A Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) would require fossil fuel businesses in Vermont like fuel dealers and Vermont Gas to increasingly sell more biofuels and biomass to replace the state's annual burning of 100 million gallons of heating oil, 91 million gallons of propane, and 12,100 mcf of natural gas. An RFS would stimulate the local forest economy and fuel innovation without new taxes or fees. It would work by imposing renewable fuel percentage standards on the fuel delivery industry and Vermont Gas that would increase over time between 2017 to 2050. Each industry would determine how best to achieve their targets, with alternative compliance payments collected from non-compliant businesses.
2. What is a Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS)?
โข Vermont electric utilities have a
โrenewable energy standardโ
โข 55% renewables in 2017,
increasing to 75% by 2032
โข Vermontโs Renewable Energy
Standard (Act 56 of 2015 ) recognizes
โbiofuelsโ and โbiomassโ as
contributors to the stateโs renewable
energy goals
โข A RFS would require fossil fuel
businesses to increasingly sell more
biofuels and biomass
โข Fuel Dealers
โข Vermont Gas
3. Why a RFS?
โข Vermont burns annually:
โข 100 million gallons of heating oil
โข 91 million gallons of propane
โข 12,100 mcf of natural gas
โข A RFS would increasingly replace fossil fuels
with:
โข BioHeat โ biodiesel/heating oil blends
โข Bio natural and propane gas
โข Wood and wood pellets
โข Requires no new taxes or fees
โข Stimulates market innovation and the local
forest economy
โข Fuel dealers have started down the biofuels
path
4. How would an RFS work?
โข Impose RFS standards on the fuel delivery industry and
Vermont Gas
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
2017 2020 2025 2030 2035 2040 2045 2050
Renewable Fuels Standard Targets
Oilheat Propane Diesel Natural Gas
5. Implementation of a RFS
โข Establish targets for each
industry
โข Each industry determines
how best to achieve their
targets
โข Develop an Alternative
Compliance Payment (ACP)
mechanism for non-
compliance
โข Non-compliance fees
could go to CEDF to
administer renewable
programs
Hinweis der Redaktion
Good Morning.
Iโm the General manager of the Energy Co-op of Vermont.
The Co-op is a full-service fuel dealer based in Colchester. We deliver fossil fuels to about 2,500 members and customers primarily in northwester Vermont. We maintain replace and repair a wide range of oil and gas fired home heating systems.
We also help our members cut their fossil fuel use. We install cold-climate heat pumps and residential energy upgrades.
I would like to identify two individuals in the audience who are especially well qualified to speak on renewable fuels:
Peter Bourne of Bournes Energy
Matt Cota, Vermont Fuel Dealers Association
A Renewable Fuels Standard โ or RFS โ is analogous to the Renewable Energy Standard required of Vermontโs electric utilities.
The targets are 55% renewables this year, rising to 75% by 2032.
โBiofuelsโ and โBiomassโ are recognized in Act 56 as renewables that contribute to the stateโs renewable energy goals โ including Tier 3 requirements
A Renewable Fuels Standard would require Vermontโs fuel dealers and Vermont Gas to steadily increase the renewables content in the propane, heating oil, kerosene and natural gas they supply.
Why do we need a Renewable Fuels Standard?
Each year, we burn:
100 million gallons of heating oil
91 million gallons of propane, and
12,100 mcf of natural gas
Generating almost 30% of Vermontโs greenhouse gas emissions
Under a Renewable Fuels Standard, fossil fuels would steadily be replaced with:
BioHeat โ Blends of up to 20% biodiesel/heating oil are viable โ right now
Methane from farm digesters - marketed as renewable natural gas
Wood. Vermonterโs burn about 350,000 cords of wood and 125,000 tons of wood pellets a year
The transition to renewable heating fuels would require no new taxes or fees
Would stimulate innovation and our forest economy
Several fuel dealers โ like Bourneโs Energy - are already delivering BioHeat blends.
The Renewable Fuel Standard would be aligned with the Vermontโs energy plan
By 2050, 90% of the heating fuels sold in Vermont would be renewable.
Implementation
The process starts by setting renewables targets for each industry
Each industry then determines how best to reach those targets
Businesses that choose not to meet the targets would be required to make Alternative Compliance Payments.
These fees could be used by the Clean Energy Development Fund to support the transition to renewable fuels
Thank you.
