North Sea Tankstorage maintains the highest standards for QC and port handling. This is a critical prority and stringent product quality checks are undertaken at Port Antwerp and Rotterdam. North Sea Tankstorage meets all the requirements of the European Fuel Quality regulations specified by the EN 590 standard. Directive 98/70/EC of the European Parliament.
Quality and Products
All the samples are analysed by laboratories that are NBN EN ISO 17025 certified. All the used test methods are accredited or the demand for accreditation is in progress. Fapetro also conducts yearly audits in the laboratories to reassure itself of the quality of the reported analysed samples. Pump labelling is regulated by national legislation. Requirements and test methods are described in the following standards: NBN EN 228 for petrol, NBN EN 590 for diesel B7 and NBN EN 16734 for diesel B10.
Some of the procedures in place to ensure product integrity are:
- Fuels are tested at the load port
- Fuels are tested upon receipt at the terminal
- Single dedicated product pipeline from ship to shore
- Dedicated discharge tanks
- Tested samples are retained for 6 days
- Storage tanks undergo regular inspection and maintenance
The terminals have the capability to filter diesel to a level of 15/13/10, far exceeding the industry standard. This filtration process is designed to reduce the running costs of light and heavy vehicle engines, by reducing the amount of particulate contamination.