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dAtELiNE EPaPrOPOSESchaNgESTOrIN TraDINgINrFSPrOgraM To help make the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program more efficient and effective the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing a structured process for buyers of Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs) in order to verify their validity. Under the proposal announced by the EPA on Jan. 31, RINs would be verified through a new voluntary quality assurance program that also includes alternative compliance options which leverage existing industry practices and market forces. This proposal will be available for a 30-day public comment period. EPA will consider feedback from a range of stakeholders before the proposal is finalized. Quality Assurance Plans (QAPs) would provide a recognized means for independent third parties to audit the production of renewable fuel and verify that RINs have been validly generated. For RINs that have been verified according to an approved QAP, the program would provide protection against liability for civil violations resulting from the transfer or use of invalidly generated RINs under certain conditions. The rule would also specify both the conditions under which invalid RINs must be replaced with valid RINs, and by whom. The proposed rule allows verification of RINs to begin this year. The RFS program, which was established under the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and later modified through the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, requires that specified volumes of renewable fuel be used as transportation fuel, home heating oil, and/or jet fuel each year. Renewable fuel producers and importers generate RINs based on the volume of compliant renewable fuel that they make available. RINs can then be traded and used by petroleum refiners and importers (���obligated parties���) to show compliance with their volume obligations. Following a number of high profile RIN fraud cases, EPA expects its rulemaking to improve the overall liquidity in the RIN market and in particular make it easier for smaller renewable fuel producers to FEAturEd NEWs RIN trading in RFS program API: Repeal RFS NYSEIA���s 2013 solar policy initiatives PPA 2013 Education Program Brian Amthor named to AEC committee Honeywell���s new thermostat BioDiesel blending in Albany Thermo Pride���s new manager OESP���s free lunch sell their RINs. EPA worked closely with stakeholders in developing the proposal. More information on the proposed rule and the RFS program: http://epa.gov/otaq/ fuels/renewablefuels/regulations.htm aPISaYS:rEPEaLrFS Repeal of the Renewable Fuels Standard, approval of the Keystone XL pipeline, and less onerous and costly regulations could contribute to a more robust, competitive refinery sector that would continue to support the U.S. economy and strengthen national security, the American Petroleum Institute (API) says. To that end, the Institute started running a new television ad nationwide to highlight the critical role of refineries. The ad is part of an API campaign, ���Investing in America���s Future,��� designed to highlight the contributions of the oil and natural gas industry to the economy. The campaign includes TV, print, radio, and online ads running inside the Beltway and nationally. It launched Jan. 15 and will continue to run over the coming months. ���Our nation���s energy future has never looked better, in large part because of our rapidly advancing ability to tap into vast new oil and natural gas resources right here in the United States,��� API Refining Senior Manager Cindy Schild said in a statement. ���But a strong energy future for our nation depends also on our ability to refine and distribute the fuels from these resources.��� One place to start, Schild said, is with repeal of the Renewable Fuels Standard or RFS. ���API supports the use of renewable fuels, but the RFS is simply unworkable,��� Schild said. ���Its continuing implementation requires concentrations of ethanol in gasoline above levels that are safe for vehicles and gas station pumping equipment.��� Schild said the law also requires refiners to purchase credits for failing to blend cellulosic ethanol in motor fuel, ���even though none is commercially available. So we are, in effect, penalized for not using a fuel that doesn���t exist. ���Despite repeated and ongoing efforts to address the RFS program���s shortcomings ��� through regulatory petitions, legal actions, and suggested solutions to implementation concerns ��� EPA has been unable, and sometimes unwilling, to make it workable. That���s why we need Congress to scrap the program altogether,��� Schild said. NYSEIaaNNOUNcES2013 SOLarPOLIcYINITIaTIvES New York Solar Energy Industries Association announced it will advocate for long-term support of the New York Sun Initiative, as well as on bill solar financing and investment policy initiatives in 2013. ���To achieve significant and long-term growth of solar energy use in New York State requires a clear indication by government of the importance to move more and more of energy generation from carbon-based to renewable and solar-based energy,��� said NYSEIA President R. Sail Van Nostrand. ���The NY Sun initiative is a step in the right direction and includes a trajectory originally contemplated in the Solar Jobs Act,��� he added. ���NYSEIA���s goal is to advocate for the Governor���s commitment of 10 years ($150 mil per year) of a continuing and growing commitment to solar technology, on a path that fosters significant year over year growth.��� www.fueloilnews.com | FUELOILNEWS| March2013 3