Our Undersecretary for Rural Development, Tom Dorr, was first up on the program here this morning at the National Ethanol Conference to speak about the farm bill and focus on renewable fuel policies and provisions. He says the ethanol industry is going through some growing pains, or put another way, transitional challenges. He’s convinced these will be overcome. Like many …
Andy Karsner Speech
Bob Dinneen, RFA President, isn’t the only one to preach a powerful sermon here at the National Ethanol Conference. I was very surprised and pleased to hear Andy Karsner, Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy, U.S. Department of Energy, speak at today’s luncheon. He gave a very passionate speech that you would really enjoy listening to. That’s why …
NFU Gets Behind Renewable Energy Bill
The National Farmers Union is pledging its support to an energy bill seen as friendly to biofuels, while praising Democrat leaders who back the bill. This story on CattleNetwork.com says National Farmers Union President Tom Buis lauded Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charlie Rangel for backing the bill designed to spark wind and …
International Cleantech Forum
San Francisco will play host to more than 800 investors, entrepreneurs and leading renewable energy experts at the international Cleantech Forum XVI convening next week. This year’s forum is highlighting 2008 as ‘The Defining Year for Cleantech Globalization.’ Investors, entrepreneurs, industry influencers and corporate leaders at the forefront of the rapidly developing cleantech investment and business category from North American, …
AZ Bill Would Help Pay for Adding Biofuels
A bill introduced in the Arizona legislature would help pay the costs of gas stations adding biofuels to their lineups. The Tucson Citizen reports HB 2620, offered by Arizona House majority leader Tom Boone (R-Peoria), will help stations meet the growing numbers of vehicles that can run the green fuels: “We need to make sure Arizonans have cleaner fuel choices …
Secretary of Agriculture Biofuels Message To Livestock Producers
Our Secretary of Agriculture, Ed Schafer, made his first major public policy speech today at the Cattle Industry Convention in Reno, NV. I had the pleasure of meeting him and talked someone into snapping a photo too. I thought you might be interested in hearing an audio clip from his speech here this morning since he hit the subject of …
RFA to Testify on Energy Act
The president of the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) will present testimony Thursday to the Senate Energy and Natural Resource Committee at a hearing on the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. Dinneen’s intends to tell the committee that the American ethanol industry stands ready to do its part to make the law successful. Putting the importance of developing a …
No Budget Change in Ethanol Tariff
Reports of the demise of the ethanol tariff in the new White House budget were apparently greatly exaggerated. Despite hints from Energy Secretary Sam Bodman last week that changes might be made to the expiring U.S. ethanol import tariff in its new 2009 government budget that was sent to Congress on Monday, no such changes were included. Reuters reports that …
White House Budget May Change Ethanol Tariff
Indications are that the Bush administration will make changes to the ethanol tariff in its budget to Congress scheduled to be released Monday. Earlier this week, Energy Secretary Sam Bodman hinted that the White House’s 2009 budget may propose scaling back or eliminating the 54-cent-a-gallon import tariff. In a speech to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Bodman said, “I would …
Energy Secretary Awards Cellulosic Grants
U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Samuel W. Bodman today announced that DOE will invest up to $114 million over four years for four small-scale biorefinery projects to be located in Commerce City, Colorado; St. Joseph, Missouri; Boardman, Oregon; and Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin. “These project proposals were innovative and represent the geographic diversity that we strive for when making the widespread …