The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has finalized a rule that aims to strengthen the country’s energy independence by advancing low-carbon fuels.
The final rule intends to reduce reliance on foreign sources of oil by roughly 130,000 to 140,000 barrels of oil per day over the time frame of the final rule, 2023 to 2025. The final rule also discusses EPA’s intent to monitor the ongoing implementation of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program and its impacts on domestic refineries, which have a critical role to play in our energy security.
“From day one, EPA has been committed to the growth of renewable fuels that play a critical role in diversifying our country’s energy mix and combatting climate change, all while providing good paying jobs and economic benefits to communities across the country,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “Today’s final rule reflects our efforts to ensure stability of the program for years to come, protect consumers from high fuel costs, strengthen the rural economy, support domestic production of cleaner fuels and help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”
Many U.S. farm and biofuel leaders, however, believe that the EPA’s final rule will not have the effect that it was intended to have.
“Today’s final RFS volumes came in below levels EPA proposed for conventional biofuels for 2024 and 2025, holding ethanol volumes steady at 15 billion gallons. A multiyear RFS volume rule offers stability and certainty for renewable fuels,” said Tom Haag, president of the National Corn Growers Association. “However, when it comes to addressing pressing energy, environmental and economic challenges, EPA’s final rule falls short of the emission reductions and cost-saving benefits the higher proposed ethanol volumes would have provided.”
Other biofuel leaders have expressed concern about higher-blend options, and the final rule’s neglect of those options.
“The RFS remains one of America’s most successful clean energy policies, but, yet again, its full potential as a climate solution remains untapped,” said Emily Skor, CEO of Growth Energy. “EPA’s decision to lower its ambitions for conventional biofuels runs counter to the direction set by Congress and will needlessly slow progress toward this administration’s climate goals. We should be expanding market opportunities for higher blends like E15, not leaving carbon reductions on the table.
The Set Rule establishes the biofuel volume requirements and associated percentage standards for cellulosic biofuel, biomass-based diesel (BBD), advanced biofuel and total renewable fuel for 2023–2025. It also completes EPA’s response to a court remand of the 2016 annual rule by establishing a supplemental volume requirement of 250 million gallons of renewable fuel for 2023.
The anticipated value of the energy security benefits to the U.S. economy ranges from $173-$192 million per year over the time frame of the final rule.
In addition to setting the volume requirements, EPA is finalizing several regulatory changes intended to expand the use of biogas under the program while, at the same time, putting in place provisions that will improve the operation of the RFS program.
EPA has noted that it will continue to assess the comments received on proposed regulations governing the generation of Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs), which are RFS compliance credits, for electricity made from renewable biomass that is used for transportation fuel (eRINs). The EPA will also continue to work on potential paths forward for the eRIN program, while further reviewing the comments received on the proposal and seeking additional input from stakeholders to inform potential next steps on the eRIN program.