February U.S. ethanol exports slipped seven percent, while exports of the animal feed co-product dried distillers grains (DDGS) rebounded nine percent, according to the latest analysis from the Renewable Fuels Association. Ethanol exports in February totaled 139.0 million gallons (mg), with Canada as the top destination for the 35th consecutive month despite a 17% decline from January. “Exports surged to …
E15 Sales Set 2023 Record as Summer Remains Uncertain
It’s certain at this point that sales of E15 in the United States hit a record last year, but the future of sales this year after May 1 is still uncertain. According to a Renewable Fuels Association analysis of data released by state agencies in Minnesota and Iowa, total U.S. sales are estimated to have hit a record 1.11 billion …
RFA Supports Challenge to EU Maritime Fuel Regulation
The Renewable Fuels Association has filed a petition to support a legal challenge brought by European ethanol producers against the European Union FuelEU Maritime Regulation, which considers crop-based biofuels to have the same emission factors as the least favorable fossil fuel pathway and effectively bans the use of renewable, crop-based marine fuels as a tool for decarbonizing the maritime sector. …
Ethanol Report on GREET Model Delay
GREET is the word that has still not been heard from the Biden Administration as the ethanol industry anxiously awaits a decision on a modified lifecycle analysis model that will be used to assess the eligibility of feedstocks for new tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act. The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) recently joined two dozen other biofuel and farm …
Defenbaugh Carries on Family Tradition
Nicholas Defenbaugh, a senior at Orion Technical College and a maintenance technician at Big River Resources, was one of eight students and young professionals who attended the recent 2024 National Ethanol Conference under the Robert Sather Memorial Scholarship program. Nicholas is carrying on a family tradition working at the plant in Burlington, Iowa which was started by his grandfather Ray …
Groups Urge EPA to Issue E15 Emergency Waiver
With ongoing challenges to America’s energy security and summer just around the corner, advocates for agriculture and renewable fuels are urging the Environmental Protection Agency to authorize the summer sale of gasoline blended with up to 15 percent ethanol before May 1. The Renewable Fuels Association, Growth Energy, National Corn Growers Association, American Farm Bureau Federation, National Farmers Union, and …
Lawmakers Pressure Administration on Brazil Ethanol Tariff
Last week, U.S. Reps. Randy Feenstra (R-IA) and Darin LaHood (R-IL) led two letters to the Biden administration – one to President Biden and U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai urging greater action in developing new markets for biofuels exports, and a second to Tai and Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack specifically requesting work toward a full repeal of the Brazilian …
Farm and Biofuel Groups Urge Adoption of GREET Model
It has now been almost three weeks since Biden administration officials failed to meet a March 1 deadline to adopt the U.S. Department of Energy’s GREET model for the calculation of SAF tax credits (40B) under the Inflation Reduction Act, and groups representing farmers and ethanol producers who would benefit are getting impatient. A letter was sent this week to …
RFA Flex Fuel Hybrid EV Goes on Vacation
The Renewable Fuels Association’s flex fuel plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (FFPHEV) worked hard in 2023, so just ahead of the 2024 National Ethanol Conference in California last month, RFA’s Robert White decided to take it along on a family vacation as he drove from Kansas City to San Diego. White, who serves as RFA Senior Vice President for Industry Relations …
Volumes of E15 and E85 Set New Records in Minnesota
The latest data from the Minnesota Commerce Department shows sales of both E15 and E85 hit new records in 2023. The volume of E15 reported hit 127.6 million gallons, up 21 percent from 2022, while E85 sales were reported at 16.6 million gallons, up 8 percent from 2022 and the highest on record. When that news was released last week, …