October 14, 2011 | Vol. 61, No. 20

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Dear PEI Member:

Joey Cheek, president of JMP Solutions, headquartered in Tampa, Florida, was elected earlier this month at PEI's annual convention in Chicago to serve as the association's 62nd president. On January 1, Cheek will succeed Dennis Rethmeier, president of Western Pump, Inc., headquartered in San Diego, California, in PEI's top elected position. Cheek is currently serving as PEI vice president.

Replacing Cheek as vice president will be Terry Cooper, president of Acterra Group, Inc., headquartered in Marion, Iowa. Cooper has just completed his term as treasurer of the association, and has previously served on the board representing Distributor District 6. Phil Farrell, president of Double Check Company, headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, was appointed treasurer of the association by the PEI Board of Directors.

Eight new members were installed as members of the association's board of directors during the Chicago convention. They are James Ether, R. M. Dalrymple Co., Inc., Saratoga Springs, NY (District 1); Joey Batchelor, Guardian Fueling Technologies, Jacksonville, FL (District 3); Mike Hoffman, Mike Hoffman's Equipment Service, Mobile, AL (District 5); Bret Swan, Minnesota Petroleum Service, Inc., Minneapolis, MN (District 7); John Moore, Banks & Co., Fresno, CA (District 9); Bret Carlyle, Hamilton Tanks, Columbus, OH (District 11); Joey Arn, Petroleum Containment Inc., Jacksonville, FL (District 13); and Chris Lawson, McCon Building and Petroleum Services, Inc., Irving, TX (Service & Construction Division).

The educational sessions and entire convention program planned by the 2011 PEI Education and Convention Committee were well attended and received high marks. Slides and handouts provided for the sessions by the speakers are available on the PEI convention page, together with a final exhibitor list and floorplan, and a complete list of attendees (downloadable for PEI members only). And if you haven't already responded to our brief convention survey, you can find that there as well. We want your opinion about the convention. Tell us what went right and what needs to be fixed. We take all comments very seriously and remain convinced that they improve the attendees' convention experience from year to year.

PEI's Convention in Chicago

Renewable Fuel Flexibility Act Introduced

Deloitte Study On Electric Car Market

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The PEI Board of Directors met twice in Chicago and primarily concerned themselves with housekeeping matters that couldn't wait until the midyear meeting in April. The board did approve two new conferences―one on commercial, automotive and industrial fluid handling equipment and another on electric vehicle charging equipment. Both conferences are tentatively slated for 2012. We hope to announce more details about those by the end of the year.

A sincere thanks to all of you who volunteered to help us put on this convention. The 10-Group chairmen, education and convention committee members, Find Red volunteers, PEI Priority Club members, and session presenters and leaders all played a huge part in the overall success of our meeting in Chicago. We couldn't do it without you.

RENEWABLE FUEL FLEXIBILITY ACT INTRODUCED
On October 5, Congressmen Jim Costa (D-Calif.) and Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) introduced legislation―the Renewable Fuel Flexibility Act―that would link the amount of corn ethanol required to fulfill the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) to the actual U.S. corn supply. In other words, the bill would reduce the mandate for ethanol whenever stocks of corn are tight.

This is the first legislative effort of the year to modify the RFS that guarantees biofuels a share of the motor fuel market, set at 12.6 billion gallons this year and 15 billion gallons in 2015. This year, 40 percent of the U.S. corn crop will be converted into ethanol, and 37.4 percent will be used in livestock and poultry feed. Goodlatte and Costa represent districts with large livestock operations.

While there is little time left in the legislative calendar to enact the Renewable Fuel Flexibility Act this year, some people we talked with at the PEI Convention in Chicago thought it was a real possibility that changes could be made to the RFS within the next few years.

UST COMPONENT COMPATIBILITY LIBRARY
PEI's UST Component Compatibility Library now contains letters from 18 manufacturers regarding the compatibility of their legacy equipment with increased levels of ethanol blends (>10 percent) and biodiesel (>20 percent). Manufacturers with statements posted through October 13 include Acterra, Ameron International, Bravo Systems, Brugg Pipesystems, Containment Solutions, Hamilton Tanks, KPS, Metal Products Company, Mid-South Steel, Modern Welding, Morrison Bros., National Environmental Fiberglass, Nupi Americas, Omegaflex, Service Welding, Stanwade, Vaporless Manufacturing and Xerxes. Manufacturers of UST components should email their statements of compatibility to compliance@pei.org.

