President Joe Biden announced on Tuesday that his administration will lower gas prices by lifting the ban on E15 fuel — an idea welcomed by drivers, but energy experts are not as excited.
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E15, also known as flex fuel, is gas which contains 15% ethanol, up from the normal 10% found in the regular blend. Those pumps are usually closed during the summer because the gas can create high levels of air pollution, especially when exposed to sunlight. However, since E15 requires less crude oil — which is largely responsible for the skyrocketing gas prices — Biden is removing the ban to provide a cheaper alternative for drivers to use amid the surge.
While flex fuel could drop the price of gas nationally, UC Berkeley energy Professor Severin Borenstein said it's not expected to significantly impact Californians since not everybody can use E15 fuel.
"We're only going to see a 5% change in that blend at most, so I think the bottom line is that this could drop the price of gas a few cents, but not more than that," he told KCBS Radio.
Borenstein said that flex fuel is great if your car can use it, but if it doesn't, he recommended saving money by shopping around and avoiding big name gas stations, where prices are generally lower.
"Where I live in Orinda, there's a station that’s about three or four blocks from the Chevron or Shell that is 60 cents a gallon cheaper," he said.
Borenstein added that shopping at off-brand stations not only will help residents save money but also will put more pressure on the branded station to lower their price.
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