A trade group that represents the oil industry is calling on Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds and seven other governors to drop their push to get gas with 15% ethanol available in the Midwest all year long.
Patrick Kelly is with the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers, which used to be known as the National Petroleum Association. He says fewer than five percent of U.S. gas stations are able to sell E15 today.
“Retail stations must ensure that all of their underground infrastructure including tanks, seals, pumps, vapor and liquid lines are all compatible with E15,” he says.
Making those adjustments will be expensive for gas stations, according to Kelly. Susan Grissom, the group’s vice president, says some oil refineries would face costs, too, if E15 is to be sold in the Midwest all year.
“They would need to make capital investments at a cost of $50-75 million per facility,” she says. “Such projects typically take two years to complete and that’s if permitting goes smoothly.”
Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds and a bipartisan group of governors have asked the EPA to grant a waiver, so E15 can be sold through the summer months in eight Midwestern states.
Reynolds and the other governors said E15 is a lower cost alternative for consumers and keeping gasoline with a higher blend of ethanol on available year round would address some potential fuel shortages caused by the war in Ukraine.
(By Katie Piekes, Iowa Public Radio)