A new partnership is conducting a year-long test project to demonstrate viability of 100 percent biodiesel (B100) in high-mileage fleet applications. Under this partnership, five trucks owned by ADM will be outfitted with Optimus Technologies’ Vector fuel system, an innovative technology that enables diesel engines to run almost entirely on sustainable biodiesel. The trucks will be used in daily fleet …
Biofuels Part of USDA Innovation Agenda
At the start of USDA’s 2020 Agriculture Outlook Forum on Thursday, Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the Agriculture Innovation Agenda, a new initiative to stimulate innovation so American agriculture can achieve the goal of increasing production by 40 percent while cutting the environmental footprint of U.S. agriculture in half by 2050. To do so, USDA has set benchmarks to …
Senators Urge Timely Processing of Biodiesel Tax Credits
Sens. Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) are urging Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner Charles Rettig to promptly process 2018-2019 claims for the biodiesel tax credit, which Congress retroactively reinstated at the end of 2019. “Timely payment of claims for 2018 and 2019 is necessary for the recovery of the entire biodiesel industry, including producers, blenders, and farmers,” the …
Buttigieg and Sanders Show Strong Biofuels Support
Initial Iowa Caucus results are showing Pete Buttigieg and Bernie Sanders in the lead, both of whom profess strong support for ethanol and biodiesel, according to Biofuels Vision 2020. In fact, all of the top candidates are friendly to biofuels, including Vice President Joe Biden, Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Sen. Elizabeth Warren. Biofuels Vision 2020 spent months asking …
Biodiesel Conference Wrap
The 2020 National Biodiesel Conference & Expo is a wrap and all of the content is now available on the Biodiesel Conference Blog. The conference, which was held Jan. 20-23 in Tampa, attracted more than 700 biodiesel producers, distributors, retailers, and other industry advocates from across the nation gathered in Tampa, Florida to set their sights on a new ambitious …
Comments Submitted for USDA Infrastructure Program
Biofuels organizations submitted comments this week on USDA’s proposed Higher Blends Infrastructure Incentive Program (HBIIP) to expand the availability of domestic ethanol and biodiesel by incentivizing the expansion of sales of renewable fuels and facilitating increased sales of higher biofuel blends (E15 or higher). The American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) made a number of recommendations that USDA should consider in …
First Iowa County Requires B20 for New Diesel Vehicles
Dickinson County has become the first in Iowa to follow the lead of Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds by declaring all new diesel vehicles procured by the county must be explicitly approved for the use of B20, 20% biodiesel. On December 3, 2019 Governor Reynolds signed an executive order declaring that new diesel vehicles procured by the state’s executive branch must …
Soybean Growers Show Biodiesel Support
American Soybean Association (ASA) CEO Ryan Findlay was on the program at the 2020 National Biodiesel Conference in Tampa last week, sharing his policy views for the new decade. A number of ASA directors were also in attendance showing their support for the biodiesel industry, which increases the value of U.S. soybean oil by 11 cents per pound and 63 …
Industry Celebrates Biodiesel Tax Credit Extension
Without question, the multi year biodiesel tax credit extension achieved at the end of 2019 was a tremendous victory for the industry. “No one is more relieved, excited and enthused to say we got it done – five years certainty through 2022!” said National Biodiesel Board Vice President of Federal Affairs Kurt Kovarik. “No other tax extender as large as …
New NBB Chair Optimistic for 2020
Renewable Energy Group (REG) CFO Chad Stone was elected as the new chairman for the National Biodiesel Board in November and he addressed the membership at the National Biodiesel Conference this week in Tampa. While 2019 was a disastrous year for the industry, which saw REG having to shut down a plant, Stone is very optimistic about biodiesel going forward. …