The Manitoba government on Dec. 22 announced that it will step up its ethanol and biodiesel blending requirements over the next two years, requiring E10 and B5 blends of gasoline and diesel by the start of 2022.

Effective Jan. 1, 2021, the province will require 9.25 percent ethanol content in gasoline, up from the current 8.5 percent. The requirement will grow to 10 percent on Jan. 1, 2022. The biodiesel requirement will increase to 3.5 percent on Jan. 1, 2021, up from the current requirement of 2 percent. On Jan. 1, 2022, the biodiesel requirement will increase to 5 percent.

The amendments enacted by the government will also increase the penalty for non-compliance with the new biodiesel standards.

The increased blend mandates were first discussed in the 2017 Made-in-Manitoba Climate and Green Plan and were recommended by the expert advisory council for the plan in 2019. A public comment period on proposed regulations to increase the ethanol and biodiesel blend levels opened in September 2020.

The government of Manitoba said the amended biofuel blend requirements are expected to deliver approximately 220,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reductions per year.

Advanced Biofuels Canada has spoken out in support of the increased blending requirements. “Publication of these final regulations establishes the role of biofuels as a fundamental component of Manitoba’s Climate and Green Plan,” said Ian Thomson, president of ABC. “Increased renewable fuel availability will provide significant emission reductions in Manitoba’s first five-year Carbon Savings Account period under the Climate and Green Plan Implementation Act, 2018. With this, Manitoba achieves not only its climate goals but also creates a larger role for the province’s agricultural sector and its importance to economic viability and social health of rural communities in every corner of the province.”