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Drivers may face ethanol decision at the pump
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For U.S. drivers, motoring has always been about freedom. Now some folks are saying pumps that offer drivers whatever blend of ethanol they like mixed into motor fuel will increase demand for the biofuel. ”The future for the entire country is going to be blender pumps. And that will give the consumer the option to put the blend of ethanol they’d like into their car,” Jeff Broin, the CEO of private ethanol company POET said at the Reuters Global Agriculture and Biofuel Summit this week.
Broin, whose company is the top U.S. ethanol producer, said the so-called blender pumps offer drivers the choice of motor fuel mixed with either 10, 20, 30 or 85 percent ethanol. Currently there are a few blender pumps in his home state, South Dakota, as well as Minnesota.
But the great majority of U.S. drivers only have the option of filling up with E10, while some fuel stations, mainly in the Midwest and Texas, offer E85.
Unfortunately for bargain hunters, ethanol’s lower energy content compared to gasoline makes E85 blends more expensive than regular gasoline. But other drivers may like to pay up because ethanol has higher levels of octane than gasoline.
More choices could boost U.S. demand for ethanol, an industry whose capacity has grown 45 percent this year, amid government mandates and incentives, he said.
Some blends may even be more economical. A study last month said E20 and E30 blends give drivers better fuel economy than either E10 or E85.
And the pumps have powerful friends. U.S. Presidential hopeful Democrat Barack Obama and several other Midwest lawmakers last year threw support behind more freedom of ethanol choice.
While others say regulations would prevent the pumps from spreading nationwide, Broin holds out hope, in part because the pumps could make him a tidy profit. “It allows the ethanol plant to haul the ethanol directly to the station… rather than take it to the terminal and pay the extra freight on it… It is a bonus for station owner as well as the producers,” he said.
Of course, to burn anything higher than E10, you need to drive a “flex fuel” car, which auto makers are producing more of these days.
Would you buy more ethanol blended fuel if there were more choices?
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Well all you greedy greenies are just a sick lot full of rubbish !using fake models that are not proven to rip off our taxes ! and how can the c02 be true? if it was it would certainly be a lot more than 0.03 per cent of the atmosphere wouldnt it? thats right nothing adds up you are just a lot of scammers with the ideals of breaking western economies with your radical views,next you will be trying to tell us you can control the weather or the climate by paying millions to poor countries ,what rubbish ! no one can control the weather or climate ever !
I prefer my ethanol on the rocks, with just a hint of lime juice.
So, E20 and higher blends require a modified vehicle engine? So this report claims car manufacturers are making cars that can use these blends. Last time I purchased my new vehicle in 2001 this was not available. With gas prices at over $3 a gallon, who can afford a new vehicle that can use the blends? Obama and the rest of Congress and states needs to see reality that people can’t afford to buy new cars every 4 years. If it were a matter of pulling up to the pump, then sure I’d rather have better octane ratings (and better fuel economy and/or power depending on my vehicle I’m driving; Ford Taurus or Dodge truck).
BTW, why are we paying more for ethonal? We already subsidize farmers not to grow corn, so why are we paying higher prices for 1) taxes to support the subsidization and 2) for fuel at the pump? Once again consumers are at the mercy of big business and lobbyists.
We need to be careful about the method for making the ethanol. No food sources for the fermentables or we only move the $$ from the tank to the table with rinsing food costs. There are better sources that use less energy through the process.
Corn for ethanol amounts to a boost for the farmers and some special interests that have the $$ to buy a lobbyist to steer the outcome. Money is the root of our problems…
Martinis are a good market for ethanol.
I just bought a hummer and I like to let a little gas overflow onto the cement ’cause it smells good on my ostrich leather boots (which I have to buy every three months). Ahem.. Could someone explain why exxon has record profits again this year?