The Future for Corn Stover in Biofuels

Cindy Zimmerman

The future of using corn stover for advanced biofuels was one of the discussion topics at last week’s Corn Utilization Technology Conference in Indianapolis.

Nathan Mosier with the Department of Agricultural & Biological Engineering at Purdue University, told the conference that the corn refining industry has done a great job of using the corn kernel to create various value-added products. He’s working on similar developments with corn stover “to break it into its constituents in a way that allows us to add value and produce more products that can be sold.”

Mosier says he’s been working with several companies, like Mascoma, that are getting close to commercial applications that would be used to make cellulosic ethanol. “We’re making a lot of advances in being able to launch the very first products, but I think there’s a lot of opportunities for higher value products that may be lower volume, but in the context of a biorefinery where we can use materials like corn stover instead of petroleum to make not only fuels, but specialty chemicals, plastics and polymers.”

Listen to an interview with Nathan Mosier from CUTC here: Interview with Nathan Mosier

2012 CUTC Photo Album

advanced biofuels, Audio, corn, CUTC, NCGA

USDA Increases Ethanol Usage Number

Cindy Zimmerman

The latest World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) are bumping up the use of corn for ethanol in the 2011-12 marketing year.

According to the June 12 report, the 50 million bushels adjustment upward to corn usage for 2011/12 reflects the latest ethanol production and trade data. “Weekly ethanol production has increased since mid-April after gradually declining from the record levels of late December,” the report states. “The higher corn use projection assumes slightly lower ethanol production during the June-August quarter as compared with the same period last year.” The total for 2011-2012 now stands at 5.05 billion bushels, higher than the 5.021 of the previous year and the projected 5.0 billion for 2012-13.

The most recent Energy Information Administration data for ethanol production, the week ending June 1, showed an average of 904,000 barrels, or 37.97 million gallons, per day. For the month of May, the four week average for ethanol production was 907,000 barrels per day, which could bring the total for the year very close to 14 billion gallons if that pace continues.

Ethanol, Ethanol News, USDA

Ethanol Safety Training in Iowa

Cindy Zimmerman

The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA), CN Railway and the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association are co-hosting two Ethanol Safety Seminars in Iowa this week. The Dubuque, IA seminar will be held Wednesday at the Dubuque County Emergency Responder Training Facility, also co-hosted by Big River United Energy. The Waterloo, IA seminar will be held Thursday at the Hawkeye Community College, also co-hosted by Homeland Energy Solutions, Golden Grain Energy, and Absolute Energy.

The goal of these seminars is for attendees to gain full ethanol emergency response training experience that they can put to use immediately in the field as well as pass along to other first response teams. A majority of this training is based on the Complete Training Guide to Ethanol Emergency Response, a training package created by the Ethanol Emergency Response Coalition (EERC) that has been distributed throughout the United States and to several countries worldwide.

Attendees will receive in-depth information on proper training techniques that first responders and hazmat personnel need to effectively respond to an ethanol-related emergency. While primarily targeting first responders, hazmat teams, safety managers, and local emergency planning committees, it is also open to the general public.

Both seminars are free and feature a morning session from 9:00am to 2:00pm and an evening session from 5:30-10:00pm. Lunch and dinner will be provided. To register for this seminar, go to www.rfa.traincaster.com.

Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA, safety

US Ethanol Exports Trending Lower

Cindy Zimmerman

Last year was a huge year for exports of U.S. ethanol and co-products, but so far this year it appears unlikely exports will reach that same high level.

U.S. ethanol exports in 2011 totaled 1.2 billion gallons. As of April, exports stood at just under 309 million gallons, which would bring this year’s total to under a billion gallons if demand continues the same.

U.S. ethanol exports, both denatured and undenatured – non-beverage, totaled 74.4 million gallons (mg) in April, down 11% from March but in line with January and February shipments, according to government data released last week. At 54.8 mg, denatured ethanol for fuel use accounted for the majority of April exports. Canada was the top destination in April, receiving 17.7 mg. The OPEC nation of United Arab Emirates (UAE) followed closely with 17.0 mg of imports, while its Arabian Peninsula neighbor Oman brought in 15.1 mg.

Brazil imported just 5.8 mg in April, after importing 65.9 mg a year ago in April 2011 as a result of Brazil lowering its blending requirement from 25% to 20% ethanol. At the same time, the U.S. imported 9.5 mg of sugarcane ethanol from Brazil.

