INEOS Bio Receives EPA Registration

Joanna Schroeder

The first cellulosic plant using non-food waste materials in the country has received Parts 79 and 80 registration from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA): INEOS New Planet BioEnergy (INPB).  The news came as the facility of the Indian River BioEnergy Center (Center) nears production. The biorefinery will use vegetative, yard waste and agricultural waste to produce cellulosic ethanol and is scheduled to be commissioned in the next few weeks.

When the Center is in full production, it will produce 8 million gallons of advanced bioethanol and 6 megawatts of renewable power.  INEOS Bio, the parent company of the project, has plans to run municipal solid waste at the Center after initial start-up is complete.

“We have completed this new facility on schedule and on budget and look forward to further advancing this bioenergy technology and making it commercially available around the world,” said Peter Williams, CEO of INEOS Bio and Chairman of INPB. “Building more facilities and licensing this technology globally provides a new platform for waste disposal while providing energy security, local jobs and local bioenergy. “New technologies like this will also move us further away from, avoid, and eventually change the food-vs-fuel debate.”

Once the biorefinery is in production, it will be one of the first to produce cellulosic ethanol under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). The facility will feature INEOS Bio’s feedstock flexible BioEnergy technology that uses a combination of gasification and fermentation technology to turn various types of waste materials into fuel and electricity.

advanced biofuels, bioenergy, Cellulosic, Electricity, Ethanol

Senate Candidate Urges Ethanol Industry to Fight

Cindy Zimmerman

Former Nebraska governor and senator and candidate for the Senate once again, Bob Kerrey, urged the crowd at the American Coalition for Ethanol conference Friday to fight for the industry.

“The only way you beat these guys is by fighting,” Kerrey said about the opponents of ethanol. “With the RFS, you cannot win this thing by being kind and gentle.”

Kerrey also urged Congress to get a farm bill passed as soon as possible. “The House needs to take this bill up and pass it,” he said. “The idea of an ad hoc disaster bill is a mistake. It’s not going to be good for agriculture, it’s not going to be good for ethanol, it’s not going to be good for the long term future of the American economy.”

Kerrey is the Democratic candidate to replace Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE), facing Republican Deb Fisher who was invited to the ACE conference but was unable to attend.

Listen to Kerrey’s remarks here: Bob Kerrey of Nebraska remarks at ACE

Listen to interview with Kerrey here: Bob Kerrey Interview
2012 ACE Conference Photo Album

ACE, Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Government

Austin Explores Solar Industry

Joanna Schroeder

Those living in Austin, Texas can get a inside look at the solar industry during a forum and open house hosted by ImagineSolar. On August 25, 2012 from 9:00 am – 1:00 pm CDT at ImagineSolar’s training facility located at 4000 Caven Road, Austin, TX 78744, community members can see new solar products and services from various solar companies, learn about new courses (attendees are eligible for a $50 discount on one course) and tour ImagineSolar’s solar field lab.

Several solar companies who are looking for local talent will be on hand at the event including Ideal Power Converters, Schletter, Greenbelt Solar, Lighthouse Solar, and more. Several solar associations will also be at the event including Texas Green Network (TGN), Renewable Energy Student Association (RESA), Texas Renewable Energy Industry Association (TREIA), and Sierra Club, Austin.

Austin innovator Michael Kuhn, who is also the founder of ImagineSolar, has been active in public policy for the solar industry since the 1990s. Today he is working with other local solar entrepreneurs to develop breakthrough models for local solar development. The goal is to accelerate solar adoption in the community. Today, current capacity for non-utility-scale solar is around 6 MW and the hope is to reach 300 MW over the next 10 years.

During the event, Kuhn will speak on this work and what to expect in the next several years from the Austin solar industry. “I remember when you could count on your two hands the number of people working in solar in Austin ten years ago,” said Kuhn, “Today we count over 615 people with jobs in the solar industry. We continue to endeavor to ensure that the City of Austin remains a leader for clean energy. Austin’s support for local solar is an engine for job creation.”

For more information about solar opportunities in Austin, download the free eBooks “Career Opportunities in the Solar Industry” and “Career Opportunities in the Smart Grid Industry.”

Electricity, Energy, Solar

Most Positive ACE Conference Ever

Cindy Zimmerman

Despite a drought that is lowering the corn crop and causing ethanol plant shutdowns, American Coalition for Ethanol Executive Vice President Brian Jennings thinks the organization’s 25th annual conference last week was the most positive ever.

“We’re really encouraged and enthused about how the conference went,” said Jennings. “We know things are tough out there but we ended this conference on the most positive note I think we’ve ever ended a conference.”

