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ENERGY
Washington Report
A service of
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CONTACTS (left to right):
Michael Trunzo, President & CEO:
Jim Collura, NEFI Vice President for Government Affairs:
Mark S. Morgan, Esq., New England Fuel Institute Regulatory Counsel:
LEXINGTON, MA (December 6, 2013)
–
Below is the official statement of Michael
C. Trunzo, President & CEO of the New
England Fuel Institute, on yesterday’s
announcement by the six New England
governors on a regional pact on energy
infrastructure and cooperation:
“On behalf of the region’s 1,800 mostly
small, family-run home heating oil providers
and the 14,000 people they employ, we
commend our Governors’ commitment to
safe, affordable and environmentally secure
energy.
“We stand ready to work closely with state
Governors and legislatures in meeting these
goals. In the home heating sector, these goals
can be met through advancements in energy
efficiency, increased market penetration of
Bioheat
®
, consumer education and by ensuring
adequate supplies of liquid fuels.
“Oilheat is becoming greener and will
continue to improve in the future. Our region
is now moving to a cleaner-burning and
lower-sulfur fuel that is improving system
performance, opening the door to a new
generation of ultra-efficient heating systems,
reducing harmful emissions and saving con-
sumers money.
“We have also embraced a renewable
heating fuel known as Bioheat, much of which
is derived from local, sustainable sources
such as waste oils. New technologies will
soon allow liquid biofuels to be derived from
abundant sources such as biomass. On an
annual basis, a 20 percent Bioheat blend will
eliminate 360 million gallons of conventional
heating oil and 3.356 million metric tons of
carbon dioxide emissions.
“Four New England states and New York
have all approved Bioheat blending require-
ments. Bioheat is already in use in New York
City, where the government’s Clean Heat
program said it has ‘close to zero
soot emissions, the lowest of all
conventional heating fuels.
This means cleaner air for
your building and your
community.’
“According to John
Maniscalco, CEO of the
New York Oil Heating
Association,
‘Using
Bioheat in NYC reduces
an oilheat consumer’s
use of
traditional
petroleum by 2%, serves
to enhance the city’s
already clean ultra-low
sulfur fuel and makes it
even cleaner. As the heating
oil industry increases its per-
centage of biodiesel oilheat can
surpass all other energy sources in
relation to emitting negative air emis-
sions.’
“On an environmental level, this lower-
sulfur, bio-blended and ultra-efficient fuel is
comparable to natural gas. As higher blends
of renewable product are introduced, it will
become a superior home grown fuel. Not only
will it burn cleaner and emit fewer greenhouse
gases, but when combined with proper weath-
erization and smart energy conservation
practices, considerable savings will also be
realized.
“The infrastructure necessary to deliver
the heating fuel of tomorrow is ready today.
Unlike the utility sector, no considerable
investment in this area will be required. No
new taxes or rate increases are necessary for a
heating oil customer to start taking advantage
of safe, clean and renewable Bioheat.
“Our region needs a diversified energy
portfolio that not only ensures adequate sup-
plies of natural gas and renewable power, but
also lower-cost crude oil and refined petroleum
products resulting from the surge in shale
or “tight” oil production in the Dakotas and
elsewhere. We should also make certain that
our region has access to abundant supplies of
renewable fuels such as biodiesel.
“Again, we are ready to roll up our sleeves
and work with our state Governors to get the
job done.”
New England Fuel Institute Statement on
New England Governors’ Energy Agreement
EDITOR’S NOTE: New England Fuel Institute (NEFI) last month issued the following statement in response to a statement issued by the
six New England governors that the states would cooperate on energy policy. (For more information, see Page 6.)
