Trump Considering Changes to Ethanol Export Volumes; Could be Advantageous to Corn Growers

After months of negotiations with Big Oil and Big Corn about the U.S. Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), U.S. President Trump is considering changes to exported ethanol volume count that could be advantageous to both Big Oil and Big Corn. The proposed changes would allow exported ethanol to count toward the volumes mandated under the nation’s biofuels law, which would cut refiners’ regulatory costs while simultaneously boosting demand for corn.
Additionally, Trump also confirmed his support for expanding sales of higher ethanol blends of gasoline and backed away from a proposal to cap the price of credits called RINs that refiners must acquire and turn into the government each year to prove compliance with the biofuels quotas.
“More corn will be sold (good for farmers), plus lower RINs (saves blue-collar refinery jobs), plus more ethanol exports (good for America),” Republican Senator Ted Cruz wrote on Twitter following the White House meeting.