Jennings was especially pleased with the strong support from Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack for both ethanol and the Renewable Fuel Standard and they agree with Vilsack’s view of keeping the RFS in place despite a lowered corn crop. “We won’t know how many bushels are produced until harvest,” he said. “It is premature for the calls that have been made to waive the RFS.”

Listen to my wrap-up interview with Brian Jennings here: ACE EVP Brian Jennings
2012 ACE Conference Photo Album

During the conference, three new board members were elected.

  • Paul Enstad, Board of Governors Chairman for Granite Falls Energy, LLC, a 60 million-gallon-per-year (MGY) ethanol producer in Granite Falls, MN
  • Doug Punke, CEO of Renewable Products Marketing Group (RPMG), an ethanol marketing company in Shakopee, MN
  • John Christenson has joined the ACE board representing Christianson and Associates

In addition, four board members were re-elected.

  • Ron Alverson, Wentworth, South Dakota, representing Dakota Ethanol
  • David Gillen,  White Lake, South Dakota, representing South Dakota Corn Utilization Council
  • Wallie Hardie, Fairmount, North Dakota, representing North Dakota Corn Growers Association
  • Brian Wilcox, Columbus, Nebraska, representing Nebraska Public Power District
ACE, Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, USDA

Corn Growers Remain Optimistic

Cindy Zimmerman

Corn growers remain optimistic about the future, despite this year’s drought-devastated crop.

“It could all change tomorrow,” was the theme of National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) CEO Rick Tolman’s talk at the American Coalition for Ethanol conference in Omaha on Friday, just hours after the USDA released a new crop forecast showing a 13% drop in corn production this year compared to last. “This too shall pass,” said Tolman. “We think the future’s going to be bright still.”

“We were hoping for some miracles but they’re not there,” Tolman said in an interview. “It’s one of the worst situations we’ve had in the history of corn production in the United States, but it’s still the eighth largest crop we’ve ever produced.”

NCGA remains committed to maintaining the Renewable Fuel Standard corn ethanol requirement and Tolman said they are working to set the record straight about the RFS and correct misinformation that has been distributed by those who want to waive or dismantle the program. Most important is the inaccurate statement that more corn is used for ethanol than is used for livestock. “That is not true,” said Tolman. “More corn is GROUND for ethanol, but more still is consumed for livestock” when the co-product distillers grains is added to the equation.

Listen to my interview with Tolman at ACE: Interview with NCGA CEO Rick Tolman

Listen to Tolman’s comments at ACE: NCGA CEO Rick Tolman remarks at ACE


2012 ACE Conference Photo Album

ACE, Audio, corn, Ethanol, Ethanol News, NCGA

ACE Gives Sen. Nelson Highest Honor

Cindy Zimmerman

During its 25th annual conference in Omaha Friday, the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) presented U.S. Senator Ben Nelson (D-NE) with the Merle Anderson Award for his leadership in supporting the renewable fuels industry while serving as Governor and Senator of Nebraska.

Nelson established the Governors’ Ethanol Coalition in 1991, helped create the first energy title in a farm bill, and played a key role in passing the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) in 2005, and the expanded RFS in 2007.

The Merle Anderson Award is named in honor of the founder and first president of ACE who serves as Chairman Emeritus of the ACE board of directors.

The senator, who is retiring this year after serving in the Senate since 2001, was honored by the award named after Anderson. “It’s very heartwarming to be considered in his company,” he said. “I’m just very proud.”

Nelson commented on work not done in Congress on a farm bill, which would include livestock assistance for livestock producers affected by the drought, and why that would help more than waiving the Renewable Fuel Standard. “We don’t want to go backwards trying to go forwards. There are other ways of dealing with this, we don’t have to start changing the RFS,” he said.

Listen to my interview with Sen. Nelson at ACE: Sen. Ben Nelson


2012 ACE Conference Photo Album

ACE, Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Government

RFA Puts USDA Crop Report in Context

Cindy Zimmerman

Renewable Fuels AssociationRenewable Fuels Association Vice President of Research and Analysis Geoff Cooper put together an analysis of today’s USDA crop supply report on the RFA E-xchange Blog to put the report into perspective from both a historical context as well as a global production context, answering calls from some international voices to end global biofuel production.

“As expected, this morning’s supply-demand estimates from USDA showed a big reduction in the size of the 2012 corn crop and average yield. Today’s report estimates average yield at 123.4 bushels per acre (bpa), down nearly 23 bpa from USDA’s July estimate and the lowest yield since 1995. Harvested acres are pegged at 87.4 million, meaning a crop of 10.78 billion bushels (bbu) is expected. This is down more than 2 billion bushels from USDA’s July estimate and would be the smallest crop since 2006. Today’s USDA numbers were slightly worse than expected by analysts; on average, they had expected a crop of 10.97 bbu on a yield of 126.2 bpa. While this year’s harvest will be considerably smaller than initially expected, it is remarkable that farmers are still expected to produce the eighth-largest corn crop on record despite experiencing the worst drought in 50 years and the hottest month of July in recorded history.”

