Va. International Terminals one month into low-sulfur diesel switch

Va. International Terminals one month into low-sulfur diesel switch    Virginia International Terminals Inc. (VIT) on July 31 completed its first month of operation using ultra low-sulfur diesel (USLD) fuel, making it the first terminal on the U.S. East Coast to make the switch, nearly three years ahead of a federal mandate.
   By order of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, all ports were to begin using low-sulfur diesel fuel by July 1, and by July 1, 2010 all ports must be using the USLD.
   'We knew we were going to make this change and the decision was to go ahead and get moving now, ahead of the deadline, in case there were issues that needed to be ironed out,' said Joseph A. Dorto, general manager of VIT, which is the private terminal operating company of the Virginia Port Authority. 'It has been a seamless transition and I expect the benefits to outweigh the costs.'
   'We didn't see any value or reason to burn low-sulfur diesel for three years and then make another switch to USLD,' Dorto added.