The Environmental Protection Agency issued final rules Wednesday to qualify additional fuel pathways for the production of cellulosic biofuel, including crop residue such as corn fiber. EPA has now determined that crop residue does meet the lifecycle greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction requirements for cellulosic biofuel under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) provided that “producers include in their registration specific information …
Iowa Plant Produces First Cellulosic Ethanol
The very first commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol gallons produced in Iowa flowed from the Quad County Corn Processors (QCCP) distillation unit Tuesday, bringing smiles to the faces of the plant team members who posed with a bottle of the historic fuel. The event marks the official commissioning of the farmer-owned ethanol plant’s Adding Cellulosic Ethanol (ACE) project, which broke ground in …
Ethanol Report on Advanced Ethanol Concerns
Advanced Ethanol Council (AEC) executive director Brooke Coleman commented last week on a new Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report on the impacts of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) so we got him on the phone for this edition of “The Ethanol Report.” In this interview, Coleman talks about his take on the CBO report, as well as Phantom Fuels legislation …
Supreme Court Turns Down California LCFS Case
In the flurry of decisions by the Supreme Court released the morning, justices declined to review California’s low-carbon fuel standard (LCFS) decision. A federal trial judge ruled against the LCFS in 2011 but the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed that ruling last year and denied rehearing the case in January. The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) and Growth Energy …
DF Cast: Finding Ways to Increase Ethanol Blends
While the ethanol industry awaits the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision on the amount of ethanol to be blended into the nation’s fuel supply, ethanol producers are looking at other ways to make sure the green fuel increases its blend amounts. In this edition of the Domestic Fuel Cast, we hear from Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis, Dean Drake with the …
Biofuels and Wind Waiting on Action
Environmental Protection Agency administrator Gina McCarthy said earlier this year that they planned to issue a final rule on the proposed volume requirements under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) in “late spring or early summer” but spring is gone and summer is here and there’s been no word yet. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) said last week that he thought the …
CBO Releases RFS Report
The Congressional Budget Office has released a new report, “Renewable Fuel Standard: Issues for 2014 and Beyond“. The evaluates how much the supply of various types of renewable fuels would have to increase over the next several years to comply with the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has yet to finalize its 2014 proposed rule, …
Ethanol Boat Races Ride Into Garnett
Love to race? Love to boat? Then consider attending the Garnett Ethanol Hydroplane Shootout in Garnett, Kansas July 12-13, 2014. The competition, sponsored by the National Boat Racing Association (NBRA, pits drivers of hydroplanes and roundabouts against each other. The race is sponsored by the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA), East Kansas Agri-Energy, and the Kansas Corn Commission. Admission is free …
Murphy USA Offering E15, E85 in Indianola, IA
Murphy USA is now offering E15 and E85 in Indianola, Iowa location. This station is the first one to begin selling the ethanol fuel blends in Iowa, with six more locations coming online over the next few months. By the end of the summer, E15 and E85 will be available at Murphy USA locations in Clinton, Davenport, Fort Dodge, Mason …
Iowa Sets New Record for First Quarter E85 Sales
Iowa flex-fuel drivers (FFVs) have set a new E85 record with the purchase of 2,707,231 gallons of E85 in the first quarter of 2014, according to data released by the Iowa Department of Revenue. The more than 2.7 million gallons of E85 sold is a new first quarter record, and nearly a 48 percent increase over the first quarter of …