MINNEAPOLIS – From large to small, convenience retailers are against any changes to the Renewable Fuel Standard’s (RFS) point of obligation. In an op-ed in Convenience Store News, Lance Klatt, the executive director of Minnoco (Minnesota Independent Oil Co.), discusses why moving the point of obligation will hurt the convenience store and gasoline station industry.

“As operators of locally owned fueling stations, we wish to clarify that this change would harm fuel marketers, retailers and our customers. … Today, retailers can blend their own ethanol or buy ethanol blends at a deep discount from distributors and pass the savings on to consumers. This business model makes single stores more competitive, while reducing costs for our customers. Not only is ethanol more affordable, but it also boosts the octane content of fuel, giving our consumers more appealing options for their vehicles,” Klatt wrote.

“On the other hand, requiring fuel marketers to meet the RFS compliance would open hundreds of fuel retailers to potential new Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) compliance requirements. The change would threaten investments made under the current RFS and force the EPA to fundamentally restructure the fuels market, creating turmoil for retailers, producers, distributors, and consumers. Further, as the end-user of the fuel, fuel retailers are not able to determine the composition of the fuel provided by refiners. As a result, changing the RFS would not only deprive retailers of valuable sales opportunities, but it could also impose dramatically higher costs on consumers or even result in the withdrawal of options from the marketplace.”

Klatt pointed out that more than 35 groups, including NACS, have opposed any changes to the RFS. “To be fully successful, retailers need certainty that the regulations governing biofuels won't be rewritten by those betting against progress. … No one benefits when a few massive entities can monopolize our fueling options. Biofuels provide a clean, homegrown alternative that protects consumers—and by extension, fuel retailers—from spikes in oil prices. We shouldn't let a few special interests stand in the way,” he wrote.

Klatt concluded that “rewriting the RFS now to benefit the refining sector would create a logistical nightmare for fuel retailers, raise costs, and threaten the future deployment of clean, American energy.”