Pushing The 100% Renewable Option

by Katie Schroeder (Ethanol Producer Magazine) In 2022, Ethanol Producer Magazine spoke with Pearson Fuels about its completely renewable liquid fuel, made up of ethanol and renewable naphtha. Over a year later, EPM speaks with Jeff Wilkerson about Pearson Fuels’ ongoing efforts to expand E85 use in California, and the challenges of scaling its all-renewable offering.

Pearson Fuels started as a fueling location based in San Diego, California, one of the first high-volume alternative fuels providers in the city. The company now supplies E85 to 329 retail sites across the state of California and adds around 50 sites every year. “These are partnerships where we help the retail station install the infrastructure capable of dispensing E85, and then they take the fuel, they price the fuel, and they sell it to the customer,” Wilkerson says. Pearson’s two products are E85 blended with gasoline and a completely renewable fuel made up of E85 and renewable naphtha, which makes up one-third of the volume sold. Renewable naphtha is a byproduct of renewable diesel production and does not have many uses in the market. Renewable naphtha has relatively low octane, but that’s offset by the ethanol in E85 (83 percent of the finished blend in California), which has very high octane, Wilkerson explains. Where renewable naphtha shines, however, is in its low carbon intensity (CI), which helps bring down the overall CI of the finished gallon.

The significant price difference between E85 and standard gasoline has boosted public awareness of the fuel in California. When consumers see retail gas station signs regularly listing E85 for as much as $1.50 less than gasoline, they notice, Wilkerson explains. “The state is going to intensify its LCFS targets, and that is probably going to make ethanol even more price advantageous than gasoline,” Wilkerson says. “You know, price is a great educator; the more people that see that price sign, the more [they become] aware of what E85 is.” Pearson has a mobile app that shows consumers where the company’s fuel is available, and at what price. If push notifications are enabled, the company can also inform customers of grand openings, E85 specials or flash sales in their area.

And there’s a chance that vehicles made to run on all-renewable E85 will be an exception to California’s virtual ban on ICE vehicles. As the state moves toward “zero-emission vehicles,” liquid fuel without any gasoline may be a great alternative to an electric vehicle. Using cellulosic ethanol and renewable naphtha derived from waste oil or tallow, Pearson is able to make fuel that has an 80 percent CI reduction compared to gasoline.

Pearson hopes to encourage expansion of E85 through the use of flex-fuel conversion kits. The company is in talks with the California Air Resources Board to get a kit approved that would allow standard vehicles, which are currently only capable of running on E10 or E15, to run on E85. Use of these kits would also ease the economic pressure of rising gas prices, Wilkerson explains. “But it’s going to be a process of doing the testing and ensuring that CARB is comfortable giving the green light to something like this.”

The state plans to reduce oil consumption by 94 percent by 2045, which would require the replacement of over 2 billion gallons of gasoline, Wilkerson explains. E85 could be a viable long-term solution in place of fossil-based gasoline. READ MORE

Excerpt from Renewable Fuels Association: Sales of E85 flex fuel in California in 2022 surged 66 percent over 2021 and more than doubled the pre-pandemic record set in 2019, new data released by the California Air Resources Board indicate. Last year, California drivers purchased over 103.5 million gallons (mg) of E85 flex fuel, a blend containing up to 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline, for use in flex-fuel vehicles (FFVs). That’s up from about 62.5 mg in 2021.

California is one of just a handful of states that reports annual E85 sales volumes. Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Geoff Cooper said the Golden State continues to lead the way when it comes to offering lower-carbon, lower-cost liquid fuels to consumers.

“Gas prices remain at elevated levels in California, and drivers are seeking out options at the pump that are both more affordable and better for the environment,” Cooper said. “E85 checks both of those boxes. E85 substantially reduces greenhouse gas emissions compared to gasoline, and the fuel typically sells for 25 to 40 percent less in California. This new data show that when E85 is made available and effectively promoted, FFV drivers will absolutely respond.”

Cooper noted that the surge in E85 sales in California is due to a combination of factors. “These results show what is possible when policies like the California Low Carbon Fuel Standard and federal Renewable Fuel Standard are combined with smart promotional and marketing campaigns,” he said. “The California E85 experience should serve as a model for other states to emulate.”

RFA Member Pearson Fuels is California’s largest provider of E85 and has witnessed how the momentum is growing for E85. “Part of the massive growth last year came from severe gasoline price spikes, which saw E85 priced nearly $3 per gallon cheaper than regular unleaded gasoline,” said Doug Vind, managing member of Pearson Fuels. “In 2022 alone, we estimate FFV owners using E85 saved upwards of $200 million at the pump. As we continue to add stations, our 2023 volumes are tracking ahead of last year - so we expect solid growth again.”

Data from the California Energy Commission, to be updated next month for 2022, show that at the end of 2021 there were more than 1.2 million flex-fuel vehicles on California’s roadways.