The U-S Environmental Protection Agency is reportedly set to double the exemptions allowing oil refineries to opt out of the amount of renewable fuels required to be blended into gas. The Executive Director of the Iowa Biodiesel Board, says the move could cost U-S soybean farmers about one billion dollars in lost revenue. Grant Kimberly says the industry has just started recovering after two down years that saw some Iowa biodiesel plants slow or stop production.
The news comes after the Trump administration sharply increased the mandated amount of renewable fuels to be blended into the nation’s gas supply in 2026 and 2027. Kimberly says the Small Refinery Exemptions or S-R-Es would have a big impact.
Several Ag groups and members of Iowa’s Congressional delegation are speaking out against doubling the exemptions. The oil and gas industry has opposed renewable fuel blending requirements and lobbied for the exemptions.
