The federal EPA has announced a “rule-making” process to allow year round sales of E-15 – gasoline with a 15 percent ethanol blend – and to remove any barriers to the sale of that fuel.
In North Dakota, the Corn Utilization Council and the Ethanol Council have launched “Unleaded88” – an effort to promote the sale of E-15. The “88” stands for the octane rating for the fuel.
"We as an industry, both corn growers and ethanol, have been putting a lot of effort into trying to increase the demand for ethanol," said North Dakota Corn Growers Vice President Paul Thomas of Velva. "We're working towards the consumer demanding that product."
The industry says vehicles manufactured since 2001 can use E-15 safely.
"Consumers are typically seeing a lower price at the pump," Thomas said. "In exchange, they're not seeing any decrease in the amount of miles per gallon."
Thomas said he's optimistic this will help increase demand.
"It's definitely a win," Thomas said.
North Dakota’s Ethanol industry recently launched “Unleaded88” – an effort to promote the sale of E-15 fuel. The “88” stands for the octane rating.