Will Real Gas Become Extinct?

Government mandates on renewable fuels could make pure gasoline a thing of the past.

July 11, 2012

TULSA, Okla. - Government edicts relating to renewable fuel has some retailers concerned that pure gasoline will soon be unavailable, the Tulsa World reports. More drivers are seeking out gasoline without ethanol because of concerns about the biofuel.

Government mandates on renewal fuels will push more E15. "These mandates are going to get larger and larger every year," said Bill Maxwell, executive director of the Oklahoma Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association. "I think you'll see no conventional gasoline [pure gasoline] at any terminals (in Oklahoma) within two years."

With the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) giving final approval of E15 for vehicles manufactured since 2001, some retailers see that as the beginning of a federal push to make no-ethanol gasoline extinct.

NACS warned in "The Future of Fuels" that national blend rates must accelerate to stay current with the Renewable Fuels Standard requirement that 36 billion gallons of biofuel €" which is mostly ethanol blends €" be made each year by 2022. Current blend rates of E10 won€™t be enough.

"In the very near future, retailers will have to sell and consumers will have to purchase fuels that contain substantially more than 10% ethanol," said the NACS report. "Given current compatibility standards and vehicle specifications, such a development will require new equipment at retail and new vehicles on the road."

QuikTrip stores have offered E10 for a long time, but the chain has said it won€™t sell E15 or higher blends. "The liability issue is huge," said QuikTrip spokesman Michael Thornbrugh. "If you have signage and somebody still misfuels, somebody is going to get sued."

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