The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) is concerned about the company the meat industry is keeping in an “unholy” anti-ethanol alliance with some environmental groups that also have an anti-meat agenda. The alliance, which kicked off a major campaign last week opposing the proposed increase in the allowable level of ethanol in gasoline to 15 percent, includes the American Meat …
Ethanol Advertising Blitz
Expect to see ethanol advertising saturating the airwaves over the next few months. Growth Energy and POET both announced major television advertising campaigns this morning that will air on major cable television networks, including Fox News, MSNBC, CNBC, and CNN. The POET campaign includes three ads, each representing a different aspect of ethanol production with a farmer, a scientist and …
USDA Experts Say Ethanol Blend Wall is Close
Ethanol is getting very close to hitting the blend wall, according to economists with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. With four months in a row of record ethanol production and stagnant gasoline demand, ethanol stocks are increasing. “Margins have weakened a lot over the last few weeks,” says USDA chief economist Joe Glauber, and indicators are that the blend wall …
Economist Defends Ethanol Jobs Numbers
In a commentary on the Natural Resources Defense Council blog, the organization’s Director of Renewable Energy Policy Nathanael Greene criticizes the ethanol industry for what he calls a “highly inflated jobs study” released earlier this week. Greene claims the industry’s jobs numbers are “way off” because they use both inflated jobs multipliers and inflated economic impact, creating what he calls …
Growth Energy to Unveil Ethanol TV Campaign
Growth Energy is set to unveil an aggressive new television advertising campaign on Monday and is planning “watch parties” and press conferences at different locations around the country to kickoff the new commercials, as well as a live webcast. The $2.5 million national TV advertising campaign is being called a first for the ethanol industry. Growth Energy leadership, including co-chairman …
Ethanol Starts 2010 With Record Production
U.S. ethanol production began 2010 on a record pace. The latest report from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) puts January 2010 ethanol production at an average of more than 818,000 barrels per day, compared to 188,000 in January 2009. EIA also reports fuel ethanol imports of 1.4 million gallons in January. Ethanol demand, as calculated by the Renewable Fuels Association …
Biofuels Benchmarking Annual Report Released
Today, Christianson & Associates, PLLP (C&A) has released a new in-depth report that looks into ethanol plant efficiency and financial viability. The Biofuels Benchmarking Annual Report is in its 7th year and analyzed the operational and financial performance of more than 50 ethanol plants along five major “bench” areas: overall ethanol industry analysis, regional ethanol plant analysis, production capacity analysis, …
E85 for 85 Cents Off in Vestavia Hills, Alabama
In addition to the ethanol promotion, E85 customers can win one of five $100 fuel cards. The first 20 will receive two tickets to the race. UNICA renewed its fuel supply agreement with the Indy Racing League for the 2010 season in November of last year. Under the new agreement, the IZOD IndyCar Series will continue to utilize sugarcane ethanol …
Book Review – Enough
As I write this review, I’m sitting on my deck looking out at dozens of acres of avocado, orange and lemon trees. Yesterday, I helped to plant a vegetable garden – the produce being grown for a local restaurant. The irony is that as I am surrounded by abundance here in America, I’m reading about those in other countries who …
Loss of Ethanol Incentives Could Cost Jobs in Half the Nation
New research indicates that allowing the ethanol tax incentives to expire at the end of this year would mean job losses in 25 states, not just the Midwest. According to additional research conducted by economist John Urbanchuk, non-traditional ethanol producing states like California, Texas, Georgia, Colorado, and Tennessee would be hit by job losses due to the expiration of the …