Ag Energy Coalition Recognizes Work on Farm Bill

John Davis

A coalition working to make sure there are resources in this year’s Farm Bill to prop up renewable energy has recognized Ohio Congresswoman Rep. Marcy Kaptur and 16 other lawmakers for their work on energy programs in the current legislation:

The Ag Energy Coalition applauded Kaptur and bill’s original co-sponsors, including Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.), Rep. Leonard Boswell (D-Iowa), Rep. Bruce Braley (D-Iowa), Rep. G.K. Butterfield (D-N.C.), Rep. Donna Christensen (D-V.I.), Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio), Rep. Maurice Hinchey (D-N.Y.), Rep. Ron Kind (D-Wisc.), Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), Rep. Dave Loebsack (D-Iowa), Rep. Ben Lujan (D-N.M.), Rep. Michael Michaud (D-Me.), Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Me.), Rep. Laura Richardson (D-Calif.), Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio), and Rep. Tim Walz (D-Minn.), for their efforts:

“The Farm Bill’s bi-partisan energy title has been a tremendous economic driver for communities throughout rural America, funding renewable energy and energy efficiency projects in every state and unlocking capital markets for the commercialization of advanced biofuels, biopower and bioproducts, expanded wind, and solar as well as improved energy efficiency for farmers and rural businesses across the country,” stated Lloyd Ritter, a founder and co-director of AgEC.

Rep. Kaptur’s bill, entitled the Rural Energy Investment Act (REIA) of 2012, is comprehensive farm energy legislation that would provide the U.S. Department of Agriculture with new resources and authorities to continue and broaden its vital mission of diversifying agricultural energy opportunities for farmers, businesses and rural landowners, saving or creating thousands of new energy employment opportunities.

Kaptur’s bill would strengthen and fund the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) and streamline the application process. In addition, it would fund several other ag-based, domestic fuel initiatives.

Government, Legislation

Truman Project VP Talks Green Energy to Congress

John Davis

Folks from the Truman Project, a progressive think tank, were on Capitol Hill today, making their pitch for green energy.

Mike Breen, Vice President of the Truman National Security Project and Operation Free Veteran, testified before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, talking about the need for clean, domestic energy:

“The connection between our energy posture and the national security threats we face could not be more clear. Yet, even in the face of overwhelming evidence and the certain consequences that inaction will bring, some say that we cannot or should not act, claiming that the pace of progress is too slow, or the costs too high. Fortunately, there are still those who remember what the nay-sayers have forgotten: when Americans stand together, there is no new market we cannot master, and no technological revolution America cannot lead. By investing in 21st century technologies, like wind, solar and biofuels, we can reduce our dependence on oil and ensure America’s national security.”

You can check out Breen’s testimony here.

Energy, Government, Legislation

Partnership to Power Small Wind Project at NY Plant

John Davis

While big wind turbine projects sometimes get most of the attention, small scale projects are making their presence known as well.

Gamesa Technology Corp., Inc. and its partner Harvest the Wind Network (HTWN) have announced a plan to put in a community wind project at HARBEC Plastics in western New York:

This is Gamesa’s first distributed wind project with Harvest the Wind. The two companies signed an agreement in March that makes Harvest the Wind a primary distributor of Gamesa’s family of G5X-850 kW turbines for community and distributed wind energy projects. Harvest the Wind’s regional partner, Sustainable Energy Developments (SED), designed, permitted, and will install the G58 turbine on a 55-meter tower at the Wayne Industrial Sustainability Park, where HARBEC is located. SED is a regional distributed wind pioneer and quality leader in the Northeast U.S.

“This project highlights Gamesa’s expanding leadership in the distributed and community wind market, which remains a vital and growing sector for our industry,” said David Rosenberg, vice president of marketing for Gamesa North America.

“HARBEC Plastics, already an environmentally responsible company, is a great example of how a local company and industrial park can benefit from distributed wind,” said Haley Estes, vice president of Harvest the Wind Network. “With our first project underway, we’re excited to see what we can achieve with Gamesa in helping more businesses across the U.S. adopt cleaner power.”

This particular model of wind turbine has been in use since 2001 and is online in nearly 9,500 units worldwide. Construction on this project at HARBEC’s Ontario, N.Y. facility is expected to begin this September with it coming fully online by the end of the year.

Wind

Ethanol Group to Honor Nebraska Senator

Cindy Zimmerman

ACEThe American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) is saluting U.S. Senator Ben Nelson (D-NE) during its upcoming 25th annual ethanol conference for the Senator’s efforts in advancing the ethanol industry.

