By Jarrett Renshaw and Siddharth Cavale
July 29 (Reuters) - The Trump administration is weighing whether to extend a Sept. 1 deadline requiring oil refiners to demonstrate compliance with the nation's biofuel blending laws, a move that could provide the industry more flexibility as it grapples with elevated compliance costs, according to three people familiar with the matter.
The Environmental Protection Agency has not made a final decision on the timing, and the agency is still publicly standing by
the Sept. 1 deadline for refiners to comply with the 2025 quotas under the Renewable Fuel Standard, which requires refiners to blend increasing amounts of biofuels into the nation's fuel supply or purchase credits known as renewable identification numbers, or RINs, from those who do.
An extension would give refiners more time to meet their obligations and could provide some additional room to manage high RIN prices, which have raised compliance costs for some companies. The multibillion-dollar RIN market is a key component of the biofuel program and a major source of uncertainty for refiners.
A delay could also give the EPA more time to review dozens of pending requests from smaller refiners seeking waivers from their obligations, an issue that has put the White House in the middle of a fight between refiners and biofuel producers.
"The compliance deadline for 2025 RFS obligations is September 1, 2026. EPA is working to issue decisions on pending small refinery exemption petitions as expeditiously as possible," an EPA spokesperson told Reuters when asked about the potential extension.
The White House is closely monitoring gasoline prices and broader energy costs as the administration faces political pressure ahead of the midterm elections. Disruptions to global energy markets following the Iran conflict have raised concerns about further volatility in oil and fuel prices, adding urgency to efforts to limit upward pressure on consumers.
RIN prices have surged this year as refiners face higher compliance costs under the EPA's ambitious 2026 renewable fuel mandates. The industry has struggled to meet the new obligations, particularly for biomass-based diesel, contributing to tighter credit supplies and higher prices.
A delay in the compliance deadline could provide refiners with short-term relief by postponing the need to secure additional RINs or make other compliance arrangements while the market adjusts.
The Sept. 1 deadline covers compliance with 2025 RFS obligations. The program gives refiners and other obligated parties flexibility by allowing them to use RINs from prior years, as well as current-year credits, to meet their requirements. That allows companies to manage compliance over time and adjust to changing market conditions and RIN prices.
The EPA has dozens of pending requests from small refiners seeking exemptions from their Renewable Fuel Standard obligations that would need to be resolved before the Sept. 1 deadline if the agency keeps the date in place. Refiners awaiting decisions have grown increasingly anxious for clarity, arguing that delays make it harder to plan their compliance strategies.
"We were hearing weeks, not months. We're hearing days, not weeks. We need to get an answer, as you know, the compliance deadline is September 1. And as those SREs are delayed to us, it has an impact in terms of how we can leverage those to offset a material burden," Steven Ledbetter, president and chief operating officer at HF Sinclair, said during an earnings call on Tuesday.
(Reporting By Jarrett RenshawEditing by Nick Zieminski)
