The U.S. Department of Agriculture is giving retailers another chance to apply
for grant money under the Higher Blends Infrastructure Incentive Program
(HBIIP), which promotes ethanol and biodiesel sales, according to an
announcement.

The agency is reopening the HBIIP application portal for another 30 days
starting Dec. 21. In October, USDA announced several recipients of the up
to$100 million in matching grants. The funding can be used to install fuel
dispensing and storage equipment that will support higher-level blends.

Ron Lamberty, senior vice president and market development director for the
American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE), said in an announcement this new window
for applications could give retailers another chance to tap the funding if they
were unable to complete the process in the initial 90-day application period.

Marketers told ACE "it took too long to gather the information they needed and
get the registrations they had to complete before they could even
apply,"Lamberty said. The 30 days "can be an opportunity for station owners who
started the process this summer to finish their applications."

--Reporting by Donna Harris, dharris@opisnet.com; Editing by Michael Kelly,
michael.kelly3@ihsmarkit.com




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