President Obama held a public signing ceremony for the tax bill passed by Congress this week that delivers early Christmas presents for everyone. Among those in attendance at the signing were some 150 members of Congress, administration officials and key stakeholder and advocates who worked to pass the bill, including representatives from the ethanol industry. Both Renewable Fuels Association president …
Industry Welcomes Back Fed Biodiesel Tax Incentive
Passage of the federal tax bill and sending it to President Obama for his signature is being welcomed by many in the renewable energy field, especially the biodiesel industry. The nation’s largest biodiesel producer, Iowa-based Renewable Energy Group, had quick praise for the approval, which retroactively renews the year-long expired $1-a-gallon federal biodiesel tax incentive: “The reinstatement and retroactivity of …
House Passes Tax Bill with Biofuel Incentives
Congress burning the midnight oil passed the tax cut legislation that will help the United States burn less foreign oil. The final vote was 277-148 on the Middle Class Tax Relief Act of 2010 (H.R. 4853) that now goes to the president’s desk to be signed into law. Despite opposition from some Democrats the bill passed without any changes. In …
Company Proposes to Build Toronto Biodiesel Plant
A Canadian company wants to turn an 8,600 square-foot building in Toronto into a biodiesel plant. Biodiesel Magazine reports that Energy Innovation Corp., with some help from Invest Toronto, will build the 1.3 million gallon-a-year plant in the downtown part of the city’s port lands area, near existing ship, truck and rail transportation infrastructure: According to Patrick Dwyer, EIC vice …
Canada’s RFS Officially In Effect
Today marks a big day for supporters of renewable fuel in Canada. The country’s Renewable Fuels Standard has officially gone into effect. This adds nearly two billion litres of renewable fuels including ethanol and biodiesel, into the country’s gasoline pool each year and according to the Canadian Renewable Fuels Association (CRFA) will “change the way Canadians drive going forward.” In …
Senate Passes Tax Package
The Senate has overwhelmingly passed what is likely to be an early Christmas present for everyone, including renewable energy interests, with tax credits for ethanol and biodiesel extended for another year. The vote was 81 to 19 to pass the bill, which was primarily to extend both unemployment benefits and the Bush era tax cuts. The House is expected to …
Opinion Piece Defends Palm Oil Biodiesel
A decision by Hawaiian Electric Co. (HECO) to build a biodiesel plant that will convert palm oil into biodiesel to be used by the utility to produce electricity has garnered the ire of some environmentalists, who decry the use of palm oil for the green fuel. But this opinion piece in the Honolulu Star Advertiser defends the plant. Tom Tanton, …
Sen. Grassley Defends Ethanol Tax Credit
During his Tuesday morning press call with agriculture reporters, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) once again defended the tax credit for ethanol being extended in the tax bill poised to be passed by the Senate. “Extension of both the ethanol credit and tariff have garnered a great deal of attention,” Grassley said. “It’s easy to see that ethanol has proved its …
Biodiesel Tax Incentive Clears Cloture; NBB Optimistic
The federal $1-a-gallon biodiesel blenders credit has cleared an important legislative hurdle, and the National Biodiesel Board is optimistic it will become law. Earlier today, the U.S. Senate voted to end debate (invoking cloture) on the package of tax credits, including the biodiesel incentive, by a bipartisan 83-15 margin. As the vote was going on, I talked to the NBB’s …
New Land Use Change Report Released
According to CABI and Hart Energy Consulting, while there has been much attention given to the idea that biofuel development will change land use around the world, there are still many gaps in knowledge about how much and in what ways those changes will manifest. To determine where more information about land use change is needed, the two organizations worked …