Meanwhile, exports of the ethanol co-product distillers grains, dipped slightly in April to 608,944 metric tons (mt). While down 5% from March, April exports were 4% above year-ago levels.

Read more from RFA’s E-xchange Blog.

Distillers Grains, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Exports

American Ethanol Sweepstakes Launched

Cindy Zimmerman

NASCAR Official Partner American Ethanol has announced a new campaign to grow more awareness among NASCAR fans about the benefits of American Ethanol.

The “American Ethanol Sweepstakes” includes a national promotion from June 8 through August 31, paid media with Turner Sports for NASCAR on TNT and NASCAR.com, race entitlement sponsorships at Iowa Speedway and Chicagoland Speedway, and experiential activation at select tracks and industry events. Additional elements of the campaign will be announced in the coming weeks.

“NASCAR is the perfect platform to dispel the myths about U.S. made ethanol,” said Tom Buis, CEO of Growth Energy. “Not only are these fans among the most brand loyal in all of sports, but they also understand the importance of creating jobs here in America that cannot be outsourced, reducing our dependence on foreign oil and using a cleaner burning fuel to protect our environment — all of which American Ethanol does.”

The campaign features Richard Childress Racing driver Austin Dillon, grandson of legendary NASCAR team owner Richard Childress. The 2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driving champion and current NASCAR Nationwide Series championship contender stars in a 30-second national television commercial that highlights the benefits of U.S.-made ethanol. Fellow RCR driver Kevin Harvick also makes an appearance in the spot, which is scheduled to debut during the broadcast of the Pocono 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on TNT and is designed to drive fans to American Ethanol’s Facebook page to enter for a chance to win one of three Chevy Silverado trucks and 500 additional prizes.

By visiting Facebook.com/AmericanEthanol, NASCAR fans can learn more about American Ethanol. Additionally, Dillon will run an American Ethanol paint scheme in a RCR-prepared NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Chevrolet on June 17 at Michigan International Speedway, marking the 22-year-old driver’s first Sprint Cup Series start of the 2012 season and the second of his career.

American Ethanol, Ethanol, Growth Energy

REG Execs Receive Entrepreneur of Year Award

Joanna Schroeder

Renewable Energy Group’s (REG) Chairman, Jeff Stroburg and President & CEO Daniel J. Oh, have been awarded the Entrepreneur of The Year Award in the Central Midwest by Earnst & Young. The winners were selected by an independent judging panel comprised of past award winners.

The awards were given during a gala on June 5, 2012 in Kansas City, Kansas and after receiving the honor Oh and Stroburg recognized REG’s employees for driving positive organizational results and attributed the company’s excellent status to their team. Stroburg and Oh also recognized and thanked the company’s shareholders during the ceremony.

“Ernst & Young has honored outstanding entrepreneurs like this year’s winners for the past 26 years,” said Randolph Buseman, Ernst & Young LLP Entrepreneur Of The Year Program Director for Central Midwest. “These business leaders have accomplished so much and contributed a tremendous amount to the community.”

REG is the largest biodiesel producer in the United States with six biorefineries producing more than 210 million gallons of biodiesel per year.

Biodiesel, biofuels, REG, Video

Waste to Biogas Mapping Tool Launched

Joanna Schroeder

An online “waste to biogas” mapping tool has been launched by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Pacific Southwest Region. The tool maps energy projects that use organic waste as a feedstock. The maps link food and other biodegradable waste sources with facilities such as wastewater treatment plants that produce energy.

“This innovative mapping tool, the first of its kind in the nation, helps restaurants, hotels and other food waste generators to connect with large energy producers,” said Jared Blumenfeld, EPA’s Regional Administrator for the Pacific Southwest. “Harvesting this energy prevents waste from ending up in landfills or clogging sewer lines.”

Many businesses produce waste including dairy farms and waste water treatment plants. These operations manage waste such as food scraps, fats, oils and grease, by using anaerobic digesters that produce methane. Methane can then be used as an energy source by the operation or sold to others adding another profit stream to their business.

The tool enables users to determine the types of facilities in their area, where clusters are located and the distance between a waste producer and an anaerobic digester.  The tool also functions in reverse – allowing generators of organic waste to find partner facilities that will accept it. In a 2008 study conducted by the Northern California Power Agency, it was determined that agricultural, wastewater, and food processing wastes could be digested and produce 453 megawatts of energy – enough power to run a utility-scale power plant.

biogas, dairy, Electricity, Energy, Waste-to-Energy

Junior Solar Sprint Races to Middle Schools

Joanna Schroeder

The San Diego Renewable Energy Society (SDRES) has announced a new science educational program that focuses on solar power for middle school students and teachers. Junior Solar Sprint is a hands-on educational program that gives students the ability to design, build and race their own solar powered model cars. The program is currently limited to San Diego middle schools and 45 teams are participating. Awards will be given for speed, design and innovation.

