(Grand Island Independent) -- As the price of oil hit $110 per barrel and regular gas prices in Grand Island averaged $3.25 per gallon Thursday, ethanol was providing motorists some relief. With as much as a 7- to 10-cent-per-gallon difference between gasoline with 10% ethanol and regular unleaded, more Nebraskans are turning to ethanol to ease the higher cost of gasoline. According to the Nebraska Ethanol Board, ethanol sales in Nebraska hit a record high in December as 77% of gasoline sold contained ethanol. According to the latest short-term energy outlook from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, ethanol will reduce U.S. petroleum demand by 130,000 barrels per day in 2008.
