As President Biden joined auto makers at the White House Thursday to announce a plan that includes a goal for electric vehicles to comprise 50% of new vehicle sales by 2030, ethanol groups were quick to remind him that low-carbon liquid fuels like ethanol will still be needed to reduce GHG emissions from internal combustion engines.

Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Geoff Cooper:

“We agree with the Biden administration that action needs to be taken now to begin aggressively reducing GHG emissions from transportation. But decarbonizing our nation’s fuels and vehicles is going to take an all-of-the-above approach that stimulates growth in all available low-carbon technologies. The overarching goal should be to reach net-zero emissions as quickly as possible without dictating the pathway to get there or putting all our eggs into one technology basket. We believe any plan to decarbonize the transportation sector should recognize the massive opportunity for low-carbon liquid fuels like ethanol to reduce GHG emissions from internal combustion engines in the near term.”

American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) CEO Brian Jennings:

“Pledges to make more electric vehicles in the future will do little to reduce GHG emissions until and unless the way we generate electricity in the U.S. undergoes expensive and prolonged changes. The environmental impacts, technical hurdles, and supply chain roadblocks for critical minerals needed for EV batteries also need to be understood and remedied before EVs could make meaningful reductions in GHGs. Meanwhile, nearly 100 percent of all U.S. light-duty vehicles on the road today use liquid fuels. Scientists indicate corn ethanol is already 50 percent cleaner than gasoline. If we want to get serious about tackling climate change sooner rather than later, government officials and automakers ought to be taking steps right now to help ensure motorists have greater access to low-carbon alternatives to gasoline such as E15 and E85. Each increased gallon of ethanol used in the U.S. today reduces GHGs and the Administration can take steps today through the Renewable Fuel Standard to push more ethanol into the marketplace.”

RFA Chief Economist Scott Richman commented on RFA’s response to President Biden’s newly announced plan during an interview.