Total U.S. ethanol production for 2006 is expected to be almost 5 billion gallons, but it will be a while yet before the official numbers are calculated.
The latest figures from the Energy Information Administration are for October at 333,000 barrels per day (b/d), which is equal to September’s record production.
According to the Renewable Fuels Association, the U.S. ethanol industry was averaging 310,000 b/d of production through October, an annualized volume of 4.75 billion gallons. Industry estimates show ethanol production reaching 4.9 billion gallons for the year, an increase of more than 25 percent from 2005.