Midwest US Ethanol Push Seen Lifting Gasoline Costs by up to 12 Cents a Gallon
A bid to bolster sales of corn-based ethanol risks a spike in gasoline, a new study shows, highlighting the political stakes for the White House.
Motorists in the Midwest US could expect to pay more for gasoline under a fuel policy shift demanded by governors in the region, with a new refining industry-commissioned analysis outlining larger-than-expected impacts of the change.
The study, conducted by Baker & O’Brien Inc. for the main US refining trade group, predicts it would cost as much as 12 cents more per gallon to distribute, store and produce a new fuel to adapt with the move, which is part of a bid to encourage filling stations to sell higher ethanol E15 gasoline and offer it year round. That’s in stark contrast to a previous estimate commissioned by advocates of corn-based ethanol that saw only a 2-cents per gallon increase for consumers.