In November, we featured a story on the rapid growth of 88 octane gasoline in the state of Minnesota. This progress continues and the state now has 250+ stations selling 88 octane. Much of the growth in 2017 was due to Kwik Trip’s adoption of the fuel. Kwik Trip is a Wisconsin-based business that operates in three states, with more than 150 fuel stations in Minnesota. In the course of one year, Kwik Trip added 88 octane (also known as Unleaded 88 or E15) to more than half of their stores in their 3-state market. Kwik Trip has 330 stores offering 88 octane, with nearly 140 of those in Minnesota. That means that almost every Kwik Trip station in Minnesota now has unleaded 88!
Like any industry, fuel stations and convenience stores must often change to keep up with technology and consumer demand. By creating more demand for the lower-priced, higher octane fuel in Minnesota, other retailers are beginning to follow Kwik Trip’s lead and are adding 88 octane to their pumps.
It’s important to note that 88 octane gasoline is approved by the U.S. EPA for vehicles model year 2001 or newer, which means a vast majority of cars and trucks on the road today can use the fuel. Consider this stat taken from an article published by Agrinews, “over 60 million gallons of E15 was sold at Kwik Trip during the first year of the rollout and now averages sales of 25,000 gallons per store each month. That volume equates to 1.38 billion miles driven with Kwik Trip’s E15.”
That’s quite a good track record! In that same article, Kwik Trip manager of fuel procurement and marketing is quoted saying they haven’t had any claims from consumers using 88 octane. “We guarantee our fuel so our customers know that if they have a problem they’re going to reach out to us, and we have had nobody reach out to us on our unleaded 88 product. We’re very excited about those results.”
The market will continue to change, with more and more retailers adding the 88 octane. Perhaps we’re on track to see another year of exponential growth for this cleaner-burning fuel.