Iowa biorefinery offers financial incentive for added blender pumps

An ethanol biorefinery in Iowa, US is offering retailers grants to install new fuel pumps to dispense a higher blends of ethanol than the current E10 available at many petrol stations.

The biorefinery is offering the $15,000 to five willing retailers which agree to install the blender pumps, capping the total project cost at $75,000.

'We wanted to come up with a programme that would entice more blender pumps across Iowa and increase the level of usage in renewable fuels at higher blends in flexible fuel vehicles,' says Steve Roe, general manager of Little Sioux Corn Processors, which makes about 110 million gallons of ethanol per year.

The biorefinery's board of directors will review applications, but retailers will be asked to submit a two-year budget on the volume of renewable fuels they expect to sell as part of the process.

'The benefit for a retailer is it will be able to offer a broader spectrum of renewable fuel for flex-fuel vehicles, from E15 to E85, all through one system, reducing costs,' Roe adds.

Iowa state officials also recently announced a $250,000 federal grant to provide incentives to retailers which install blender pumps.