The National Corn Growers Association thanked Sheetz Convenience Stores, a major East Coast fuel retailer, to today’s announcement of an E15 commitment by initially offering the green fuel to its customers at 60 stores in North Carolina by spring 2016. “This is great news for the nation’s corn farmers who have been promoting the benefits of ethanol blended fuel for more than 30 years,” said Chip Bowling, Maryland farmer and NCGA president. “Sheetz is a leader in the industry, so we expect this announcement to drive competitors to follow suit and also offer cleaner-burning, high-performance E15. This is a fantastic development for the rural economy and consumers who want a real choice in fuel.”
E15 offers consumers a five- to ten-cent price per gallon advantage compared to regular gas. Additionally, consumers are getting a higher-octane, better-performing fuel that burns cleaner and runs cooler in engines, which improves vehicle performance and can extend engine life. With E15, consumers are getting more for less when they fill up and retailers are reporting zero complaints with E15.
“We are known for being pioneering in our industry and are always looking for ways to give our customers the best product available on the market,” said Michael Lorenz, EVP Petroleum and Supply, “E15 is another way for us to give our customers a new alternative fuel option.”
E15 is a combination of 15 percent ethanol and 85 percent gasoline and is a higher octane fuel. This fuel was approved by the Environmental Protection Agency in January 2011. Ethanol burns cleaner and cooler in engines, which helps with the performance of the vehicle, while also considered better for the environment and priced competitively to conventional gas options.
E15 is now available in 15 states, and is the most tested fuel in history. The U.S. Department of Energy performed an exhaustive test of E15, driving 86 cars more than 6 million miles, and approving the fuel for use in all light duty cars and trucks model year 2001 and newer. E15 has also been given the green light by approximately 70 percent of automakers for use in their new MY 2015 vehicles and flex-fuel vehicles. Originally debuting on the market in 2012, E15 has been driven more than 100 million miles by consumers with no reported