The Wisdom of Thumper

by Ron Lamberty (Ethanol Producer Magazine/American Coalition for Ethanol) ACE's Ron Lamberty reviews a letter the Petroleum Marketers of America recently sent to the Federal Trade Commission.

It’s reasonable to want to tear the letter apart and point out the pieces of standard Big Oil misinformation, like the “use of E15 in model year 2001 and newer vehicles may void warranties” canard, which conveniently ignores the fact that most cars older than the 2015 model year don’t have warranties. The typical new car warranty is three years, with a few companies covering vehicles for four or five years. It also ignores real world realities that no warranty has ever been voided by E15, and more than two-thirds of the cars on the road today that are under warranty have warranties that include E15.

The PMAA letter made some excellent points. PMAA correctly states “E15 is currently cheaper than E10 gasoline by as much as 10 cents per gallon,” and that retailers can “use E15 pricing as a marketing tool ... to draw customers into their station and steer them to the fuel that produces the greatest profit margin.” Those are excellent points we’ve been sharing with petroleum marketers for several years now: E15 saves consumers money, while increasing E15 retailers’ margins and customer counts. Now we can quote PMAA as a group that agrees with us!

And there’s my favorite part: PMAA acknowledges that “competitors who do not sell E15” are “at a significant competitive disadvantage” to those offering the higher ethanol blend.

Yet for some reason, rather than telling their members about this opportunity and informing them how to implement higher ethanol blends safely and effectively, PMAA has provided marketers a steady stream of ghost stories to scare them away from selling E15. In the meantime, station owners and operators who actually sell E15 aren’t having the problems PMAA predicted. The only real problem is current E15 retailers taking millions of gallons and customers away from marketers paralyzed with fear by PMAA’s ghosts. READ MORE

Excerpt from Ellsworth American: For starters, President Trump’s recent comments supported year-round consumer access — not mandated usage — of 15 percent ethanol and higher ethanol blends. This would simply enable E15 to be sold year-round throughout the country, giving consumers more choice at the pump. There is no mandate to use higher ethanol blends and in fact, E0 (gasoline with no ethanol) availability is on the rise, according to the American Petroleum Institute.

For more than 30 years, ethanol blends up to 10 percent (E10) have been used in all types of marine engines, providing a lower-cost fuel that helps keep our air and water cleaner. Additionally, with ethanol’s higher octane rating, it can give boaters an extra power boost, and at a lower price point. Boat manufacturers from Honda to Mercury Marine specifically approve the use of E10 in their watercraft right in the owner’s manual.

The American also neglects to mention that while E10 is approved for use in all marine engines, E15 is not. The Environmental Protection Agency has approved the use of E15 in all 2001 and later model year vehicles, but only for on-road vehicles. But because the EPA requires E15 and higher ethanol blends to be clearly labeled at the pump, boaters need not be concerned. Over six years of E15 sales, there has not been a single reported case of E15 misfueling in any engine, but especially a marine engine.

To help combat ethanol misinformation, the Renewable Fuels Association, which represents U.S. ethanol producers, is a co-title sponsor of the Crappie Masters National Tournament Trail this year. What makes this tournament trail unique is that every winning team’s boat for the past three-plus years has been powered by homegrown, 10 percent ethanol and no issues have been reported.

The American’s report is a disservice to boat owners and the public, who aren’t hearing the full story on ethanol. Consumers have more choices than ever at the pump. That should be applauded, not criticized.