Ethanol Industry Frustrated by New EPA RVO Delay

The ethanol industry is frustrated by EPA’s latest delay in proposing new volume requirements for biofuels and fears more legal battles before volumes are finalized next year.

The two-week delay until November 30, while agreed on by the ethanol industry, is just the latest challenge for biofuel producers.

Renewable Fuels Association head Geoff Cooper; “And it’s really discouraging and really disappointing and frustrating, that they had a court-ordered deadline and a court-ordered date on the calendar for getting this proposal out, and giving EPA any further wiggle room to delay publication of the proposal, just doesn’t seem like it’s in the best interest of anybody to us.”

Especially since any proposal isn’t set to be finalized until next June 14. Cooper; “There again, we’re going to have situation like we’ve had in past years, where you’re halfway through a year before EPA is actually finalizing the requirements for that particular year. And that creates all kinds of problems for renewable fuel producers, for the obligated parties, it also sets these rules up to be litigated.”

Further complicating EPA directives to refiners for ’23, ’24 and possibly ’25 biofuel blending volumes.

Longtime ethanol advocate and U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa says; “Government, through these delays, or other ways that the government has interfered, is the biggest enemy that the biofuel industry has, and they ought to either do their business or get off the pot.”

And if EPA misses the November 30 deadline, the ethanol industry says it’s ready to go back into court to force action.