Ethanol is Second Place for Valero
Valero may be in the ethanol business now with its purchase of eight former VeraSun plants, but oil is still the company’s first priority. That’s why they are not backing the ethanol industry’s request for an increase in the ethanol blend level to 15 percent. According to an article in Ethanol Producer Magazine, Valero maintains its membership in the National …
Silver Anniversary for Ethanol Workshop
The ethanol industry has grown tremendously in the last 25 years – and so has the International Fuel Ethanol Workshop and Expo (FEW). “The first event in 1985 had four tabletop exhibits and 36 people,” according to Mike Bryan, CEO of BBI International, which organizes the FEW. Last year, FEW 2008 featured over 4,000 attendees and nearly 1,000 exhibits. It …
Midwest Senators Sponsor Biofuels Pipeline Bill
The Midwest has plenty of ethanol and biodiesel… the big population centers in the Eastern United States needs those renewable fuels. You’d think it would be a match made in heaven, but the lack of infrastructure to move those biofuels has been a problem, adding extra transportation costs. But a new piece of legislation looks to rectify that. According to …
Ethanol Blending Tests May Take Another Year
A senior agency official with the U.S. EPA says they may need another year to determine how blending ethanol in gasoline over the current 10 percent limit would affect vehicles and nonroad equipment. EPA is working with the Energy Department to try to determine whether “mid-level” blends at 13 or 15 percent will affect emissions controls and engine durability. EPA …
Ethanol Contributes to Happiness
Three of the nation’s top ethanol producing states – Nebraska, Iowa and Kansas – are also the top three financially happiest states in the nation. According to MainStreet.com’s new Happiness Index – which used unemployment figures, foreclosures and non-mortgage debt to determine a state’s overall financial well being – the Cornhusker state is the happiest place to live. The index …
Senate Hearing Focuses on Higher Blend Issue
One of the key messages of a Senate committee hearing on the Renewable Fuels Standard this week was that more research needs to be conducted before mid-level blends of more than 10 percent are approved. Margo Oge, the director of the Environmental Protection Agency’s office of transportation and air quality, submitted written testimony to the committee that said the agency …
ICM Tapped to Manage AgStar Ethanol Plants
ICM has been tapped by AgStar Financial Services to oversee plant operations and maintenance for the six plants it acquired as part of the VeraSun Energy bankruptcy. AgStar is not allowed to operate the plants due to federal regulations. The Company plans on selling the plants, located in Iowa, Nebraska, Minnesota, North Dakota, and Michigan to other buyers over the …
Verenium Announces Organizational Changes
Changes are afoot at the Verenium Corporation due to its commercial joint venture with BP. The two companies are consolidating their research and development departments which includes the demonstration-scale biofuels facility located in Jennings, Louisiana. Gregory Powers, Ph.D., Executive Vice President R&D, will be the new head of this consolidated team. Verenium is working to develop and bring to market …
Ethanol Production Still Up
Ethanol production was still up in January compared to the previous year, and down only slightly from the previous month. According to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), American ethanol facilities produced 630,000 barrels per day (b/d) in January, up 120,000 b/d from January 2008, but down 50,000 from December of 2008. Ethanol demand, as calculated by the Renewable Fuels Association, …