U.S. biodiesel industry leaders urge Trump's EPA to lift biodiesel mandate
Source: Reuters
BUSINESS NEWS SEPTEMBER 4, 2019 / 7:49 PM / UPDATED AN HOUR AGO
U.S. biodiesel industry leaders urge Trump's EPA to lift biodiesel mandate
Stephanie Kelly
3 MIN READ
(Reuters) - U.S. biodiesel industry leaders told an Environmental Protection Agency regional administrator in Houston on Wednesday that they want the Trump administration to boost the volume of biodiesel that oil refiners must blend into their fuel each year, two sources familiar with the matter said.
The request came days after President Donald Trump promised to deliver a "giant package" here to U.S. farmers related to ethanol, in response to pressure from the corn lobby over the administration's expanded use of waivers freeing small refineries from their obligation to blend biofuels.
Under the Renewable Fuel Standard regulation, refineries are required to blend biofuels into their fuel but small facilities under financial strain can be exempted. Trump authorized the EPA to grant 31 waivers to small refineries in August, far more than the Obama administration had typically granted.
The biodiesel leaders told Region 6 Administrator Ken McQueen that the biodiesel industry has also been hurt by the waivers, not just the ethanol industry, and an increase in blending mandates would help compensate for that, the sources said.
During the meeting, the group added that it does not benefit from the lifting of a summertime ban on E15, a higher-ethanol blend of gasoline, the sources said. The Trump administration earlier this year lifted the ban, hoping to give a boost to Midwest farmers struggling under his trade wars.
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Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-biofuels-epa/u-s-biodiesel-industry-leaders-urge-trumps-epa-to-lift-biodiesel-mandate-idUSKCN1VP353