The ethanol industry is voicing mixed reactions to the Environmental Protection Agency’s latest decision on small refinery exemptions, or SREs, from the Renewable Fuel Standard. The EPA granted 140 full or partial exemptions, denied 28, and deemed seven ineligible through last year.
The Renewable Fuels Association emphasized that the action should not negatively impact the market. “Together, these petitions represent roughly five-and-a-half to six billion gallons of renewable fuel blending requirements. Let me say again, that five-and-a-half, six billion gallons are at stake with these petitions,” RFA President Geoff Cooper told the National Ethanol Conference.
Even so, the RFA raised concerns about granting exemptions to small refineries that already met their obligations, while pointing to the importance of reallocating exempted volumes in future years. “We are strongly encouraging EPA, and we strongly believe that the agency should continue the careful and judicious approach that it has taken to SRE petitions over the past four years. But if any petitions are granted, the exempted volumes should be restored and redistributed to ensure the final RVOs are kept whole,” Cooper said, referring to Renewable Volume Obligations.
The controversy surrounding SREs has long fueled legal battles. Oil refiners have repeatedly challenged denials, and in June, the Supreme Court determined such cases belong before the D.C. Circuit Court rather than regional appellate courts, a move supported by the biofuels industry.