California's E85 Sales Top 14M Gallons in 2015

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California led the nation with 14.77 million gallons of E85 sold in 2015, according to a consumer research study published by fuels retailer Propel Fuels Inc.

The study, Low Carbon Fuels in California: Motivators and Barriers to Use, revealed Golden State consumers are adopting more and more low-carbon fuels in the Golden State, among them E85, a fuel blend containing between 70 percent and 85 percent ethanol, with the remainder being gasoline, which can be used by flex-fuel vehicles.

The research also concluded the following:

• Low-carbon fuel users are highly diverse, representing the socioeconomic demographics of California with strong Latino, African-American and Asian demographic groups.
• Consumers are extremely loyal to low-carbon fuels, choosing Propel branded fuels 90 percent of the time.
• Because low-carbon fuels are more affordable than petroleum to mainstream populations and can run in a variety of vehicles, middle- and lower-income families, as well as young people, can afford these cleaner energy options.

"Our research shows that low-carbon fuels provide great value and appeal to a wide range of Californians, which is why Propel locations have the highest low carbon fuel volumes in the country, and well over double the volumes of other retailers in California," said Rob Elam, CEO of Propel Fuels.

Propel sold 9.3 million of the 14.77 million gallons of E85 sold in 2015, according to California Air Resources Board data. The renewable fuel is purported to have many benefits, including a climate-change benefit. Low-carbon liquid fuels are responsible for 85 percent of the greenhouse gas reductions achieved by the California's Low Carbon Fuel Standard during the program's first five years, stated Propel.

Propel was founded in 2004 with a mission to connect people to better fuels. It has 34 flex fuel and 32 diesel HPR (high performance renewable) locations throughout California.