E85 Location Opens in St. Paul to Nationwide Media Coverage

http://www.e85fuel.com/news/040504_st_paul_media_release.htm
The E85 pump that sits in the highly visible front corner of the SuperAmerica station on St. Paul's Grand Avenue saw a steady stream of cars, SUVs and pick-ups Friday. They were there to fill their tank with E85, the fuel made of 85 percent corn-based ethanol and 15 percent petroleum products. A news crew from NBC was there, too: with steadily rising gas prices, the crew was shooting footage for a feature on alternative fuels, and spent the morning videotaping drivers lining up for a tank of E85, promotionally priced on Friday at only 85 cents a gallon.

The American Lung Association of Minnesota (ALAMN), Ford Motor Company, the Minnesota Corn Growers Association (MCGA) and other national and local, private and government organizations work together as the Minnesota E85 Team. Much of Gerlach's work at ALAMN focuses on promoting E85 and other alternative, low-emission fuels because of their positive effect on air quality. E85 dramatically reduces the emission of ozone-forming pollutants and fine particulates. It also reduces greenhouse gases - considered by many scientists to contribute to global warming -- compared to regular unleaded gasoline, according to studies conducted by the Argonne National Laboratory in Illinois. But economics still play a dominant role in the success of E85.

"We want to see what the market does here," said Dave Blatnik, manager of state governmental affairs in Minnesota and Wisconsin for Marathon Ashland Petroleum, which owns more than 1,700 SuperAmerica filling stations across the country. Grand Avenue is currently their only E85 location, though Marathon Ashland Petroleum supplies numerous other E85 retailers through a newly configured rack blending system at its St. Paul Park Facility.

Depending on customer response, SuperAmerica says it will consider opening other E85 locations in Minnesota that, like the Grand Avenue store, would readily lend themselves to a conversion of current infrastructure, and would have the volume of customers who drive flex-fuel vehicles. The Grand Avenue SA converted a kerosene tank for use with E85.

Even without the promotion, SuperAmerica is currently pricing E85 at 24 cents per gallon less than regular unleaded gasoline. E85's higher octane and alcohol content supplies lots of power, but gets slightly lower fuel economy than conventional engines running on unleaded gasoline. Still, with the price differential E85 drivers come out even or ahead of drivers using gasoline.