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Sep. 1, 2026 Source: Renewable Fuels Association news release The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today granted dozens of new small refinery exemptions from 2025 Renewable Fuel Standard blending requirements and laid out a proposed plan to restore the lost renewable fuel volume in the near future. Of the 34 pending exemption petitions, EPA granted full exemptions to 18 and partial (50 percent) exemptions to 11. It also denied three petitions and determined two petitions to be ineligible. This represents a total of 1.76 billion exempted RINs, or renewable fuel blending credits. EPA simultaneously announced it will propose to reallocate 100 percent of the newly exempted renewable fuel volume into the 2026 and 2027 renewable volume obligations before the end of October 2026. "While we continue to believe most of the SREs issued today are completely unjustified, we are somewhat encouraged that EPA is taking steps to minimize the damage through reallocation," said RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper. "The proposed plan laid out by EPA today creates a pathway for ensuring no net loss in renewable fuel demand, and it is crucially important that the agency moves quickly to faithfully implement this approach. "At a time when oil refiners are reporting record-high profit margins, gasoline supplies are tightening, and consumers are paying record-high prices at the pump, the administration should focus on efforts to increase--not decrease--the domestic production and use of more affordable biofuels like ethanol." Cooper noted that ethanol with a RIN credit attached is selling for $2 per gallon wholesale today, compared to $3.08 per gallon for gasoline, underscoring the fact that ethanol is helping to provide economic relief at the pump for American families. Still, unwarranted SREs continue to plague the RFS with uncertainty and instability, Cooper said, noting that reform of the "broken SRE program" is needed. "The RFS has been in place for more than 20 years, and Congress never intended for SREs to be a permanent entitlement for Fortune 500 oil refining companies," he said. "The exemptions were always meant to be a temporary measure to give truly small, independent refiners a little more time to come into compliance with the RFS program. Unfortunately, many so-called small refiners have been allowed to exploit this loophole for two decades, putting American consumers, farmers, and biofuel producers on the losing end." EPA's own analyses show that RIN costs for all refiners--big and small--are passed along to buyers of refined fuels at the wholesale level, and those costs are offset when lower-cost renewable fuels are blended with gasoline, Cooper noted. Media reports on the looming SRE announcement led to an effort by RFA and its allies across the agriculture and biofuels industry to soften the blow. Numerous state and federal lawmakers, members of the Trump administration, and other leaders also stepped in to voice strong support for renewable fuels, Cooper said. "We are grateful to the many elected and appointed officials who spoke out publicly over the past week about the potential damage these exemptions could do to farmers, renewable fuel producers, and American families," he said. "They understand what's at risk in their home states and districts, and we appreciate their willingness to stand up for their constituents." June polling for RFA by Morning Consult found that more than three-quarters of respondents with an opinion want oil companies to be required to meet their renewable fuel blending requirements. Less than a quarter want oil companies to be allowed to avoid them. About the RFA Since 1981, the Renewable Fuels Association has been the leading trade association for America's ethanol industry, working to drive expanded demand for American-made renewable fuels and bioproducts worldwide. Tweet |
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