On January 1, 2023, all types of diesel fuel will be covered in China’s Regulations on the Safety Management of Hazardous Chemicals (2015 edition) (hereinafter referred to as “the Regulation”). The legal basis of such change is based on the notice jointly issued on October 13, 2022, by 10 national ministries.

The Notice is an amendment to the Regulation, as the previous version stipulates “1674 diesel [Closed cup flash point ≤60℃]”. Now that all diesel fuel products are covered by the Regulation. The change is made following requirements of Regulations on the Safety Management of Hazardous Chemicals.

Such change will cause a big impact on the sectors that use or manufacture diesel fuels, yet it is after thorough consideration and discussion. There were suggestions from the deputy of the People’s Congress on such an amendment back in 2019, but an official response from the Ministry of Emergency Management stated that this kind of change would require to “solicit opinions from relevant departments, enterprise units and all parties in society for scientific demonstration” because “it will affect a large number of industries and enterprises”.  

To summarize the impacts to all supply links of diesel fuel for foreign stakeholders:

·   Trade: all diesel fuel to be covered in the hazardous chemical management means the bar for doing diesel trade is raised and quite some current players may be shut out of the business.

·   Wholesales and manufacturing: all traders or distributors need to have a hazardous chemical permit on running the product’s business. It may cause an upgrade for the whole sector as higher requirements are placed for all involvers.

·   Big-volume consumers: such consumers, especially those who have storage needs will also need to apply for the qualification/permit.

Foreign stakeholders should also be aware that more official documents such as guidelines, implementation measures etc. might be released for further practical details. 

If you need more information on the topic, please contact assistant@bestao-consulting.com

Annexes: list of national ministries that issued the notice

Ministry of Emergency Management of China

Ministry of Industry and Information Technology

Ministry of Public Security

Ministry of Ecology and Environment

Ministry of Transport

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs

National Health Commission

State Administration for Market Regulation

National Railway Administration

Civil Aviation Administration of China