Nelson will be receiving 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.

ACE Executive Director Brian Jennings says Senator Nelson was a perfect candidate for the award this year.

“Senator Nelson has been a great champion on behalf of the ethanol industry. His work and leadership during his time in office really gave a boost to rural economies in Nebraska as well as across America. His efforts have also helped move our country away from a reliance on foreign oil. We are honored that he will be able to accept the Merle Anderson Award at our 25th anniversary conference,” Jennings said.

Nelson will receive the award during the 25th annual ACE Conference in Omaha, Nebraska on August 10th. The conference runs August 8-10.

The Merle Anderson Award is named in honor of the founder and first president of ACE, Merle Anderson, who serves as Chairman Emeritus of the ACE board of directors. The award is presented annually to recognize an individual who has made distinguished and significant contributions to the advancement of the ethanol industry. Other ACE Conference honorees will be announced at the 25th annual ACE Conference in Omaha later this summer.

ACE, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Government

Gas-to-Energy Plant in Lenox, Michigan Up & Running

Joanna Schroeder

Construction is complete at the gas-to-energy plant at the Pine Trees Acres Renewable Energy Facility in Lenox, Michigan. Once operational, the facility will generate 12.8 megawatts of electricity, enough to power nearly 12,000 average sized homes. The Pine Tree Acres Renewable Energy Facility, that sits on 14.5 acres of land, generates up to 4,800 cubic feet per minute of landfill gas. This is funneled into eight 20-cylinder engines and produces electricity that is delivered to Consumers Energy customers.

“Waste Management is committed to the investments and innovative technology required to bring a state-of-the-art facility like this to Macomb County communities,” said Chuck Cassie, Senior District Manager for Waste Management. “By converting waste into energy for more than 12,000 residents, the new Pine Tree Acres Green Energy Plant represents the best of having tomorrow’s technology here and now.”

There is an existing gas-to-energy plant currently operational on the site and produces 8.8 megawatts of electricity. In total, the two plants will generate 12.6 megawatts, or enough energy to power nearly 19,500 homes.

Cassie added, “Green energy is reliable energy. As technology allows Waste Management to extract more and more out of waste, landfill gas will continue serving as an ideal source of reliable energy –- for Macomb County and beyond.”

Electricity, Energy

The Right Place in the Right Place for Funding

Joanna Schroeder

The Michigan Business Development Program has awarded $450,000 for Altronics Energy, LLC. The Right Place, a regional non-profit economic development organization, along with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) and Byron Township all worked together to secure the funding. The funds will be used toward a $2.5 million expansion underway as part of the collaboration between Altronics Energy and Windtronics.

Altronics provides manufacturing, distribution and training services for The Honeywell Wind Turbine, manufactured by WindTronics. The funds will help purchase new equipment and pay for facility improvements. The expansion is estimated to take three years and generate 90 new jobs.

“Altronics Energy is proof that American manufacturing and innovation is alive and well in West Michigan,” said Susan Jackson, Senior Business Development Manager, The Right Place, Inc. “This expansion confirms that market diversification in manufacturing works and leads to jobs and growth.”

In addition to the expansion project, Grand Rapids Community College partnered with The Right Place, MEDC and Altronics to provide $200,000 dedicated to training the workforce needed in the wind energy industry.  The program will train 51 new hires as part of the Michigan New Jobs program.

Electricity, Energy, Wind

American Ethanol Flags Fly in Michigan

Cindy Zimmerman

NASCAR fans attending the Quicken Loans 400 at Michigan International Speedway were flying American Ethanol Green flags as the cars promoting ethanol and family farmers hit the track.

Corn growers and the American Ethanol team distributed 3,000 flags to campers prior to the races, where Kenny Wallace piloted the Family Farmers car on Saturday and Austin Dillon made his 2012 Sprint Cup debut in a full American Ethanol paint scheme on Sunday.

“It was a terrific weekend to be at the races,” said NCGA President Garry Niemeyer. “There was so much excitement on the part of the drivers and the fans, and you could not miss the involvement of our growers and others in spreading the word about America’s favorite renewable fuel.”

Even Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) was at the race and got a flag – a bigger one than most fans got. The senator met with corn grower leaders prior to the race to discuss several topics of importance to growers, including protecting the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) and the pending farm bill in the Senate.

