Ethanol Blog

LINCOLN, Neb. (DTN) -- A group of nearly 1,000 farmers and ethanol industry workers asked President Joe Biden to grant an emergency waiver to allow E15 sales to continue this summer across the country, in a letter sent to the White House on Wednesday.

"With the 2024 summer driving season just a few months away, we are urging your administration to take additional action that will ensure consumers across the nation have uninterrupted access to lower-cost, lower-carbon E15," the letter said.

"Allowing gasoline blenders and retailers to sell E15 this summer would help moderate prices at the pump, extend fuel supplies, and deliver relief to American families at a time of year when gasoline prices typically are at their highest. Today, E15 is selling for 10 to 25 cents per gallon less than standard E10 gasoline, allowing the average American household to save $125 to $200 on its annual gasoline bill."

At the end of March, the Renewable Fuels Association, Growth Energy, National Corn Growers Association, American Farm Bureau Federation, National Farmers Union and National Sorghum Producers, asked Michael Regan, administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, to make an E15 waiver effective on May 1, ahead of the driving season, https://www.dtnpf.com/….

The EPA recently issued a final rule to allow permanent year-round E15 sales in eight Midwest states. That rule, however, takes effect starting in 2025, https://www.dtnpf.com/….

In the letter to Biden, the farmers and ethanol industry workers said a waiver is needed because of the ongoing war in Ukraine and "unrest in the Middle East continue to create turbulence in the global fuel market, we encourage you to continue embracing year-round E15 -- a domestic solution that enhances energy security, reduces emissions, and bolsters American agriculture."

Earlier this week, the chief economist of the Renewable Fuels Association, Scott Richman, said in a blog that E15 sales in 2023 hit a record 1.11 billion gallons.

Todd Neeley can be reached at todd.neeley@dtn.com

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