Two main reasons for it costing more. First, the entire fuel transport system is set up to handle ethanol-tainted
fuel, so anything you do with shipping pure fuel is special, small-quantity and abnormal. Most tainted fuel
is shipped in pipelines. If you ship a different fuel, they put in a divider, then start using the new kind.
A certain amount at the division still intermingles, and can't be sold as the pure no-ethanol, even though
it was this when it entered the pipeline. So, in shipment some is lost (sold as ethanol fuel, even though it
may be ALMOST ethanol free). That is a cost for the ethanol free - lost quantity. Or, I would bet that
a lot of times the ethanol free is shipped by rail car and/or tanker truck. Far more expensive than
pipeline shipping. All these "special problem" shipment issues significantly increase costs.
Second, it requires a separate tank and separate pump at the gas station, which is a big cost up
front, you would be shocked at the costs, I think. And, those high costs are spread out over perhaps
10% or even less of the fuel flowage that the "Regular" gas tank and pump costs are spread over.
And finally - because it is special product with limited competition - they can get you to buy it at
a higher cost, so they will get as much as they can. It only costs about 40 cents per gallon more here,
but in coastal GA, it is a full $1.00 more per gallon. And folks there with boats need it, and very few
stations have the special tankage, so they get a huge kicker on cost.
Bill