American Ethanol, corn, NASCAR, NCGA

Ethanol Industry Prepares for E15 Sales

Cindy Zimmerman

Ethanol Report PodcastWith the approval by EPA of the first retailers to sell 15% ethanol blends, the industry is gearing up for imminent sales of the new blend level, possibly this week. In this edition of “The Ethanol Report,” Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) President and CEO Bob Dinneen talks about how the final, final hurdle to E15 sales was overcome and what the industry is doing now.

Listen to or download the Ethanol Report here: Ethanol Report on Final E15 Hurdle

Subscribe to the Ethanol Report here.

Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Ethanol Report, RFA

Iowa Leads the Way in Renewable Fuel Growth

Joanna Schroeder

According to a new study by Cardo ENTRIX, the “renewable fuels industry has grown spectacularly over the past decade and Iowa has been a major participant and beneficiary.” This is no surprise as Iowa leads the way in biodiesel and ethanol production. To learn about some of the key highlights of the study, I spoke with Brad Albin, VP of Manufacturing for REG Services, LLC and the President of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) who sponsored the study.

The study was released to help celebrate IRFA’s 10th Anniversary and also coincided with the declaration that June 15 is Iowa Ethanol Day.

A few key highlights:

  • During the past 12 years in Iowa, ethanol production has increased 741% and biodiesel production has increased 1,600%.
  • The portion of Iowa’s agricultural economic output attributable to the renewable fuels industry increased from 4.6% in 2002 to more than 37% in 2011.
  • By 2011, ethanol and biodiesel production accounted for nearly 7% of manufacturing sector output.
  • The total number of jobs in the entire Iowa economy supported by the renewable fuels industry has grown from around 3,500 in 2002 to 79,000 in 2011 an increase of more than 2,000%.

The first conclusion many will jump to is the industry is thriving due to subsidies. This is not the case. Today, neither biodiesel nor ethanol receive any subsidies. Albin explained, “The incentives that the fairly young biodiesel industry have received pale in comparison to what oil companies continue to receive after they have been in business for over 100 years and are making record profits.”

“The biodiesel industry has proven it has the capacity to produce over 1.5 billion gallons per year of renewable fuels from feedstocks grown and produced in America, while reducing hazardous tailpipe emissions, reducing our dependence on foreign oil, creating and needed good paying jobs and returning more value to the economy than any incentive the industry has ever received.”

Albin said he hoped but never anticipated how quickly the industry would grow, and he is looking forward to seeing the industry grow even more over the next decade.

You can learn more about the key highlights of the study by listening to my interview the Brad Albin here: Brad Albin Talks Iowa Economics

Audio, Biodiesel, biofuels, Ethanol, Iowa RFA, REG

Iowa Gov. Brandstad Declares Iowa Ethanol Day

Joanna Schroeder

June 15, 2012 was a big day for the renewable fuels industry in Iowa. It was the 34th anniversary of the first gallon of commercial E10 being sold, the 10th Anniversary of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) and E15 is ready to go in Iowa following a federal EPA announcement that the final regulatory hurdles had been cleared.

I was on hand for the press conference and watched the Iowa Ethanol Day Declaration being signed. “I, Terry E. Brandstad, Governor of the State of Iowa, do hereby proclaim today, June 15, 2012, as Iowa Ethanol Day.”

A side note. When I first began to drive my dad took me to the gas station to teach me how to pump gas and he said, “We use ethanol.” So I used ethanol until I moved to Texas. My first gas station stop in Dallas I couldn’t find the ethanol so I went inside to ask. “We don’t have ethanol,” was the response. I was shocked – I thought all gas had ethanol. We might not be there yet, but we’re on our way.

Prior to signing the declaration, Brandstad spoke about how far ethanol has come in both Iowa and the U.S. He also talked about how oil companies continue to be resistant to blending renewable fuels and will continue to fight against the industry. This holds true for E15, where oil industry barriers remain.

“Not surprisingly, the oil industry has used its fuel distribution monopoly to keep the blendstock for E15 out of Iowa, said Monte Shaw, Executive Director of IRFA. “Some in our industry are attempting to bypass the oil system in order to bring the proper blendstock into Iowa, but it’s too soon to know if that will prove feasible. Clearly, the oil industry isn’t interested in consumer choice or lower cost fuel.”

You can listen to Gov. Brandstad’s remarks along with the reading of the Iowa Ethanol Day Declaration here: Iowa Ethanol Day Declaration

Audio, Biodiesel, biofuels, blends, Ethanol, Iowa RFA