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Ethanol hits local pipeline
By Albany Times Union
As gasoline prices and global temperatures climb, alternative motor fuels are more readily available
March 23, 2008
ALBANY -- Christian King is a businessman, so he wouldn't be selling ethanol at his Mobil gas stations unless it made him money.
He says he became the first gas station owner in New York state to offer E85 -- the common name for a fuel blend of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline -- when he started selling it at Campus Mobil on Western Avenue in Albany last May.
His Mobil station in Warrensburg started selling E85 soon after, and he also distributes E85 and the more common blend E10 to other stations statewide.
But beyond the business reasons for getting into the ethanol business, King has a clear passion for the fuel, and he has become one of its biggest proponents in the Capital Region.
"We really need to do something to reduce our dependence on foreign oil," King said. "Somebody's got to go first."
That may sound strange from a man who gets most of his gas supply from one of the largest oil and gas companies in the world.
But King also believes that ethanol will reduce greenhouse gases believed to cause climate change, and he also thinks ethanol is good for the American economy because it's made domestically.
And as the price of oil rises above $100 a barrel with no end in sight, E85, which gets hefty government subsidies, can be a cheaper choice as well.
"It's certainly not the silver bullet," King said on a day when he was selling E85 at $2.75 per gallon compared to $3.43 for regular gas. "But it's one of the best alternatives we've had to combat these high prices."
Of course that price comparison is a little tricky, because ethanol has less energy content than gasoline. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, its energy content is 27 percent lower than gasoline. So you get fewer miles to the gallon.
And not all cars can use E85. Drivers must own what's known as a flex-fuel vehicle, although many drivers probably don't realize they own one.
Chrysler, Ford, and General Motors all make flex-fuel vehicles, most of them trucks or SUVs such as the Jeep Grand Cherokee, the Ford Explorer and the Chevrolet Suburban.
Most vehicles that use E85 experience a 15 to 20 percent drop in fuel economy, according to the National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition.
King says that because of this, E85 has to be about 50 cents cheaper per gallon to provide savings to consumers, although he notes that the use of E85 also has other benefits such as fewer greenhouse gas emissions and less gasoline consumption.
But King notes that E85 has a 101 octane rating, meaning it is a premium fuel that runs cleaner than regular gas. King says he notices the difference using E85, with faster acceleration and better pickup.
"Personally I see it, but I think the average consumer wouldn't notice," he said.
The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, a state agency that promotes clean energy technologies and energy conservation, estimates there are 200,000 flex-fuel vehicles in the state capable of using E85. But there are only a handful of E85 fuel pumps open to the public.
That is about to change, especially in the Capital Region, which is helped by the ample supply of Midwestern ethanol that comes by rail into the Port of Albany.
In addition to his two existing locations, King is planning to install an E85 pump at his Latham Mobil station.
The Mobil Mart on Wolf Road in Colonie also sells E85. And other Mobil stations in the region, including one in Glenmont and one Glenville, are expected to offer the fuel in the future.
Saratoga Springs-based Stewart's Shops, which has more than 300 stores in New York and Vermont, is also looking into the possibility of E85 at a small number of outlets that also offer gasoline.
"We're definitely looking," said Stewart's gasoline manager Mike Bombard. "But we haven't committed to anything at this point."
Cumberland Farms, which has 1,000 stores in the Northeast and Florida, is planning four E85 pumps at its local stores. The first of them is scheduled to open within a week or two in Queensbury.
That will be Cumberland Farms' first E85 location in the state -- or anywhere else.
Other E85 pumps are also planned at Cumberland Farms' Glenmont, Clifton Park and Rotterdam stores.
Cumberland Farms, a privately held company based in suburban Boston, also owns its own fuel distribution company, Gulf Oil LP.
Gulf Oil CEO Joseph Petrowski said the company targeted New York state because of its aggressive subsidies for retailers who offer E85.
"New York has been clearly at the forefront in this," Petrowski said. "Albany is a great market."
The only two other stations serving E85 in New York state are in Rochester.
One of the reasons for these new E85 pumps is a $9 million NYSERDA program called the Bio-Fuel Station Initiative.
NYSERDA is offering to reimburse gas stations 50 percent of the cost of installing E85 and biodiesel systems, up to $50,000.
NYSERDA officials say that 40 stations have applied for the funding, although the program could fund as many as 300 new stations. That's why the May 2 deadline for the program will likely be extended.
King says that money goes a long way. He said his project in Albany cost $40,000, while the Latham E85 installation will be triple that. Although E85 uses the same type of underground tanks and lines as gasoline, the pump parts used by the consumer such as the nozzle and hose are slightly different than traditional gas pumps. They are nickel-plated to prevent corrosion caused by ethanol and use a special rubber, King said. Traditional pumps are lined with softer metals.
In fact, King says that without the NYSERDA program, the financial risk of installing an E85 pump would likely be too great in what he admits is a highly competitive market. And he says that NYSERDA's technical and moral support has been key.
"That's what it takes to get something like this going," he said. "You have to have passionate people. Without NYSERDA's support, I couldn't get it done."
King says he sells about 760 gallons of E85 a day at his Albany location, which means about 76 vehicles are pulling into his station everyday to use the special golden pump nozzle handle. In Warrensburg its about 270 gallons a day.
"Those are phenomenal numbers," he said.
King's fuel distribution company mixes E85 at the Port of Albany where ethanol comes in by rail from Chicago, bound for New York City by barge. The availability of ethanol in the port is one of the major reasons why E85 made its debut in the Capital Region.
"Access to product is why here in the Albany area it's become a big deal," King said.
The development of new ethanol production facilities in New York could make E85 more prevalent in other areas of the state. The one ethanol plant currently in production is in western New York.
But a much larger facility, Northeast Biofuels, will open in the coming months at the former Miller Brewing plant in Fulton, Oswego County. That facility will make 114 million gallons of ethanol a year from corn, about 25 percent coming from local farmers. That is likely to greatly expand supply in New York state, which would make it easier for gas stations to offer E85.
State government energy policies have also driven E85's growth.
More than half of New York state government's fleet of cars and light trucks use alternative fuels, including more than 3,000 flex-fuel vehicles that can run on E85, says Eileen Redmond, director of the Office of General Services' alternative fuel program.
OGS's programs have been pushed along by state and federal mandates, and eventually all of the state's vehicles will have to use alternative fuels.
OGS operates its own E85 pump in Albany on the Harriman State Office Campus, where OGS also dispenses other alternative fuels, such as hydrogen for the state's only hydrogen-powered fuel-cell car.
Redmond believes that as awareness of E85 grows, people will buy more flex-fuel vehicles, and retailers will offer more ethanol.
"Flex fuel is the next big wave, I believe," Redmond said. "Eventually, E85 will become available if the need is there."
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