A new analysis from the Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD) at Iowa State University shows that any action to artificially cap Renewable Identification Number (RIN) prices in exchange for a waiver allowing year-round sale of E15 would result in reduced ethanol consumption, a drop in corn prices, and an effective cut of 5% to the Renewable Fuel Standard …
Ethanol Report on RINs in the White House
President Donald Trump has been meeting with stakeholders in the biofuels and refinery industries to find a way to lower Renewable Identification Number (RIN) prices that is acceptable to both sides. Two main options are a cap on RIN prices, or allowing year round sales of E15, or some combination of both. In this edition of The Ethanol Report, we …
Enogen® Premiums Will Top $100 Million in 2018
For the past five years, Enogen® corn enzyme technology has given farmers the opportunity to be enzyme suppliers for participating ethanol plants and earn a per-bushel premium, and by the end of this year, Syngenta expects total premiums paid to Enogen corn growers to top $100 million. Syngenta made that announcement at the Commodity Classic last week. Chris Tingle, head …
Final 2017 Numbers Show Record Ethanol Production
The official tally for U.S. ethanol production in 2017 is 15.84 billion gallons, up three percent from the previous year and a new record, according to the latest data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA). Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) president and CEO Bob Dinneen says the data also indicates record domestic ethanol blending, with 14.4 billion gallons blended into 142.9 …
Perdue Answers RINs Question During Town Hall
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue held a town hall on the main stage in the Commodity Classic Trade Show Thursday and answered some questions from a few of the hundreds of farmers who gathered to watch and listen. Former National Corn Growers Association president Pam Johnson of Iowa wanted to know specifically if the secretary supported a cap on …
Study Finds RIN Cap Would Devastate Biofuels
A new analysis by University of Illinois economist Scott Irwin finds that the impact of a 10-cent cap on RIN prices, as proposed by Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, would be “catastrophic” for the renewable fuels industry. Specifically, such a price cap would serve as the mortar in the oil industry’s attempt to rebuild the “blend wall.” Irwin finds that “…the …
President Meets With RFS Stakeholders
A White House meeting Thursday with representatives from both the biofuels and refinery industries was the latest effort this week to try and find a compromise on the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) that is acceptable to both sides. Biofuels representatives at the meeting included Todd Becker of Green Plains Renewable Energy; Jeff Broin, POET; Charlie Good, Iowa fuel retailer; Bill …
Perdue Pledges “Unequivocal” Support for RFS
A lot of drama and speculation preceded the appearance of Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue at Commodity Classic, thanks to some reports questioning his support for the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), so he wasted no time in stating his “unequivocal” support for the law. “I have not and will not support any policies in this country that diminish the demand, undermine …
Second Iowa Plant Commits to Monarch Habitat
Southwest Iowa Renewable Energy (SIRE) is preparing to establish a Monarch Fueling Station on its property near Council Bluffs, the second Iowa biofuels facility to commit to creating monarch butterfly habitat. “We saw creating a Monarch Fueling Station as a great opportunity to protect an important aspect of our state’s environment,” said SIRE CEO Brian Cahill. “The SIRE board views …
Northey Confirmed But No White House Deal on RFS
Bill Northey is at last free to take the job at USDA that he was nominated for almost six months ago after Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) lifted his hold on the nomination and allowed the confirmation Tuesday. The Senate confirmed Northey on a voice vote to become USDA’s undersecretary for farm production and conservation as Sens. Cruz, Pat Toomey (R-PA), …