ACCC warns motorists of possible ethanol shortages

The recent devastating floods in northern Australia are likely to cause shortages in the supply of ethanol in coming weeks, said Joe Dimasi, commissioner of the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC). While the extent of damage is unknown, the floods have caused the loss of crops used as feedstocks for ethanol production. The ACCC has been informed that there are disruptions at key processing plants. “The supply shortages may lead to reduced availability of ethanol blended fuels (such as E10) across Australia and mean that motorists may find that fuel pumps which carry ethanol blended fuel are closed or out of order,” Dimasi said. (January 11, 2011)