The California State Senate Committee on Transportation and Housing heard testimony Monday from the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) criticizing the proposed Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS). RFA Vice President of Research Geoff Cooper testified on behalf of the ethanol industry that under the standard proposed by the state Air Resources Board (ARB) “biofuels are penalized for a highly uncertain and …
Joint Work Toward Ethanol Pipeline
The nation’s largest ethanol producer is joining forces with a fuel transportation and distribution company to work on the development of a pipeline to deliver ethanol from the Midwest to distribution terminals in the northeastern United States. South Dakota-based POET just signed a joint development agreement with Magellan Midstream Partners of Tulsa, Oklahoma to continue assessing the feasibility of constructing …
Brazil and US Talk Ethanol Tariffs
President Barack Obama and President Lula da Silva of Brazil talked about the touchy topic of ethanol tariffs when they met for the first time on Saturday. Asked about their discussions during a joint press conference, President Obama praised Brazil for its leadership in biofuels but acknowledged that “the issue of Brazilian ethanol coming into the United States has been …
Navy Exchange Pumped Up on E85
The opening of an E-85 pump on Friday at Oceania Naval Air Station in Virginia Beach, Virginia received enthusiastic response from the public and the media. The Virginia-Pilot reported that, “A crowd of Navy officers, energy executives, a congressman and camera-toting media circled the first customer who pulled up to the shiny new pump, Petty Officer 1st Class Lacresha Fears.” …
Obama Wants to Maintain Ethanol Progress
Ethanol came up in a meeting this week between President Barack Obama and regional newspaper reporters in Washington D.C. According to the Des Moines Register, the president did not say whether the administration would increase the amount of ethanol that could be added to regular gasoline, as requested by the ethanol industry, but did indicate he would ultimately make that …
Corn Ethanol Remains Industry Building Block
As the ethanol industry seeks a waiver to allow the use of up to 15 percent ethanol in gasoline, corn-based ethanol remains the basic building block for increased use of the product nationwide. “We have to build the cellulosic industry on the foundation of corn-based ethanol,” Growth Energy co-chairman Wesley Clark told reporters during an appearance at the National Press …
California Ethanol Lawsuit Dropped
An oil refiner has dropped a lawsuit against the California Air Resources Board (CARB) challenging a regulation that would boost ethanol consumption in the state by 2010. According to a story in the Sacramento Business Journal, Tesoro Corporation dropped the lawsuit after a judge denied the company’s request for a temporary injunction to delay a new gasoline standard set to …
Accelerating Drive Toward Higher Blends
The drive toward higher blends of ethanol in gasoline is accelerating and the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) is working to ensure that the blend wall is just another bump in the road for ethanol to ride over. This edition of “The Ethanol Report” podcast features comments from RFA President and CEO Bob Dinneen, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, EPA Acting Biomass …
USDA Increases Corn for Ethanol Use
The newest supply demand report out from the US Department of Agriculture today increases estimates of corn for ethanol usage. According to the report, “U.S. corn ending stocks for 2008/09 are projected 50 million bushels lower this month as higher ethanol use more than offsets a reduction in exports. Corn use for ethanol is projected 100 million bushels higher on …
MOR Offers More for Ethanol Producers
An Illinois-based technology services company recently unveiled a new set of “2nd Generation” technologies aimed at increasing the sustainability and profitability of corn-based ethanol plants. According to MOR Technology, the MOR-Frac Plus+ Milling System in combination with their supercritical CO2 corn oil extraction technology can help plants “increase and diversify revenues by producing premium, value-added food-grade products, while also decreasing …