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Some Ethanol Plants Cut Out the Middleman to Pass RIN Savings on to Consumers

JOHNSTON, IA – The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) today announced that while AAA is predicting the highest Memorial Day gas prices since 2011, Iowans can turn to ethanol blends like E85 to save some of their hard-earned money.

While E85 remains a good bargain throughout Iowa, some areas should be seeing even greater savings as a result of ethanol plants selling E85 directly to the retailer.  One example is Absolute Energy, a 115 million gallon per year ethanol plant near the Iowa-Minnesota border.  Absolute Energy is now offering E85, a fuel blend containing 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline, directly to retailers and is passing on the RIN value generated by blending ethanol.

According to OPIS, recent prices for E85 at Iowa terminals were about $2.77 per gallon, while Absolute Energy listed the price for their E85 at only $1.94 per gallon earlier this week.

“Frankly, I think the ethanol industry is growing tired of sending a gallon of ethanol to a middleman, just to watch them pocket the RIN value, instead of passing the savings on to the consumer,” stated Absolute Energy CEO Rick Schwarck. “Here at Absolute Energy, we’ve taken matters into our own hands. We’re cutting out the middleman and showing consumers the real savings that ethanol can provide. As a result, consumers should be seeing even greater savings from ethanol blends.”

A RIN, or renewable identification number, is a free credit earned by the blender of ethanol that can then be sold on the open market to oil refiners, which use the credits to demonstrate compliance with the federal Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).

Iowa is the leader in renewable fuels production.  Iowa has 41 ethanol refineries capable of producing over 3.7 billion gallons annually, with one wet mill and two cellulosic ethanol facilities currently under construction. In addition, Iowa has 12 biodiesel facilities with the capacity to produce nearly 315 million gallons annually.

The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association was formed in 2002 to represent the state’s liquid renewable fuels industry. The trade group fosters the development and growth of the renewable fuels industry in Iowa through education, promotion, legislation and infrastructure development.