The US will allow refiners and retailers to supply a gasoline blend with more ethanol than is usually allowed in some states, starting in May, and will waive other fuel rules, amid efforts to temper pump prices that have surged because of war in the Middle East.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Wednesday issued emergency waivers allowing continued nationwide sales of gasoline with up to 15pc ethanol (E15), administrator Lee Zeldin announced Wednesday in brief remarks at the CERAWeek by S&P Global conference in Houston, Texas.
The typically cheaper blend would have otherwise been restricted in much of the US during the summer because of rules to limit smog that do not apply to typical E10 gasoline despite a similar volatility profile.
The waivers also standardize blending rules across the US, reducing the risk of price spikes in areas where boutique rules can create fuel islands. The agency said this would help create more of a "single national gasoline pool" this summer.
For instance, EPA is allowing continued sales of E10 this summer in a group of Midwestern states that would have otherwise required that blend to be mixed with less volatile but costlier blendstocks. Governors of those seven states had asked for that carveout after war in the Middle East broke out.
Full story US issues waiver to allow E15 gasoline: Update | Latest Market News
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