EIA: Ethanol Stockpiles at 1-Year High

NEW YORK (DTN) -- U.S. ethanol stockpiles increased last week alongside a ramp up in plant production, with total inventories surging by about 700,000 barrels (bbl), or 2.9%, to better-than-one-year high of 23.3 million bbl after falling for three prior weeks, the Energy Information Administration said Wednesday, March 29.

The EIA's Weekly Petroleum Status Report for the week-ended March 24 shows domestic fuel ethanol inventories were 200,000 bbl higher year-on-year. Supplies are at the highest level since March 4, 2016, when 23.307 million bbl of ethanol were in storage.

Domestic plant production climbed 20,000 barrels per day (bpd), or 1.0%, to 1.054 million bpd last week, the highest since the week-ended Feb. 3, while 62,000 bpd, or 6.3%, higher than a year earlier. For the four weeks ended last week, fuel ethanol production averaged 1.041 million bpd, up 50,000 bpd, or 4.8%.

Net refiner and blender inputs of ethanol, a gauge for demand, fell by 4,000 bpd to 911,000 bpd during the week-ended March 24. On a year-over-year basis, refiner and blender inputs were up 21,000 bpd, or 2.4%, last week. For the four-week period ended March 24, blending demand was up 22,000 bpd, or 2.5%, to 903,000 bpd.

(BM/AG)

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