On July 20, 2018, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (Fourth Circuit) ruled that EPA must reconsider its denial of Ergon-West Virginia, Inc.’s (Ergon) application for a small refinery waiver under the RFS. The Fourth Circuit stated that EPA relied on an “error-riddled” analysis when it denied the exemption. Ergon is a small refinery based in West Virginia (with a daily production of 23,500 barrels) that produces primarily diesel which is not easily blended and sold in the local market. The number of small refinery hardship waivers has jumped in recent years, with 48 waivers granted in 2016 and 2017, prompting outcry from the biofuel industry that the increased waivers undercut the RFS program.
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