Nancy Swarts

    A new business is popping up at the northwest corner of the Milford Interstate 80 exchange.
     Steve Rogge of Milford is working on his company's new E-85 filling station, which will provide 85 percent ethanol fuel for flexible fuel vehicles (FFVs).
     "Biodiesel may be right behind it," said Rogge of MSMSS Rogge Enterprises, Inc. He's applying for grants to support the venture.
     The E-85 station should be ready for customers next month. It will have above-ground fuel storage tanks which will be unattended and card operated. Provided everything goes smoothly with the Fire Marshal and the Seward Planning Commission, Rogge also hopes to have disability-compliant restrooms and a vending machine area in a building he's moved onto the location.
     He plans to install in-floor radiant heat and hopes to eventually use wind and solar energy for his electricity.
     The fuel tanks he's using are 12,000-gallon, dual-walled fire guard tanks, approved for above-ground storage.
     He's targeting Interstate traffic and some of the six million FFVs in the country.
     Rogge appears to be the first in Nebraska to locate an E-85 station right off the Interstate. The Nebraska Ethanol Board will assist him with advertising. They promise to hold a grand opening, as well as provide signs on the Interstate. The station will also be listed on the OnStar Virtual Advisor.
     According to a State of Nebraska press release, 55,000 Nebraskans currently own FFVs, which burn fuel primarily made from corn.
     Rogge's fuel station won't be affiliated with any company.
     "I don't want to be tied down to any company because I don't want to be tied down to their price," he said.
     Nebraska will soon rank second in ethanol production with more than 930 million gallons of ethanol produced annually at 16 plants across the state.
     "E-85 is cleaner than gas, it's produced here in Nebraska, and more and more cars can use it every year," said Todd Sneller, Nebraska Ethanol Board Administrator. "When FFV drivers fill up on E-85, they're strengthening Nebraska's economy, making our country more energy independent and going easier on the environment."