CarSeekBlog

Bloomberg is reporting today that President Obama’s administration has granted ethanol producers’ request to allow higher concentrations of the fuel additive in cars and trucks built in or after 2007. Specifically, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said it would permit as much as 15 percent ethanol to be blended into fuel, a 50% increase over the current 10 percent maximum.

Archer Daniels Midland, among other ethanol producers, has been pushing the EPA to increase this limit, while opponents (which include a coalition of advocacy groups, automakers, and oil companies) maintain that additional ethanol could damage car engines, increase food prices, and harm the environment.

EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson disagrees with the latter assessment. As she told Bloomberg, “Thorough testing has now shown that E15 does not harm emissions control equipment in newer cars and light trucks. Wherever sound science and the law support steps to allow more home-grown fuels in America’s vehicles, this administration takes those steps.”

While the new ethanol limits will be in effect for late-model vehicles, the decision on whether E15 may be used in vehicles from model years 2001 through 2006 has been tabled until November, when the EPA expects to receive additional testing data from the Department of Energy. In addition, since no testing data exists to support any waivers, E15 will not be approved for cars from model years prior to 2000, or in any motorcycles, heavy-duty vehicles, or non-road engines, though all vehicles have been able to use E10 ethanol since 1979.

According to the EPA, there will be several steps taken to assist consumers in easy identification of the correct fuel for their vehicles and/or equipment. So far, an E15 pump labeling requirement has been proposed, which includes a requirement that the fuel industry must specify the ethanol content of all gasoline sold to retailers, as well as a quarterly survey of all stations selling E15, to make sure they are meeting gas pump labeling requirements .

The E15 decision was originally delayed last December, and then again in June, because the EPA said it needed more time to conduct tests. The second delay is what prompted the ethanol-industry trade group Growth Energy to write to President Obama about its frustration with the process.

It is generally assumed that the increase in “blend ratio” will also increase demand for ethanol. The United States is already beholden to a law which requires the use of 12 billion gallons of renewable fuels next year, and 15 billion by 2015, a significantly more than last years 10.5 billion.

Closely held Poet LLC, based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, is the largest U.S. ethanol producer, followed by Decatur, Illinois-based Archer Daniels.

Filed under: Economy, Going Green by Mel