State of Iowa to Issue Gasoline RVP Waiver Matching U.S. EPA Waiver

The State of Iowa is planning to issue a Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) waiver matching a previous RVP waiver issued by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).  The RVP waiver will go into effect beginning May 1, 2020 and will extend through May 20, 2020.  The RVP waiver will allow terminal and retail facilities to run down stocks of winter-grade gasoline in response to the dramatic decrease in gasoline consumption resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic.  Prior to the waiver issued by the EPA, refiners and terminals were required to comply with EPA’s summertime low RVP standard beginning May 1 and retailers were required to comply June 1.  The month lag between the two compliance dates allowed retail storage tanks time to meet summertime RVP standards through the natural course of gasoline drops made into the tanks.

Beginning May 1, 2020 refiners will be required to ship summer-grade low RVP gasoline.  Beginning May 21, 2020 terminals will not be allowed to accept gasoline into terminal storage tanks that does not meet the EPA’s summer-grade RVP standards.  Under the waivers, all winter-grade gasoline stored in the distribution system will be allowed to make its way through the distribution system without penalty.  The conditions of the EPA waiver do not allow any party to add butane to previously certified conventional gasoline if the butane would cause the gasoline to exceed the applicable summer gasoline volatility standards.  FUELIowa will post the waiver on our Covid-19 Resources Page when it is released.