Small Refinery Exemption (SRE)

AFPM Senior Director of Fuels and Vehicle Policy, Patrick Kelly, testified during the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) public hearing on the proposed Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) “Set” Rule. EPA’s proposal will stifle advanced biofuels, promote first generation biofuels beyond the market’s ability to absorb them and shift overall RFS growth away from liquid biofuels and into the power electricity sector. This is completely contrary to how congress envisioned EPA’s handling of the program.

AFPM's Geoff Moody issued the following statement responding to the EPA's 2023-2025 proposal for RFS blending obligations: “Congress provided EPA the ability to modernize the RFS and set it on a more sustainable course for all stakeholders. Sadly, EPA’s proposal is a missed opportunity..."

EPA's 2022 RFS standard is bewildering and contrary to the Administration’s claims to be doing everything in their power to provide relief to consumers. Unachievable mandates will needlessly raise fuel production costs and further threaten the viability of U.S. small refineries, both at the expense of consumers.

EPA’s blanket denial of relief for small refineries is a political decision that contradicts Congress’s design for the RFS. We are deeply disappointed in this and in the precedent it sets for small refineries experiencing hardship and the communities and regions that rely on these facilities for energy security.

A new campaign from the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM) spotlights the surging costs and unprecedented impact of biofuel mandates on U.S. refineries and the need for immediate action to get RFS costs under control.

AFPM is very pleased with this ruling and hopes that EPA now moves expeditiously to provide critical relief to those small refineries that have demonstrated disproportionate economic harm.

The Renewable Fuel Standard is more expensive in 2021 than at any other point in the program’s 15-year history. Soaring RFS prices signal that the RIN bank could run dry.

The cost of Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) compliance credits, specifically D6 renewable identification numbers (RINs), is out of control. Sales of D6 RINs for conventional ethanol recently registered above $1.90 (the highest trades in history).

Statement from Chet Thompson: A plain reading of the RFS makes clear that Congress intended for the small refinery hardship program to be a lasting safety net. There is no “use it or lose it” provision.