An amendment to the Keystone pipeline bill would eliminate corn ethanol from the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), a move that ethanol industry groups say would set U.S. energy policy back by decades. The amendment was offered by Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Pat Toomey (R-PA) and Jeff Flake (R-AZ) on the premise that corn ethanol “drives up the cost of everything …
Ethanol Producers Meet RFS without Final Rule
The latest data from the Environmental Protection Agency shows that ethanol producers met the 2014 statutory requirements under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) without a final rule, according to the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA). RFA president and CEO Bob Dinneen says RIN generation data just released by the EPA show that 2014 volume obligations expected by Congress could have easily …
NEC Scholarship Award Winner Announced
The Renewable Fuels Association and Renewable Fuels Foundation are proud to announce the student scholarship award winner for the 20th annual National Ethanol Conference: Going Global next month in Grapevine, Texas. This year’s scholarship winner is Laís Thomaz of Brazil, who received her master’s degree in international relations in 2012 from San Tiago Dantas, a graduate program supported by three …
US Ethanol Exports Hit High, DDGS Drop in Nov.
Exports of U.S. ethanol hit a nearly three-year high, while shipments of dried distillers grains (DDGS) slipped in November of 2014. In a piece from Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) Senior Vice President Geoff Cooper, the biggest share of the 90.9 million gallons of ethanol, a 15 percent increase from just a month earlier, went to India and a couple of …
Oregon Moves Forward with Clean Fuels Program
The Oregon Environmental Quality Commission this week approved phase two of the Oregon Clean Fuels Program, which seeks to cut greenhouse gases by lowering the carbon content in Oregon transportation fuels. The new rules, developed by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, will go into effect February 1. The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) is pleased that the commission decided to …
Bill Introduced to Re-test E15 – Again
Anti-ethanol legislation has already been introduced this very first week of the brand new 114th Congress. On Tuesday, Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner (R-WI) introduced legislation to require additional testing for 15% ethanol blended fuel (E15), a bill he has repeatedly introduced over the past four years. Renewable Fuels Association president and CEO Bob Dinneen says the bill would hinder the growth …
Ethanol Report Looks at Year Ahead
Unfinished business and much of the same old attacks on the RFS are likely to dominate 2015 for the ethanol industry. In this edition of “The Ethanol Report,” Renewable Fuels Association president and CEO Bob Dinneen takes a look at what he expects to be some of the big issues for ethanol in the year ahead.
Ethanol Report 2014 Year in Review
Every year is interesting for the ethanol industry and 2014 was no exception. Some of the highlights included record production and sales, healthy exports, and the commercial reality of cellulosic ethanol. The low point of the year was definitely the inability of the federal government to set volume obligations for 2014 under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), leaving the industry …
China May Reopen Market for U.S. DDGs
News out this week that Chinese officials committed to Agriculture Secretary Vilsack that the ban on imports of U.S. distillers grains (DDGs) containing the MIR 162 trait will be dropped is being met with optimism by the ethanol industry. “While we are still awaiting the official regulatory announcement from China regarding the approval of this policy, it is welcome news …
Ethanol Report on RFS Anniversary
Today, December 19, marks the seventh anniversary of the signing into law of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 which expanded the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). In this Ethanol Report, Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) president and CEO Bob Dinneen remembers that day seven years ago and talks about its accomplishments so far and how EPA needs to move …