Yes, Sen. Ted Cruz and his henchpeople are doing all they can to tear down the RFS as I write this piece. And we, along with other biofuel proponents, are doing all we can to bolster lawmakers' support for the RFS. Toward that end, the facts, the evidence are unequivocal: the RFS continues to deliver substantive consumer, economic, energy security and environmental benefits.
These assertions are based on facts. To recap the facts: ethanol (1) provides consumers with a better value at the pump (higher octane at 5 to 15 cents less than regular unleaded), (2) has the potential to reduce annual GHG emissions by 1.07 million metric tons if all regular gasoline sales in Minnesota contained 15 percent ethanol, (3) comprises 12.4 percent of the transportation fuel in Minnesota with room to grow and (4) supports over 18,800 jobs in Minnesota. Read more here.
Minnesota's ethanol industry remained robust in 2017, contributing $2.17 billion to the state's gross domestic product (GDP). In a new study by ABF Economics, the ethanol industry in Minnesota produced 1.2 billion gallons of ethanol, 3.7 million tons of dried distiller's grains with solubles (DDGS) and 247 million pounds of corn oil in 2017. This in turn, it said, generated $7.13 billion in gross sales for Minnesota businesses and supported 18,813 jobs. Read morehere.
2017 was a landmark year for E15 in Minnesota. It was a year when the number of stations offering E15 hit 250, the highest in the nation. It was also, according to data from the Minnesota Department of Commerce, the year E15 sales hit 19.05 million gallons, a new all-time high and nearly four times the 5.68 million gallons sold in 2016. Read morehere.
