NATSO, representing truck stops and travel plazas, SIGMA: America's Leading Fuel Marketers, and the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS) on March 7 urged the U.S. EPA to authorize the summer sale of gasoline blended with up to 15 percent ethanol, or E15, to ensure lower fuel costs for consumers and fewer emissions from gasoline.

NATSO, SIGMA and NACS, which collectively represent 90 percent of the motor fuel sales in the United States,  said in a letter to EPA  that the geopolitical factors that necessitated action from EPA during the 2022 and 2023 summer driving seasons continue to persist. Circumstances emanating from the war in Ukraine coupled with recent unrest in the Middle East risk generating shipping disruptions, which will lead to a volatile fuel supply market.

"These circumstances create ongoing supply chain challenges, including a volatile fuel supply market," the fuel retail industry said. "None of these circumstances appear likely to dissipate in the coming months. This will result in continued, increasing pressure on transportation fuel markets that will make it challenging to ensure consistent, reasonably priced gasoline supply across the nation."

Access to summertime E15 sales will help to insulate the United States from these geopolitical threats by allowing additional, domestically produced biofuels to be blended into the fuel supply.