Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM) opened a new 300 million gallon per year ethanol plant in Columbus, Nebraska on Friday. The grand opening ceremony featured ADM President Patricia Woertz, U.S. Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska, Nebraska Lieutenant Gov. Rick Sheehy and other honored guests. “We at ADM are proud to harness the power and ingenuity of American agriculture to help …
GAO Urges Changes to Energy Department Loan Program
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has issued a report urging the Department of Energy (DOE) to make changes to its current loan guarantee program to make it more effective. This program is intended to support “early commercial production and use of new or significantly improved technologies in energy projects that abate emissions of air pollutants or of greenhouse gases” including …
New Texas E85 Station
MidTex Oil has opened the first E85 station in New Braunfels, Texas, which is located between Austin and San Antonio. “We are focused on providing our customers with what they want. Whether it is our one-stop shop Pit Stop Food Marts and Fischer’s Market concept stores to make their lives more convenient or giving them an alternative to gasoline derived …
NBB Pleased to See EPA’s Biodiesel Requirement
Today’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announcement to require the domestic use of 800 million gallons of biodiesel in 2011 is being welcomed by the National Biodiesel Board. The group says the number, established under the new Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS2), shows that biodiesel is the only widely accepted, commercial scale Advanced Biofuel produced in the U.S. that meets the definition …
William & Mary Turns Fish Killer Into Biodiesel
Virginia’s College of William and Mary is turning algae, which is killing fish in a local lake, into biodiesel. This article from the Daily Press says the school, working with industry and other universities, is using a flume to remove the algae from Lake Matoaka: A rectangle-shaped floating dock with its midsection removed, the flume acts as a channel that …
Industry Concerned About Lowering Cellulosic Ethanol Goals
A big change in the 2011 proposed targets for the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS2) set forth by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today lowers the volume for cellulosic ethanol, compared to what is in the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA). The proposed goal for cellulosic biofuels next year under the proposal is now a range of 5 …
EIA Looks at Ethanol Blend Wall
The July 8 Energy Information Administration (EIA) “This Week in Petroleum” report takes a look at the fast approaching ethanol blend wall, predicting ethanol’s share of the gasoline market will reach the 10% saturation point by the beginning of 2011. During April 2010 an estimated 834,000 bbl/d (12.8 billion gallons per year [BGY]) of fuel ethanol was blended into gasoline, …
EPA Proposes 2011 Renewable Fuel Standard
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today released a proposal for comment that sets the 2011 percentage standards under the agency’s Renewable Fuel Standard program, known as RFS2. The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA) established the annual renewable fuel volume targets, reaching an overall level of 36 billion gallons in 2022. To achieve these volumes, EPA calculates …
New Jersey Passes Offshore Wind Development Act
At the end of June, the Cape Wind project received federal approval much to the dismay of vocal opponents. This will be the first off-shore wind project in the U.S. and will consist of 130 wind turbines and the project is expected to be complete in 2012. While the debate was raging on around Cape Wind, several other states were …
MO Ethanol Plant Helps Feed Hungry
With the help of corn growers and FFA members, a northwest Missouri ethanol plant helped provide 2,600 meals for hungry families in the Kansas City area last week. Mid-Missouri Energy, a farmer-owned ethanol plant near Malta Bend, Mo., donated a plot of land to grow sweet corn for the hungry. Members of the Missouri Corn Growers Association (MCGA) and Malta …