Assistant Secretary of Energy Audrey Robertson, head of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation, visited the Green Plains Renewable Energy facility in York, Nebraska on Wednesday. Robertson toured the facility and announced the new Emissions Value Request (EVR) process for the 45Z Clean Fuel Production Tax Credit. “Through the Department of Energy’s new 45Z …
DOE Updates Process for 45Z Fuel Production Credit
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Wednesday announced the Emissions Value Request (EVR) process for the 45Z Clean Fuel Production Tax Credit which provides a production incentive for certain feedstocks produced in the United States, Mexico, or Canada. Transportation fuel producers seeking to claim the tax credit must obtain the life cycle greenhouse gas emissions rate of their transportation fuel …
SIRE Acquires GreenAmerica Biofuels
Southwest Iowa Renewable Energy (SIRE) has acquired the GreenAmerica Biofuels ethanol plant in Ord, Nebraska, a subsidiary of Pilot Travel Centers. The acquisition is part of SIRE’s growth strategy to expand its production base, strengthen its scale, and create new opportunities for value-added agriculture by acquiring high-quality assets with strong operating track records, reliable feedstock supply and access to diverse …
Biofuels Industry Reacts to EPA Reallocation Proposal
Biofuels and agricultural stakeholders were pleased to see the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) propose reallocating 100 percent of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) volumes recently waived by the agency through Small Refinery Exemptions (SREs) for the 2025 compliance year. However, some also expressed reservations about the continuation of the exemption process going forward and its impact on increasing demand …
EPA Proposes Full SRE Volume Reallocation
While visiting Iowa Tuesday, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin announced revisions to the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) “Set 2” rule volumes, providing for 100 percent reallocation of the renewable fuel volume requirements to compensate for 29 small refinery exemptions announced at the end of August. The agency is proposing two options for revisions, both of which would reallocate …
Report Shows Ethanol’s Potential for Marine Fuel
A new report shows the potential for ethanol to make maritime shipping fuel more environmentally-friendly. “Ethanol as a marine fuel: exploring its usability” by the Maersk Mc-Kinney Møller Center examines ethanol’s potential as a low-carbon fuel for global maritime shipping and concludes that “ethanol is a promising drop-in option for methanol-fueled vessels.” “Ethanol is emerging as a technically viable complementary …
EPA on Track for Exempted Refinery Volumes Proposal
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is on track to propose a plan to reallocate Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) volumes lost due to 29 refinery exemptions granted in August. EPA reportedly sent a proposed rule to the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review last week. The draft rule is expected to account for about 1.76 billion renewable …
US Ethanol and DDGS Exports Hot in August
U.S. exports of ethanol and the co-product dried distillers grains (DDGS) were hot in August, with ethanol increasing six percent to a five-month high and DDGS up by a whopping 18% in August to the highest monthly volume since August 2015. According to the latest Trade Monitor report from the Renewable Fuels Association, ethanol exports totaled 211.8 million gallons (mg) …
RFA Holds Annual Membership Meeting in KC
The Renewable Fuels Association is holding its annual membership meeting this week in Kansas City, Missouri, where they elected officers and board of directors for the 2027 fiscal year. Derek Peine, CEO of Western Plains Energy in Oakley, Kan., was re-elected chairman and Thomas Harwood, CEO of Al-Corn Clean Fuel in Claremont, Minn., won re-election as vice chairman. Peine has …
Ethanol Report on 45Z Opportunities
U.S. ethanol producers are finally getting the chance to take full advantage of the Section 45Z Clean Fuel Production Tax Credit, which was first created under the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, then extended and modified in the One Big Beautiful Bill of 2025, and is in the last stages of a final rule. Earlier this month, the IRS published …