FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 15, 2013

EPA Proposes 2014 Renewable Fuel Standards

Proposal Seeks Input to Address “E10 Blend Wall,” Reaffirms Commitment to Biofuels

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today proposed for public comment the levels of renewable fuels to be blended into gasoline and diesel as required by Congress under the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. Developed with input from the U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. Department of Agriculture, the proposal seeks public input on annual volume requirements for renewable fuels in all motor vehicle gasoline and diesel produced or imported by the United States in 2014. The proposal seeks to put the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program on a steady path forward – ensuring the continued long-term growth of the renewable fuel industry – while seeking input on different approaches to address the “E10 blend wall.”

“Biofuels are a key part of the Obama Administration’s “all of the above” energy strategy, helping to reduce our dependence on foreign oil, cut carbon pollution and create jobs,” said EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy. “We have made great progress in recent years, and EPA continues to support the RFS goal of increasing biofuel production and use. We look forward to working with all stakeholders to develop a final rule that maintains the strength and promise of the RFS program.”

The proposal discusses a variety of approaches for setting the 2014 standards, and includes a number of production and consumption ranges for key categories of biofuel covered by the RFS program. The proposal seeks comment on a range of total renewable fuel volumes for 2014 and proposes a level within that range of 15.21 billion gallons. Specifically, EPA is seeking comment on the following proposed volumes:

 

Nearly all gasoline sold in the U.S. is now “E10,” which is fuel with up to 10 percent ethanol. Production of renewable fuels has been growing rapidly in recent years. At the same time, advances in vehicle fuel economy and other economic factors have pushed gasoline consumption far lower than what was expected when Congress passed the Renewable Fuel Standard in 2007. As a result, we are now at the “E10 blend wall,” the point at which the E10 fuel pool is saturated with ethanol. If gasoline demand continues to decline, as currently forecast, continuing growth in the use of ethanol will require greater use of higher ethanol blends such as E15 and E85.

The Obama Administration has taken a number of steps to allow or encourage the use of these higher ethanol blends. In 2010, EPA approved E15 for use in vehicles newer than model year 2001 and developed labeling rules to enable retailers to market E15. In addition, since 2011, USDA has made funding available through the Rural Energy for America Program to support deployment of “flex-fuel” pumps that can dispense a range of ethanol blends. The 2014 proposal seeks input on what additional actions could be taken by government and industry to help overcome current market challenges, and to minimize the need for adjustments in the statutory renewable fuel volume requirements in the future. Looking forward, the proposal clearly indicates that growth in capacity for ethanol consumption would continuously be reflected in the standards set beyond 2014. EPA looks forward to further engagement and additional information from stakeholders as the agency works in consultation with the Departments of Agriculture and Energy toward the development of a final rule.

The renewable fuels program was developed by Congress in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and expand the nation’s renewable fuels sector while reducing reliance on foreign oil. The standards determine how much renewable fuel a refiner or importer is responsible for, and are the standards designed to achieve the national volumes for each type of renewable fuel.

Today, in a separate action, EPA is also seeking comment on petitions for a waiver of the renewable fuel standards that would apply in 2014. EPA expects that a determination on the substance of the petitions will be issued at the same time that EPA issues a final rule establishing the 2014 RFS.

Once the proposal is published in the Federal Register, it will be open to a 60-day public comment period.

More information on the standards and regulations: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/fuels/renewablefuels/regulations.htm

More information on renewable fuels: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/fuels/renewablefuels/index.htm

 

From the Petroleum Equipment Institute:

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on November 15 proposed for public comment the 2014 levels of renewable fuels to be blended into gasoline and diesel as required by Congress under the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007.

The proposal would lower the 2014 renewable biofuel mandate from 18.15 billion gallons to a range of 15 billion to 15.52 billion gallons. EPA’s recommended target of 15.21 billion gallons is within the proposed range. That includes 13.01 billion gallons of corn ethanol and 2.20 billion gallons of biodiesel and advanced biofuels.  The corn ethanol target of 13 billion gallons represents almost exactly 10 percent of the gasoline consumption forecast by the U.S. Energy Information Administration for next year. EPA also proposed changes for cellulosic biofuels, with a range between 8 million and 30 million gallons and a recommended target of 17 million gallons.

The proposed 2014 biofuels blending mandate of 15.21 billion gallons is down from the 16.55 billion gallon target finalized for 2013, and 14 percent lower than the original 2014 goal envisioned by Congress. The Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) requires annually increasing amounts of biofuels to be added into U.S. transportation fuel supplies, to a total of 36 billion gallons in 2022.

This marks the first time in the history of the RFS that EPA has proposed to scale back the government’s overall biofuel blending target for the forthcoming year. If the proposed targets become law, the biofuels markets will stagnate with no growth expected in the foreseeable future. The bottom line for petroleum marketers is that E10—the blend sold in almost all gasoline stations in the U.S. today—will not be tampered with, but that 15-percent (E15) and 85-percent (E85) ethanol blends primarily will be sold as niche or regional products.

The proposal is subject to a 60-day comment period, and could later be changed.