F1 rules will oblige manufacturers to step in with engines in 2017

On Friday, the World Motor Sport Council ratified an engine proposal that addressed issues of cost, availability of supply, performance convergence and noise.

The FIA has now incorporated the changes into the sporting regulations for 2017 and '18, which detail the finer points of how the changes will work.

Based on the number of teams competing in the championship, the FIA can call upon manufacturers to supply at least three teams, assuming 11 remain in 2017, if required.

If a team does not have an engine supply, the FIA can make it compulsory for the manufacturer with the lowest number of customers to step in.

The manufacturer will be obliged to do so, providing the relevant conditions are met by the customer team.

Should a new power manufacturer enter F1, it will not be required to comply with this obligation of supply initially.

Had the rule been in place last year, Renault would have been obliged to give Red Bull power units regardless of their dispute as it was supplying the fewest teams bar returnee Honda.

Changes have been made to the power unit homologation regulations to ensure convergence between manufacturers as well as between the power units used by a works squad and its customer teams.

"The FIA must be satisfied, at its absolute discretion, that such a power unit could fairly and equitably be allowed to compete with other homologated power units," read the sporting regulations.

Manufacturers must submit a "homologation dossier" on or before February 28 ahead of the relevant season.

The dossier for the teams "supplied by a manufacturer shall be identical, at any given time".

From 2018, there will be a reduction in the number of engine parts permitted before penalty.

Each driver may use no more than three internal combustion engines, three MGU-Hs, three turbochargers, two energy stores, two sets of control electronics and two MGU-Ks per season.

Should a new manufacturer enter F1, each of those parts will be increased by one for any driver providing it gains consent from the FIA.

When asked if he was happy the 2017 engine situation was now sorted, F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone told reporters at Sochi: "We will have to see.

"All we really want to do is make sure all the engines are equal, so people that are supplying to customers and the customers get the same power unit."

Ecclestone added the regulations would be scrapped if convergence did not happen.

"That will be torn up and we'll start again with a new set of regulations where the engines might be easier," he said.

"The normally aspirated engines were more or less equal."