JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- E15 has made its debut in North Florida at Gate Petroleum’s new Jacksonville store.
For Gate Petroleum Co., this will be its first installation of E15, the 15% ethanol blend, as well as E85, an 85% ethanol blend. The retailer unveiled the additions at the grand opening of its new store at 7099 Collins Road. As part of a special promotion, Gate sold E15 for 15 cents per gallon (CPG) below E10 and offered an 85-CPG discount for E85.
“Gate is proud to offer our customers the broadest range of gasoline products in northeast Florida at our new, state-of-the-art store on Collins Road,” said Gate COO Mitchell Rhodes.
To add the fuels, Gate partnered with Protec Fuel, which provides turnkey ethanol programs for retailers.
“We believe the versatility of the fuel options being offered will be key to many gasoline retailers,” said Steve Walk, vice president of business development at Boca Raton, Fla.-based Protec. “The station is positioned well to serve a variety of fuel customers. Drivers want to stop at a nice, new store, and now they can be assured the fuel they want most will be there.”
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has approved E15 for use in 2001 and newer vehicle models, or about 80% of vehicles on the road today. However, only flex-fuel vehicles (FFV), which run on a full range of ethanol blends, can use E15 from June 1 to Sept. 15 because of summer fuel volatility regulations. There are more than 18.5 million FFVs in the United States.
“The North Florida Clean Fuels Coalition (NFCCC) is always delighted when an additional alternative fuel becomes available in our region,” said Wanda Forrest, coordinator of the NFCCC. “This gives motorists another option and helps reduce the reliance on foreign oil, which is the mission of the Clean Fuels program.”
Based in Jacksonville, Fla., Gate is a privately held, diversified corporation. Among operations in several industries, including real estate, hospitality and construction materials, Gate operates around 70 convenience stores throughout the southeastern United States in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina.
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