As we prepare to celebrate our nation’s Independence Day, many of us will be out on the roads driving to see family, friends and fireworks. But, thanks to upheaval in a little country halfway across the world, gas prices are up again so we are going to be paying more at the pump, a stark reminder that we are not …
RINs Around the Rosy
Renewable Identification Numbers, better known in the renewable energy world as RINs, are serious business, but there’s actually an app on the market to make them a bit more fun. The Energy Policy Research Foundation, Inc. (EPRINC) introduced the RFS compliance calculator earlier this year as a free download on Apple’s App Store, allowing you to “model various RFS and …
Corn Fiber Approved as Cellulosic Feedstock
The Environmental Protection Agency issued final rules Wednesday to qualify additional fuel pathways for the production of cellulosic biofuel, including crop residue such as corn fiber. EPA has now determined that crop residue does meet the lifecycle greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction requirements for cellulosic biofuel under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) provided that “producers include in their registration specific information …
Georgia State Fleet Looking to Ramp Up With Ethanol
The Georgia Alternative Fuel Road Rally has ended after two weeks of crisscrossing the state to promote alternative fuels. According to the FlexFuel Awareness Campaign, the success of the rally could increase the use of ethanol in FFVs. Todd Sneller, administrator of the Nebraska Ethanol Board and a board member of the FlexFuel Awareness Campaign, spoke with government officials and …
Iowa Plant Produces First Cellulosic Ethanol
The very first commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol gallons produced in Iowa flowed from the Quad County Corn Processors (QCCP) distillation unit Tuesday, bringing smiles to the faces of the plant team members who posed with a bottle of the historic fuel. The event marks the official commissioning of the farmer-owned ethanol plant’s Adding Cellulosic Ethanol (ACE) project, which broke ground in …
Nebraska Ethanol Sector Leads Manufacturing Wages
According to Nebraska Department of Labor’s Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages Program, over the last decade, Nebraska’s ethanol production sector outpaced all other manufacturing groups in the state in terms of wages earned. For example, in 2013 the average annual wage in the ethanol sector was $59,541 while the average for all other manufacturing sectors was $39,966. “Nebraska’s ethanol …
Ethanol Report on Advanced Ethanol Concerns
Advanced Ethanol Council (AEC) executive director Brooke Coleman commented last week on a new Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report on the impacts of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) so we got him on the phone for this edition of “The Ethanol Report.” In this interview, Coleman talks about his take on the CBO report, as well as Phantom Fuels legislation …
Supreme Court Turns Down California LCFS Case
In the flurry of decisions by the Supreme Court released the morning, justices declined to review California’s low-carbon fuel standard (LCFS) decision. A federal trial judge ruled against the LCFS in 2011 but the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed that ruling last year and denied rehearing the case in January. The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) and Growth Energy …
Industry Highlights Flaws in CBO Report
In an update to a story posted last week regarding the new CBO report, “Renewable Fuel Standard: Issues for 2014 and Beyond,” more renewable energy industry representatives are speaking out regarding what they say are flaws in the report. Tom Buis, CEO of Growth Energy said of the report, “This report looks at unrealistic scenarios and completely ignores the very …
DF Cast: Finding Ways to Increase Ethanol Blends
While the ethanol industry awaits the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision on the amount of ethanol to be blended into the nation’s fuel supply, ethanol producers are looking at other ways to make sure the green fuel increases its blend amounts. In this edition of the Domestic Fuel Cast, we hear from Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis, Dean Drake with the …