Iowans Can Save More Than $1 a Gallon with E85
November 7, 2017
Contact: Cassidy Walter
515-252-6249
Yet some refiners pocket E85 savings instead of passing to retailers
JOHNSTON, IOWA – In recent weeks, Iowa drivers have had access to exceptionally low E85 prices, in several cases more than $1 cheaper than regular E10. These tremendous savings stem from the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).
Some Iowa ethanol plants have recently sold E85 to retailers for as little as 55 to 65 cents per gallon, by pricing the RFS “RIN value” into the wholesale cost. When retailers also pass the RIN value on, their customers reap the reward of low E85 prices, such as $1.28 per gallon at Fuel Time in St. Ansgar yesterday.
“This is how the RFS is supposed to work,” said Iowa Renewable Fuels Association Executive Director Monte Shaw. “When the value of the RIN is passed through, consumers benefit from lower prices and demand for renewables increases. Unfortunately, some oil refiners pocket the RIN value and then have the audacity to claim the RFS is broken. The truth is, in Iowa today it is actually less expensive to buy E85 from a retailer like Fuel Time than to buy wholesale E85 from some oil refiners at the terminal. Policy makers should not be fooled by Big Oil threats of high prices and broken legislation. The facts are as clear as the prices on Fuel Time’s sign.”
RINs are the credits companies receive under the RFS for blending ethanol. Those credits can be traded and sold as a commodity.
November 6, 2017
For more information on wholesale E85 prices, click here.
The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association represents the state’s liquid renewable fuels industry and works to foster its growth. Iowa is the nation’s leader in renewable fuels production with 43 ethanol refineries capable of producing 4 billion gallons annually – including nearly 55 million gallons of annual cellulosic ethanol production capacity – and 12 biodiesel facilities with the capacity to produce over 380 million gallons annually. For more information, visit the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association website at: www.IowaRFA.org.
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