In an opinion that splits from other circuits, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit last week refused to transfer several oil refineries’ challenges to the Biden administration’s renewable fuel standard exemption denials to federal court in Washington, D.C.

In its 2-1 decision, the New Orleans-based appeals court also vacated the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision to reject requests from six small refineries to be waived from complying with federal renewable fuel standards.