“The multi-disciplinary project motivates students and illustrates how pursuing careers in the fields of science, math and engineering can be exciting and highly rewarding particularly when applied to renewable energy sources,” said Bruce Rogow, coordinator of the event for SDRES.

This is the third year for the program and is made possible by SDRES along with Sullivan Solar Power and the San Diego Electrical Training Center. Sullivan Power donated solar cell kits to power the student’s cars and the races will take place on the campus of the San Diego Electrical Training Center. The center also teaches kids about 90W rooftop solar installation.

Daniel Sullivan, founder and president of Sullivan Power said of their participation, “Junior Solar Sprint teaches our local youth in their formative years the potential that solar power represents for our country. It shows teens we can power our vehicles, homes and businesses with the power of the sun. The hope is to inspire these young individuals with education in solar technology but also make it something exciting in the process.”

The students love the program and local science teacher, Elaine Gillum has 137 students at Marshall Middle School in 24 teams producing solar racing cars. “Kids learn about solar energy, engineering, building and team work,” said Gillum. “All of those are very important for our students to learn. And, they learn it doing something fun! How cool is that?”

The Junior Solar Sprint race will take place on Saturday, June 9 at 11 a.m. in the parking lot of the San Diego Electrical Training Center, at 4675 Viewridge Ave., San Diego, California.

Education, Energy, Solar

Legally Bind Renewable Energy Targets in Europe

Joanna Schroeder

The European Commission in Brussels met yesterday to discuss the country’s Renewable Energy Strategy. The Commission is in support of creating legally binding renewable energy targets for 2030. The strategy states legislation for renewable energy would generate over 3 million jobs and could save in 2050 between 518 to 550 billion Euros on spending for fossil fuel imports. The continuation of an EU-side specific renewable energy framework beyond 2020 would result in a net GDP growth by 0.36%-0.40%. The strategy said, “This increases our security of supply.”

“European Ministers must turn this message into action and back a renewable energy target for 2030, as supported by the Strategy’s Impact Assessment,” said Stephane Bourgeois, Head of Regulatory Affairs of the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA) in Brussels. “A legally binding renewable energy target for 2030 is crucial if we want to foster Europe’s leadership in wind energy, and in particular offshore wind.”

EWEA is also backing the European Commission’s criticism of abrupt changes that took place recently regarding support mechanisms for renewable energies in several EU member states.

Bourgeois said, “Retroactive changes in support mechanisms undermine investor confidence in the sector and could put the 2020 renewable energy targets at risk. We share the Commission’s concerns, but the Commission must now take all legal means to prevent this.”

Energy, Wind

Biodiesel Leaders Call on Congress and Administration

More than 120 biodiesel leaders are in Washington D.C. this week to call on Congress to extend the expired biodiesel tax incentive and to urge the Obama Administration to quickly finalize the EPA’s proposal to grow biodiesel volumes under the Renewable Fuel Standard next year.

Industry leaders met with White House officials and members of Congress. They will specifically be calling for the Obama Administration to follow through with the EPA’s proposal to increase the biodiesel volume requirement under the RFS to 1.28 billion gallons in 2013 – up from 1 billion gallons this year. Late last year, the Obama Administration delayed the decision.

“Washington’s failure to act on these two issues has effectively halted the momentum our industry built last year in producing a record of nearly 1.1 billion gallons,” said Anne Steckel, vice president of federal affairs at the National Biodiesel Board. “It is locking up millions of dollars in investments that could be creating jobs, purchasing equipment and feedstock, and driving economic growth.”

The Administration’s delay on the RFS rule has come as Congress allowed the biodiesel tax incentive to expire on Dec. 31. The tax incentive has broad bipartisan support, and biodiesel leaders will be urging lawmakers on Capitol Hill to pass an extension as soon as possible.

“This is a proposal that has strong support from the EPA and USDA, and yet it has been caught up in a bureaucratic delay for nearly a year, without any explanation or justification,” Steckel said. “It is blocking significant investment and hiring, so we are pleading with the Obama Administration to follow through with its ‘all of the above’ energy rhetoric by finalizing this proposal. It is something the Administration can do tomorrow, without waiting on Congress.”

Biodiesel, Legislation, NBB