"The auto industry says it’s committed to expanding the use of flex-fuel vehicles –- which can run on gasoline and any blend of ethanol up to 85 percent –- but two major hurdles have yet to be overcome: a limited number of retailers and limited consumer awareness of its availability," the Idaho Business Review said. "Dennis Rakicki, manager of environmental affairs at Chrysler, addressed his company’s efforts to further the use of flex-fuel vehicles and the 85 percent ethanol blend (called E85) during a Webinar held Tuesday Aug., 12. The presentation was attended in Boise by transportation managers, energy experts and fuel industry representatives from the City of Boise and Ada and Canyon counties. Rakicki said automakers have already put 7.5 million E85 vehicles on the road and have a goal of 2 million more per year. The hope is to ensure half of all light-duty vehicles are ethanol or alternative fuel-capable by 2012. To meet that goal, Chrysler plans to release at least 27 E85 models during the 2009 model year, and already offers several flex-fuel vehicles, running the gamut from minivans and cars to trucks and SUVs. 'The variety is there,' he said, but 'the key to successful deployment is getting the customers out there to use the fuels -– how do you do that?' "
(Idaho Business Review, Aug. 18, 2008)
(http://www.idahobusiness.net/…)
E85 continues to receive much of the press attention when it comes to the future of the ethanol industry. However, in the near term the U.S. industry is in desperate need of federal government approval of mid-level ethanol blends from E15 to E30. At present the U.S. has an ethanol-production capacity of about 10 billion gallons. Since the market for automobile-transportation fuels is about 140 billion gallons in the U.S., the U.S. ethanol industry is quickly approaching the blending wall with the E10 market. Some experts say the U.S. industry will hit the wall sometime in 2009 when ethanol production capacity comes in at around 13 billion gallons. The arduous process of examining the use of higher ethanol blends in standard vehicles continues at a time when the ethanol industry needs new markets. (Todd Neeley)