DELOITTE: SLOW ADOPTION OF ELECTRIC CARS
Consumers around the world are interested in buying electric cars, but they are unwilling to pay a higher price for them and are not satisfied with the performance of currently available models, according to a survey conducted by audit and consulting firm Deloitte. The results of the survey―published in a report titled Unplugged: Electric Vehicle Realities Versus Consumer Expectations―show that would-be purchasers want the cars to travel farther, charge faster and cost less than current technology allows. In the U.S., 42 percent of respondents said they would be willing to consider purchasing an electric vehicle, with 85 percent ranking range, convenience of charging and purchase price as "extremely important" or "very important" in their decision.

Most people do not want to pay more to go green. The survey showed that more than 50 percent of all global customers are unwilling to pay any kind of price premium for an electric vehicle, and among U.S. respondents that figure rose to 65 percent.

The survey also revealed that high fuel prices are a powerful factor in motivating people to buy an electric vehicle. In the US, more than half (53 percent) said a price point of $4 per gallon for gasoline would make them more likely to buy or lease an electric vehicle.

Deloitte polled more than 13,000 consumers in 17 countries in the Americas, Asia and Europe.

GM PLANS ALL-ELECTRIC CAR
General Motors confirmed it will make its first all-electric vehicle―a version of the Chevy Spark minicar that will debut in 2013 and take aim at Nissan's Leaf. Marketing an all-electric vehicle represents a slight departure in strategy for GM. The automaker has emphasized the ability of the Chevy Volt plug-in hybrid car to continue driving under gasoline power even after its electric charge has been used as a way to address consumer anxiety about being stranded while driving an all-electric car. "Chevrolet will produce an all-electric version of the Spark minicar for selected U.S. and global markets, including California," Jim Federico, Chevy's global chief engineer for electric vehicles, said at the company's Detroit headquarters October 12.

EMCO WHEATON APPOINTS EAST COAST ASSOCIATES
Emco Wheaton Retail Corporation, Wilson, North Carolina, has appointed East Coast Associates, Inc. to represent the company. Headquartered in New Jersey, East Coast Associates will provide representation in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland and Washington, D.C.

MEMBERSHIP APPLICATIONS
Massachusetts credit card processing firm. Petroleum Processing Solutions, 106 Southville Road, Southborough, Massachusetts 01772, has applied for affiliate division membership. Sandra L. Colligan is president of the firm, which was established in 2010. The company provides credit card processing services to unbranded and branded gasoline stations across the US as well as fleet card acceptance, gift and loyalty products to the petroleum industry. Sponsored for PEI membership by Thomas J. Dion, WildcoPtr, Bloomfield, CT. www.dpscorporate.com
South Africa contractor. Southern Africa Master Distributors, P. O. Box 3425, Cape Town, South Africa 8000, has applied for affiliate division membership. Kevin Black is managing director for the firm, which was established in 2004. The company resells pumps and provides service for forecourt stations in South Africa. Sponsored for PEI membership by Jay Walsh, FEPetro, Madison, WI. www.petrolpumps.co.za
Greece installation and service company. TPS - F. Triantafillou S.A., Terma 26 Oktovriou, Thessaloniki, Greece 54628, has applied for service and construction division membership. Dimitris Triantafillou is vice president and CEO of the firm, which was established in 1966. The company provides and installs dispensers, carwash equipment and other fueling station equipment. Sponsored for PEI membership by Ioannis Kalimnos, Kalymnos, Thessaloniki, Greece. www.tps.gr
Panama service and construction company. Equipsa Balboa, S.A., Urbanizacion Miraflores, Plaza Fernand, Local 3, Panama, Panama, has applied for service and construction division membership. Jorge Tobar is country manager for the firm, which was established in 2004. The company focuses on industrial equipment sales and technical service of petroleum marketing equipment. Sponsored for PEI membership by J. Gregory Hockman, HockmnLews, West Orange, NJ. www.equipsabalboa.net

ADMITTED TO PEI

Petroleum Logistics, Las Vegas, NV (dis)
BIG Services, Inc., Crawford, GA (S&C)

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The TulsaLetter (ISSN 0193-9467) is published two or three times each month by the Petroleum Equipment Institute. Robert N. Renkes, Executive Vice President, Editor. Opinions expressed are the opinions of the Editor. Basic circulation confined to PEI members.