In order to use pillared clays (PILCs) as a support for HDS catalysts, a work was undertaken on which the effect of the support on creation and distribution of species was studied. As a support, aluminum-pillared clay (Al-PILC) and different precursors and loading conditions were used. Temperature-programmed reduction (TPR) and UV-diffuse reflectance (UV-DRS) techniques were applied to identify the formed species.