Are you hesitating to convert your car to ethanol, but you are afraid that you will not find this fuel easily enough? Good news: gas stations that offer E85 are now numerous, and applications can help you find them easily.
They were only 360 less than ten years ago, in December 2013. Today, they are more than 2,700. In a few years, the number of service stations distributing E85 ethanol has literally exploded. A progression which has not forgotten any region, except Corsica and the overseas territories where this fuel remains absent. Nothing to do with natural gas, for example, which has to make do with 252 pumps in France. Despite its presence in the Dacia and Renault ranges, LPG has also been overtaken, with only 1,650 establishments. Crossing France using only E85 has now become much easier, especially since the geographical coverage now appears fairly homogeneous. If some departments remain better served than others, none is completely left out. Only globetrotters will be at their expense, because ethanol remains a rare commodity in most other European countries and does not benefit from the same tax advantages.
Slowing growth
But even in France, do not expect to find this mixture of gasoline and alcohol of plant origin as easily as conventional gasoline or diesel. Nearly 70% of service stations do not yet distribute superethanol, and Total, which offers it in more than 840 establishments, has warned that the growth of the network will slow down sharply this year. Even if it is still possible to fill up with unleaded 95 if necessary, it is better to inquire if you want to be sure to supply your car with this fuel almost half the price. An obligation to hope to “profit” the investment required by the installation of an approved box, which costs between 700 and 1,600 € if you do not benefit from a possible regional subsidy.
Applications at your service
The easiest way to find the nearest stations is the My E85 stations application, launched in June 2020 by the Bioethanol collective and available on Google Play and on the App Store. All establishments near your location will then be displayed, with the price per liter of ethanol. When you have made your choice, you can then decide to launch the guidance which will be carried out via a classic navigation application such as Google Maps or Waze.
The latter also offers you to define E85 as your “preferred fuel”. On the other hand, it is not currently able to direct you in priority to establishments distributing superethanol. It is only its price at the pump that will then be indicated as a priority, making use less practical than on My E85 stations. Finally, some of the many apps specializing in fuel price comparison, such as Zagaz or Essence & Co, can also serve as an alternative because they include E85 in the filters they offer. But you can also stay on the L’argus site and use the interactive map that we offer below, provided by one of the two main manufacturers of converter boxes in France, Flexfue Energy Development.
READ ALSO: All you need to know about E85 ethanol: prices, models, boxes…