Listen to an interview with Cooper here: RFA's Geoff Cooper on USDA crop forecast

Subscribe to The Ethanol Report with this link.

Audio, corn, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Ethanol Report, RFA, USDA

UN Calls for Easing of U.S. Ethanol Mandates

Joanna Schroeder

The concern over the American drought and the impact that ethanol production is having on corn prices has gone global. Jose Graziano da Silva, the director-general of the UN’s Food and Agricultural Organization, said that the easing of U.S. ethanol mandates could stave off another world food crisis.

In response, the Global Renewable Fuels Alliance  (GRFA) wrote, “While the current drought in the US Midwest has placed tremendous pressure on farmers, any action to reduce or eliminate the RFS would be premature and have immediate consequences in lost jobs and an increased reliance on crude oil imports.”

GRFA cited that the flexibility embedded in the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) is an effective way of reducing demand for corn during difficult time. U.S. ethanol production is down nearly 14 percent and refiners are holding an estimated 2.6 billion RFS credits that can be used to meet their compliance requirements.

Total grain output globally is expected to drop by 2.9 percent this year; yet, it is still estimated to be the second largest in history. Estimates show grain ending stocks 4% above the 10 year average.

National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) President Garry Niemeyer thanked farmers for having done so much to increase the corn supply. This year’s corn acres paralleled that in 1937; however, this year with advanced agronomic practices, new seed technologies and improved genetics, corn is able to withstand extreme conditions, such as heat and drought, better than ever before.

.”..we remain hopeful that above average yields in some areas will further augment the crop. At the same time, we recognize that it will not fully cover yield concerns.” Without these advanced technologies, said Niemeyer, the production losses would be much greater.

“As prices and emotions rise, so does the temptation to take action that might actually hurt us all in the long run,” added Niemeyer. “Right now, farmers, ranchers, ethanol producers and much of the country is suffering through this historic drought. Yet, we suffer together. We have all seen our investments, be they of time, hard work or resources, wither under the unrelenting heat. With empathy and a strong spirit of cooperation, we will come through these difficulties stronger for the experience and with renewed vigor to build a brighter future for ourselves, our industry and our country.”

Miscellaneous

Setting the Record Straight On Drought & RFS

Joanna Schroeder

The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) is setting the record straight on the truth behind what would happen if the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) allowed a waiver of the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS2). Garry Niemeyer, NCGA president sent a letter to every member of the House of Representatives along with EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, that included corrects inaccuracies.

“Unfortunately, the letter sent to EPA Administrator Jackson did not provide accurate information about the amount of corn used to produce ethanol or livestock feed,” Niemeyer stated in the letter. “Furthermore, it lacks a comprehensive description of the “burden of proof” required under the RFS waiver provisions. The letter relies on long discredited claims that opponents of the RFS have continued to reference in their on-going efforts to repeal the RFS.”

One of the pieces of misinformation according to Niemeyer is that research has shown that increased worldwide demand and the rising cost of oil and other inputs have had a much greater effect on the price of corn than the ethanol required by the RFS. NCGA believes it is premature for the EPA to waive the RFS at this point and until the harvest numbers are final, it is too early to determine how much corn will be available.

“It is important to remember that a Congressional majority wisely passed a renewable fuel standard that would work in both good and bad crop years,” Niemeyer said. “NCGA urges you to consider the benefits of the RFS to rural America, American energy security and the American farmer.”

Neimeyer also encouraged members of Congress to visit with farmers and community leaders to learn more about the important role they play for America.

Agribusiness, biofuels, corn, Ethanol, NCGA

Ag Secy Vilsack Stresses Support of RFS

Cindy Zimmerman

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack demonstrated his strong commitment to the ethanol industry and the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) by spending over an hour at the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) conference on Friday morning.

“This is an industry that is worth supporting,” he told the crowd of about 250 ethanol industry leaders. “Which is why the president is supporting the Renewable Fuel Standard, and it’s why I’m supporting the Renewable Fuel Standard.”

In light of the lowered crop forecast for corn due to the drought, Vilsack noted that the RFS has built-in flexibilities and the market is responding as it should. “The market responds, the market reacts, the market pays attention, and we’re already seeing that,” he said.

Vilsack stressed the need for the industry to defend itself in the face of attacks by critics.

Listen to Vilsack’s remarks here: Secy Vilsack at ACE


2012 ACE Conference Photo Album

ACE, Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFS, USDA