Filling Stations Report Shortages Due to Ethanol Distribution
illing stations in the Northeast are reporting scattered shortages of gasoline as the industry struggles to transition to more ethanol-blended fuel, the Associated Press reported.
Analysts and industry officials said the shortages may continue for several more weeks, though they said the problem has more to do with delivery schedules than a shortage of ethanol, AP reported.
There were also fuel shortages immediately following Hurricane Katrina, last fall, which knocked out the electricity needed to run pipelines delivering fuel from the Gulf Coast to the rest of the country.
uel distributors say they are experiencing logistical challenges as terminal owners drain their tanks of MTBE-laced gasoline in preparation for the switch to ethanol blends.
As a result, some retailers have had to wait longer than usual for deliveries and pumps have been dry in the interim — a situation one distributor referred to as “ethanol hell,” AP said.