This week was the final deadline to provide comments to the California Air Resources Board regarding proposed modifications to the state’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard. The Renewable Fuels Association filed comments on the proposal Monday. In its comments and an attached analysis, RFA said empirical data clearly undermine CARB’s rationale for including the new sustainability requirements for grain-based ethanol. CARB …
Ethanol Report on E15 Optimism
U.S. sales of E15 reached a record 1.24 billion gallons in 2024, an increase of 11% over 2023, according to a Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) analysis of data released by state agencies in Minnesota and Iowa. While it appears the Trump administration will have to continue the practice of issuing waivers this summer to keep E15 at the pump, there …
Stakeholders and Congress Want 45Z Extension
Wednesday was the deadline to submit comments to the U.S. Treasury on the 45Z Clean Fuel Production Tax Credit and some members of Congress commented by introducing legislation that would extend the tax credit and limit it to renewable fuels made only from domestically sourced feedstocks. Senators Roger Marshall (R-KS) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) reintroduced the bipartisan and bicameral Farmer …
U.S. Ethanol Exports Drop in February
According to the latest trade monitor report from the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA), U.S. ethanol exports fell 30 percent in February, compared to the previous month, but remained on par with the same time last year at 138.7 million gallons (mg). Half of all February shipments were directed to Canada and the European Union, with the remainder distributed among eight …
E15 Waivers Requested for Summer Again
With no prospects for a legislative fix to allow E15 year-round nationwide before the summer driving season, senators are now asking President Trump to once again authorize waivers to keep the blend available this year. A bipartisan group of senators led by John Thune (R-SD) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) sent a letter to the president this week asking him to …
Ag Secretary Gets Earful About E15
Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins heard a lot about the ethanol industry’s need for year-round, nationwide E15 during her trip to Iowa yesterday, starting with her visit to the Elite Octane ethanol facility in Atlantic, Iowa. “We’re very bullish for the next three years with President Trump leading the way. The seeds of policy change to drive profitability for our …
Ag and Biofuels Groups Seek Exemption to Shipping Rules
The United States Trade Representative‘s office is holding public hearings this week on proposed actions in the Section 301 investigation of China’s targeting of the maritime, logistics, and shipbuilding sectors for dominance that would result in new fees being imposed on Chinese vessels. The first hearing was held on Monday, March 24 and the second will be on Wednesday, March …
Supreme Court Hears Arguments in SRE Venue Case
The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments Tuesday in a case that will determine where challenges to small refinery exemptions (SREs) decisions under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) should be brought. The renewable fuels industry argued in favor of the petitioner, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the case versus Calumet Shreveport Refining, and other refineries. The Renewable Fuels Association …
Ethanol Report on Industry Roots
The theme of the recent 30th National Ethanol Conference was Back to Our Roots and it was a celebration of how the industry started and how it’s going. One panel featured a walk down memory lane with some industry pioneers who talked about the early days and how the roots of the ethanol industry were firmly planted by farmers. Included …
EPA Releases Final Rule for E15 Waiver Delay for SD and OH
The Environmental Protection Agency has released the final rule to extend the date for Ohio and nine counties in South Dakota for year-round E15. In response to a request from the Governors of Ohio and South Dakota, EPA renewed the extension of the effective date of the removal of the 1-psi volatility waiver because the agency “finds that there would …