EPA issued an emergency waiver to allow E15 gasoline to be sold during the summer driving season, as we alerted you would happen in “First Thing Today.” EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan said, “Allowing E15 sales during the summer driving season will not only help increase fuel supply, but support American farmers, strengthen U.S. energy security, and provide relief to drivers across the country.”
EPA’s emergency fuel waiver will go into effect on May 1 when terminal operators would otherwise no longer be able to sell E15 in the affected regions of the country and will last through May 20, which is the statutory maximum of 20 days. EPA will continue to monitor the supply with industry and federal partners and “expects to issue new waivers effectively extending the emergency fuel waiver until such time as the extreme and unusual fuel supply circumstances due to the war in Ukraine are no longer present.”
Perspective: The waiver for summertime E15 sales will boost demand, though not as much as some believe. It also won’t ease pump prices much. Just over 2,500 stations offer E15 sales. As we’ve repeatedly stated, what’s needed is a permanent waiver for year-round sales to spur investment in E15 pumps.