WASHINGTON, DC — On Tuesday, Jan. 15, the American Petroleum Institute (API) announced a new advertising campaign with the central element being a full repeal of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). Following the announcement of the API campaign to attack the RFS, Tom Buis CEO of Growth Energy released the following statement:
“The lengths to which Big Oil will go to protect their absolute lock on fuels market are astounding. While they often pay lip service to the importance of renewable fuel for our country’s energy needs, at every turn they work to undermine them. Biofuels have helped reduce our dependence on foreign oil and created a robust domestic renewable fuels industry.
“Just the other day, API discussed how the RFS was broken, citing the blend wall as the primary challenge in a workable RFS. However, when it comes to the blend wall, Big Oil need only look in the mirror to see who is maintaining the status quo by protecting it. This is their entire play – if blend wall can’t be broken, the RFS won’t work. But Big Oil is maintaining the blend wall by erecting every possible barrier to bring increased blends of renewable fuel to the marketplace. While they opine for a free market, they are singlehandedly denying consumers a choice and savings at the pump by preventing a lower cost, high performance alternatives, such as E15.
“Their continued fight against market access has failed in the courts and now that they are running out of legal and regulatory hurdles, they are calling on Congress to maintain their monopoly in the marketplace.
“The American people will not tolerate the continued misinformation and smear tactics on biofuels and same old selfish policies of an industry that has been receiving government subsidies for nearly a century while making record profits.
“While Big Oil is entitled to their opinion, they are not entitled to distort the facts. The renewable fuel industry will prevail on the facts. Biofuels are creating jobs here at home that cannot be outsourced, revitalizing rural economies across the country and improving our environment, all while reducing our dependence on foreign oil.
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About Growth Energy
Growth Energy represents the producers and supporters of ethanol who feed the world and fuel America in ways that achieve energy independence, improve economic well-being and create a healthier environment for all Americans now. For more information, please visit us at www.GrowthEnergy.org, follow us on Twitter @GrowthEnergy or connect with us on Facebook.