Domestic Fuel

An update to a 2009 report from the Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD) on the impact of ethanol on domestic gasoline prices was released today, showing that ethanol reduced wholesale gasoline prices by $1.09 per gallon nationally last year. Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen says this peer-reviewed study shows how ethanol is keeping gas prices lower than they might otherwise be.

“The results are significant,” Dinneen said. “It reflects the fact that ethanol is less expensive than gasoline today and is displacing ten percent of liquid transportation fuel today and has a huge impact on the price of crude oil.” The $1.09 per gallon impact is 20 cents more than the previous year.

Dinneen explains that the $1.09 a gallon savings means that ethanol reduced the average American household’s spending on gasoline by more
than $1,200 last year, based on average gasoline consumption data. “Since 2000, ethanol has helped save $39.8 billion annually in excess gasoline costs – or roughly $349 per household per year,” he said.

Since the study is based on just 10% ethanol in the nation’s gasoline supply, Dinneen notes that increasing that under the E15 waiver approved by EPA can only result in more savings. “If you’re going to be adding 50% more of a product that is less expensive than gasoline to the overall blend, you’d be providing consumers an even more significant benefit,” he said. “We believe the economics of ethanol are going to drive E15 into the marketplace this summer.”

Listen to Dinneen talk about the new report in this edition of “The Ethanol Report.” Bob Dinneen Discusses Impact of Ethanol on Gas Prices Report

The first guess of corn production for the new year in USDA’s May 10 World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report is even higher than many in the industry expected.

“By all accounts, it could be a monster,” says Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) Vice President of Research and Analysis Geoff Cooper who did an analysis of the numbers that came out this morning.

Besides a record projected corn crop for 2012 of 14.8 billion bushels, Cooper says there are a number of interesting points to be made about the report, like the fact that use for ethanol is expected to remain steady, while usage for exports and animal feed are increased. “This report shows the increases in demand would not be coming from ethanol,” Cooper says. “So all this rhetoric we hear about ethanol diverting corn away from the feed market, what we’re seeing in this report is that isn’t the case.”

In addition, Cooper says adding in the use of the ethanol co-product distillers grains for livestock feed, “you end up with the equivalent of almost seven billion bushels of corn and co-products going into feed use and that’s an all time record.”

Listen to Cooper’s analysis of the numbers in this edition of “The Ethanol Report.” Geoff Cooper Analyzes USDA WASDE Report

A new poll showing strong support for renewable fuels validates some of the most important ethanol industry legislative priorities – including maintaining the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), commercializing E15, providing incentives for the development of cellulosic ethanol, limiting tax incentives for the oil industry, and requiring automobile manufacturers to build cars that will run on fuel sources other than oil.

Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) President and CEO Bob Dinneen talks about the poll results and what they mean in this edition of “The Ethanol Report.”

Listen to or download the Ethanol Report here: Ethanol Report on Poll Results

Subscribe to the Ethanol Report here.

After more than a year of waiting since EPA approved its use for 2001 and newer vehicles, 15% ethanol blended motor fuel could be hitting the streets by this summer.

In January 2011, EPA approved a waiver for the use of E15 in 2001 and newer vehicles. Since then, a pump label has been finalized, health effects testing approved and finally, last week, the approval of the Misfueling Mitigation Plan developed by the Renewable Fuels Association.

This edition of “The Ethanol Report” includes comments from RFA president and CEO Bob Dinneen, Vice President of Technical Services Kristy Moore, and Director of Market Development Robert White about the MMP, as well as RFA’s E15 Retailer Handbook, and the E15 Education and Outreach plan for consumers. More information on RFA’s education and outreach plan can be found at e15fuel.org.

Listen to or download the Ethanol Report here: Ethanol Report on E15 Plan

Subscribe to the Ethanol Report here.

It was the main topic of the president’s press conference today and Congress will be holding hearings on it this week. From the president to the people at the pump, everyone is talking about higher gasoline prices these days, but ethanol is actually helping to keep them lower than they could be.

In a new RFA Issue Brief, the Renewable Fuels Association has analyzed the data to provide background information on the downward pressure exerted by domestic ethanol production on gasoline prices.

This “Ethanol Report” features an interview with Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) Vice President for Research and Analysis Geoff Cooper on just how ethanol does it. From ethanol’s lower cost at the wholesale level to how it reduces oil demand and prices and provides a cost-effective source of octane, Cooper says “there’s no argument that ethanol is playing a significant role in holding gasoline prices lower than they would be otherwise.”

Listen to or download the Ethanol Report here: Ethanol Report on Ethanol's Role in Gas Prices

Subscribe to the Ethanol Report here.