The Clean Fuels Development Coalition, the Clean Fuels Foundation, and the National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition have teamed with the Nebraska Ethanol Board and received a grant from the Nebraska Department of Economic Development and the Nebraska Rural Development Commission that was announced here today. CFDC and NEVC will work with ethanol producers and E85 distributors and marketers to conduct a …
Biomass Advisory Committee Members
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Acting Secretary Chuck Conner and U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Samuel Bodman today announced the appointment of six new members and the reappointment of seven members to serve on its Biomass Research and Development Technical Advisory Committee for a term of three years. The Committee was established by the Biomass Research and Development Act …
Auto Show Highlights Ethanol Powered Concept Cars
It is easy being green this year at the 2008 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit. Reece Nanfito, Marketing Director for the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council, is there and he reports that “the whole place is buzzing about alternative fuels.” Ferrari is showing a Biofuel Ferrari for North America that is all about being green. The Associated …
American Le Mans to Offer E85
E85, a blend of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline, will make its appearance in 2008 as a fuel alternative in the American Le Mans Series. According to the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council, two automotive manufactures will run E85 during the 2008 season, Corvette Racing and Aston Martin Racing. “This is the first time a racing series has …
Reuters Biofuels Summit Focus on Cellulosic
Cellulosic was all the buzz at the Reuters Global Agriculture and Biofuels Summit this week and prognosticators are now saying it is much closer to reality than ever before. One speaker at the summit said that biomass ethanol is just 2-3 years away. “We should see the first commercial-scale plants coming on line in late-2009, early-2010,” said Richard Hamilton, President …
Ethanol Price Rebound
Ethanol prices are up. This story in the Wichita Eagle reports that ethanol prices have gone up 35 cents a gallon since mid-November. “It’s a little bit of a surprise to see how much the market has rebounded,” said Dave VanderGriend, president of ICM at Colwich, one of the nation’s largest designers and builders of ethanol plants. “There’s still an …
One Million Gallon Milestone
Flex-fuel vehicle owners in Oshkosh, Wis. have purchased over one million gallons of E85 at the Renew fuel station located at Highway 76 and 41. Consumers took 830 days to purchase one million gallons of E85 and are well on their way to purchasing more. This marks the first time a Wisconsin gas station has sold more than a million …
GM Makes Cellulosic Investment
An announcement by General Motors CEO Rick Wagoner at the opening of the North American International Auto Show in Detroit yesterday made for big alternative energy news nationwide. Wagoner announced GM’s partnership with Coskata, an Illinois company that has a process for for turning wood chips, grasses, or municipal waste into ethanol. Coskata uses a proprietary process that leverages patented …
Ethanol Outlook for 2008
2008 could be an even better year than 2007 for the ethanol industry. That’s the outlook of Renewable Fuels Association president Bob Dinneen. In the first “Ethanol Report” podcast for 2008, Dinneen gazes into his crystal ball and sees blue skies and big challenges for the ethanol industry this year. “I think we will continue to see dramatic growth in …
Ethanol Pioneer Dies
One of the original ethanol visionaries has passed away, but the plant he helped to build in 1984 continues to operate. The Washington Post today published the obituary of Donald Evans, a Washington area lawyer and “70s ethanol pioneer,” as the headline reads. In 1980, he and other partners formed New Energy Inc. of Indiana to build a $185 million …