Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) President and CEO Geoff Cooper, an Army veteran, was honored this week by the Department of Defense Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve office “for contributing to national security and protecting liberty and freedom by supporting employee participation in America’s national guard and reserve force.” Under Cooper’s leadership, RFA last year founded Veterans for Renewable …
SAF Stakeholders Call for Farm Bill Provisions
Industry stakeholders representing nearly the entire supply chain for Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) are calling on House and Senate Agriculture Committee leaders to include provisions in the Farm Bill to boost the role of American farms in fueling low-carbon aviation. “SAF, which can be produced from renewable biomass and agriculture-based feedstocks, presents an opportunity to expand U.S. markets for agricultural …
Nebraska Governor Signs SAF Tax Credit Bill
Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen has signed into law the establishment of a production tax credit for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) in Nebraska. The SAF tax credit (LB937) will provide a $0.75 per gallon tax credit for the production of aviation fuel that reduces lifecycle emissions by at least 50 percent, which may be calculated based on the most recent version …
Indigo Ag and Red Trail Energy Partner for Low CI Corn
Sustainable agriculture company Indigo Ag and North Dakota bioethanol producer Red Trail Energy (RTE) have announced a collaboration to source low carbon intensity (CI) corn to support farmers using sustainable practices and benefit from emerging clean fuels market tax credit programs. Utilizing Indigo’s proven measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) and remote sensing capabilities, RTE will work with Indigo Ag to …
USDA Awards $43 Million in HBIIP Grants
Agriculture Deputy Secretary Xochitl Torres Small traveled to Erie, Pennsylvania this week to announce that USDA is awarding more than $43 million in grants through the Higher Blends Infrastructure Incentive Program (HBIIP) to business owners to increase the availability of domestic biofuels in 15 states and give Americans cleaner, more affordable fuel options. HBIIP provides grants to fueling station and …
Ethanol Industry Pleased EPA Issues Summer E15 Waiver
The Environmental Protection Agency today issued a waiver to allow E15 (15 percent ethanol fuel) to continue to be sold this summer. The temporary waiver under the Clean Air Act was issued “to address extreme and unusual fuel supply circumstances caused by a confluence of events, including the ongoing war in Ukraine and conflict in the Middle East, that are …
USTR Working on Brazil Market Access for U.S. Ethanol
During a Senate Finance Committee hearing this week, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) asked U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Ambassador Katherine Tai about the Biden administration’s “abdication of leadership on trade” and urged her to work on getting Brazil to lower tariffs on U.S. ethanol. “The last time you appeared before this committee I urged you to negotiate lower tariffs on ethanol …
Year-Round E15 Act Introduced in House
The Year-Round E15 Act was introduced this week in the U.S. House by Rep. Zach Nunn (R-IA) together with colleagues Adrian Smith (R-NE), Nikki Budzinski (D-IL), Brad Finstad (R-MN), Eric Sorensen (D-IL), and Don Bacon (R-NE). The legislation would allow for retail sales of E15 this summer across eight Midwestern states which EPA has approved for the Reid Vapor Pressure …
Iowa Ag Secretary Urges EPA to Approve Summer E15
Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig this week sent a letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael Regan urging him to immediately sign an “emergency waiver” to allow summer sales of E15 (15% ethanol fuel) this year. In February, the EPA approved a request by Governor Reynolds and seven other Midwest governors to allow the sale of E15 fuel …
U.S.-Japan Alliance Includes Ethanol as Carbon Reducer
President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida last week announced several new strategic initiatives to further advance the U.S.-Japan Alliance, including the importance of ethanol as a decarbonization solution within the transportation sector. A Joint Leaders’ Statement issued by the White House stated, “We intend to advance widespread adoption of innovative new clean energy technologies, and seek to …