MANILA, Philippines - Local ethanol poses no danger to vehicles and is safe to use, according to Energy Secretary Angelo T. Reyes and members of the local ethanol industry who are out to disprove reports that the current ethanol-blended gasoline (E-10) could damage car engines.

“Ethanol is compatible with fuel-injected cars that have been properly maintained,” he said in a briefing yesterday.

Reyes explained that local ethanol had even surpassed Philippine National Standards (PNS) set by the Department of Energy.

He pointed out that the purity of local ethanol was 99.8 percent, just above the 99.3-percent standard.

Corrosion in certain vehicle parts may be due to other reasons, such as the “accumulation of other fuels previously used and substandard replacement parts,” Reyes said.

Ethanol producers and oil companies stress that ethanol have long been used as fuel for vehicles in other countries. They added that the Philippines merely replicated the best practices of other countries, such as Brazil, which has been using ethanol for the last 35 years.

According to some oil companies, they have yet to receive complaints from consumers regarding the use of ethanol-blended gasoline in their cars.

Earlier, oil refiner and retailer Petron Corp. warned that the current ethanol-blended gasoline could damage car engines.

Ethanol-blended fuel is highly corrosive, Petron claimed.

It also urged the Department of Energy to come up with clearer specifications for the fuel blend.

Petron chair and chief executive Ramon S. Ang said that the alcohol mixed with gasoline could damage a car’s gas tank, fuel pump, carburetor and fuel injector, among others.

The problem, Ang said, was that the government did not specify that there should be a dehydrator to remove the water content, which is what makes the ethanol-blended gasoline (E-10) highly corrosive.

But biofuel expert Alex Loinaz pointed out that this was a misconception.

Ethanol, as a solvent, has appropriate additives that can even help clean a vehicle’s fuel tank, he said.

Still, Reyes has decided to address Petron’s concern and directed the National Biofuels Board to “dig deeper into the matter.” He also ordered the board to conduct an actual engine compatibility and performance tests using E-10.

The NBB is now waiting for the test protocol to be established by a technical working group.

Also, the DOE has already prepared the correct specifications or fuel quality standards to address and minimize the so-called negative effects of the ethanol-blended gasoline, Reyes said.

The energy chief added that the government would push for an aggressive information campaign to educate not only stakeholders, but the public as well regarding the use and effects of E-10 on cars.