U.S. Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL) is the sponsor of a new measure designed to ensure that a portion of America’s future diesel fuel supply is renewable. In a release from the National Biodiesel Board (of course, the NBB heartily endorses this bill), the Biodiesel Promotion and Quality Assurance Act would up the amount of biodiesel and “bio-based replacement diesel” that …
US BioEnergy Celebrates Ethanol Plant Ground Breaking
This Friday, officials with US BioEnergy including CEO Gordon Ommen, along with Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, Fagen, Inc. CEO Ron Fagen, Minnesota Corn Growers Association Vice President Roger Moore, and local officials will celebrate the groundbreaking of a 100-million-gallon-a-year ethanol plant at Janesville, Minnesota. The ceremony starts at 11:00 a.m. In a release, US BioEnergy explains the importance of this …
Ford E85 Escape Hybrids
The first E85 Escape Hybrids are hitting the streets this week, as Ford Motor Company delivered three of 20 new vehicles Wednesday to the Department of Energy, the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA), and the Governors’ Ethanol Coalition. RFA president Bob Dinneen was all smiles as he climbed into the driver’s seat of the new vehicle which combines hybrid and flex-fuel …
Propane Helping Out Dairies
Here’s an interesting application for propane that targets the dairy industry from a company that’s known for making gas fired appliances. One of the companies that the Propane Education & Research Council is working with on some projects is Rinnai. One thing they’re doing that is real interesting is tankless water heaters. As you’ll hear in my interview with Mike …
Propane Powered Mowers
We think of propane as a cooking or heating fuel but how about mowers? I met Chris Row with Manchester Tank here at Propane Days and we talked about mowers. Chris says that his company is working with several OEM’s to bring propane powered mowers to market. I think they’re focusing on mower fleets primarily at this point. He says …
Propane Days and PERC
This morning I met with the President/CEO of the Propane Education & Research Council, Roy Willis. He was on hand at the sessions taking place for the 3rd Annual Propane Days here in Washington, DC. Roy says PERC’s goal here is to help educate policy makers so that they make good decisions based on sound science and research. I asked …
Trucking With Propane
As I promo’d last week, I’m here in Washington, DC at Propane Days. The Roush F-150 Propane Injection Truck is the first thing I got to learn about since it was on display right outside the hotel where the main program is taking place. To learn all about it I interviewed Tom Arnold, director, Roush Manufacturing. He says that the …
Michigan Utility to Buy John Deere Wind Power
A Michigan utility has inked a 20-year deal to buy renewable energy from John Deere. According to this story on IndustryWeek.com, Wolverine Power Cooperative will get the power from Harvest Wind Farm, LLC… principally owned by John Deere: The wind farm, which has been under development for three years, is slated for Huron County, Michigan. John Deere Wind Energy is …
Senate Considering New Ethanol Legislation
The U.S. Senate is considering a bill this week that would continue to promote investment in traditional ethanol production while also pushing investments in research, technology and infrastructure for cellulosic ethanol production. This article on Grainnet.com says the bill has the backing of the Renewable Fuels Association: “Record-high gas prices, continued unrest in oil-producing regions of the world and the …
Ethanol Likely to Pass Goal
Officials with the National Corn Growers Association say the U.S. is on target to reach a 15-billion-gallon-a-year production goal… much earlier than the original 2015 goal. In fact, NCGA President Ken McCauley tells the Kansas City Star that goal could be reached as early as 2011 or 2012: That reflects the growing confidence within the ethanol industry about its prospects …