CITYPETROL is joining Citydiesel on a nationwide network of forecourts to provide a readily available alternative to alternative fuels. Andrew Owens, chairman of Greenergy, the company behind the two low-emission fuels, said the attraction of dramatically cutting emissions of particulates, nitrogen oxide and carbon dioxide by filling up with cleaner fuels, rather than incur the cost of conversions or new vehicles, will win widespread support among fleets.

Citypetrol is only available at a few sites in London, but will be on 50 Sainsbury forecourts by the end of this month, and on 100 sites by March 1999 in anticipation of duty incentives in the next budget. It costs 2p more than conventional unleaded fuel, the same margin as Citydiesel had over ordinary diesel when it was first introduced in 1996, but Owens said he was sure there will be reductions in the duty, as there was with the Citydiesel.

Owens said the 'City' fuels more than meet the Government targets set in the recent transport white paper for the year 2005. He said: 'The fuels cannot be an alternative. They are what everyone by law will have to be filling up with by 2005 if they are to meet emission standards. With the progress we have made with these fuels over the last few years alternative fuels no longer make sense.'