American Soybean Association warns of $1B losses if EPA approves more SREs
Recent reports and analysis indicate small refinery exemptions from RFS compliance year 2025 could total more than 1.8 billion Renewable Identification Number (RIN) credits under a newly revised methodology being developed. Such a massive volume of RFS compliance exemptions would be nearly double what the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had assumed when it published the final 2026-2027 Renewable Volume Obligation Rule. The final biofuel blending rule published earlier this year by the Trump Administration included historic increases in biofuel volumes, boosting domestic demand for biofuels and U.S. soybeans.
If EPA approves small refinery exemption petitions at levels that significantly exceed EPA’s earlier assumptions embodied in current biofuel blending rules, the result will be long-term damage that effectively undercuts the positive actions taken by the Trump Administration. The significant increase in biofuel volumes exempted from the RFS could eliminate around 500 million gallons of biomass-based diesel demand, cost U.S. soybean farmers approximately $1 billion in lost revenue, and put oil refiner interests ahead of farmers, rural communities, and expanded domestic biofuel supplies.
Category: Policy
