U.S. EPA grants refiners biofuel credits to remedy Obama-era waiver denials
Source: Reuters
ENVIRONMENT MAY 31, 2018 / 7:08 AM / UPDATED AN HOUR AGO
Exclusive: U.S. EPA grants refiners biofuel credits to remedy Obama-era waiver denials
Jarrett Renshaw, Chris Prentice
6 MIN READ
NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has awarded tens of millions of dollars worth of biofuel blending credits for this year to refiners HollyFrontier and Sinclair Oil after they argued the agency had wrongly denied them waivers from the country’s biofuels law as far back as 2014, according to two sources and public filings.
The release of the Renewable Identification Numbers, or RINs, marks the first reported instance of the EPA issuing tradable credits from previous years into the present market. It is likely to add fuel to an already fiery dispute between Big Oil and Big Corn over the future of America’s biofuel policy by opening the door to similar challenges from other refiners in the future.
The EPA confirmed on Thursday that it “has been revisiting some prior denials” of small refinery waivers. But those reviews currently do not extend beyond the HollyFrontier and Sinclair cases, an EPA source familiar with the process said.
The EPA’s move may put even more pressure on credit prices, which have plummeted to five-year lows amid the agency’s expansion of the small refinery waiver program. Credits fell to 20 cents each in early trading, down from 25 cents on Wednesday, on the Reuters report, traders said.
The U.S. Renewable Fuel Standard requires refiners to blend specific volumes of biofuels like corn-based ethanol into the fuel supply each year and prove compliance by acquiring RINs that can be either earned or purchased. The law has helped farmers by creating a 15-billion-gallon market for ethanol, but refining companies have complained it costs them a fortune.
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Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-biofuels-waivers-exclusive/exclusive-u-s-epa-grants-refiners-biofuel-credits-to-remedy-obama-era-waiver-denials-idUSKCN1IW1DW
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