World Fuel Oil Summit, then-finance minister Tonio Fenech had explained ongoing steps to reduce the sulphur content of the fuel oil burned in Malta.

Up until 2003, the power plants in Marsa and Delimara burned 3.5%S fuel oil, after which it went down to 2%S fuel oil. In 2004, a shift was made to 1%S fuel oil and in May 2008 the Delimara power station shifted to 0.7%S fuel oil.

The government had declared that as early as August 2010, both power plants would be burning 0.7%S fuel oil.

But documents presented by Labour MP Justyne Caruana during the PAC meeting on Monday evening proved otherwise. As recently as 2011, Enemalta purchased fuel oil from Trafigura, the sulphur content of which was extremely close to 1%.

According to tests carried out by Saybolt - a company that services the energy industry with laboratory analyses - the level of sulphur content found in the fuel oil sampled was 0.985%. In the case of sodium, which according to tender specifications should have been 40ppm, reached 55ppm.

While sodium can cause fouling deposits in the combustion chamber and has an erosive effect on the burner tips, several scientific studies have linked exposures of sulphur dioxide with respiratory illnesses and increase of asthma in children and the elderly.

The August 2011 analyses report confirmed that both sulphur and sodium levels were out of the prescribed specification.

During the PAC meeting, Philip Borg explained that content variations could occur due to a change in environment and he insisted that chemical contents varied according to the place they would be stored.

However, the 2011 report referred to a sample of fuel oil taken onboard the ship on departure. In other words, the fuel consignment had not yet been transferred to Enemalta.

Despite the chemical content variations, tantamount to breach of EU directives, Borg said he could not satisfy the MPs' questions as to why such consignments were accepted and not returned back. "These were the electricity division's responsibility and any questions should be referred to them," he said, while admitting he received the test results nonetheless.