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National Biodiesel Conference Speech From Joe Jobe

Chuck Zimmerman

Joe Jobe, CEO, National Biodiesel Board, welcomed attendees to the 2012 National Biodiesel Conference this morning. He started out by telling a story about what biodiesel means to him and how he got involved in energy, politics and history. One of the things that really got him interested in the industry was, “I wrote a paper for my high school economics class about developing a market for ag-based fuels to supplement our energy supply . . . So my paper was overly simplistic and naïve, but after working in this industry for almost 15 years now, the basic idea is clearer than ever, and has now become a reality.” However, he says, “Over the past four decades America has not had a consistent and clear energy policy.”

Joe spent some time talking about the RFS.

The RFS demonstrated last year that effective energy policy can be carried out by actual energy policy. After the first year of implementation it has its wrinkles to iron out and we are going to talk about those in depth. But 2011 demonstrated that the RFS can work at doing what Congress intended, which is to draw renewable fuels into the market. I want to commend the EPA for their work in bringing this program together. They have had a very difficult job to take a brand new complex law and a wide range of stakeholders, and build a workable program.

The RFS has created a clear, predictable, stable and sustainable future for this industry.

Listen to or download Joe’s speech here: Joe Jobe Speech

2012 National Biodiesel Conference Photo Album

Audio, Biodiesel, biofuels, National Biodiesel Conference

National Biodiesel Conference Delivering Now

Chuck Zimmerman

The 2012 National Biodiesel Conference is underway in Orlando, FL at the Gaylord Palms. I’m living in a Gaylord world after just covering the Cattle Industry Convention at the Gaylord Opryland. I’ve got to come back here for the National Ethanol Conference and go back to Opryland for Commodity Classic. That’s a lot of Gaylord time.

We’re just getting started here. Registration is underway along with a couple of pre-conference sessions. I’ve heard that registration is up significantly this year which is a good sign for the industry. First up tonight is the annual Super Bowl Party. I’ll have photos from that later. In the meantime, I have started collecting photos here: 2012 National Biodiesel Conference Photo Album.

In addition to stories posted here on Domestic Fuel I’m also the Biodiesel Blogger once again for the National Biodiesel Board. So check out both sites throughout the coming days.

Biodiesel, Biodiesel Conference

Alliance AutoGas Adds Five New Conversion Centers

Alliance AutoGas has added five new certified conversion centers in Virginia, Florida, Georgia and Texas to their national network of partners that offer complete programs for America’s fleets to run on clean-burning propane autogas.

Ark Enterprises 2, Braggs Truck Repair, Green Tech Energy Solutions, Grimes Auto Service Inc., and NDMJ Transportation are joining Alliance to provide fleets with EPA-certified autogas vehicle conversions, as well as ongoing service and technical support.

“From Virginia to Texas, these new partners help strengthen Alliance AutoGas as we continue expanding nationwide, helping our nation’s fleets save money and drive clean,” says Stuart Weidie, president of Alliance Autogas and founder of Autogas for America.

Certified Alliance AutoGas conversion centers are equipped to implement both bi-fuel and dedicated propane vehicle conversions using Prins vapor and liquid injection technology. Alliance has the largest privately financed portfolio of autogas vehicle certifications in the U.S., with more than 200 vehicle types eligible for autogas conversions.

Fleets that convert to autogas will save on both fuel and maintenance costs. Because autogas is a cleaner-burning fuel than gasoline, many fleets report reduced maintenance needs for vehicles, like fewer oil changes and an extended engine life. Alliance AutoGas provides leasing and financing options that allow fleets to start saving immediately, with zero up-front cost—including for an on-site autogas station.The new Alliance conversion center partners include:

Ark Enterprises 2 in Churchville, VA; Braggs Truck Repair in Berryville, VA; NDMJ Ltd. Transportation of Tyler, Texas; Green Tech Energy Solutions in Miami, FL; and Grimes Auto Service of Tifton, GA.

Fleet, Propane

OriginOil Signs Agreement With Algae Producer

Cindy Zimmerman

Algae oil extraction technology developer OriginOil has signed a commercial agreement with algae producer Aquaviridis to work on a multi-phase algae production rollout at a facility in Mexicali, Mexico.

Under the agreement, OriginOil will provide its expertise to help develop growth and harvesting solutions and implement appropriate OriginOil technologies. The Mexico facility is being developed as a potential model for algae sites throughout the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) region, with a focus on desert areas of the American Southwest and Mexico.

Minnesota-based Aquaviridis is backed by private sector funding, with plans to immediately scale up from research and development to ten acres of pilot algae production by the middle of this year. Commercial scale production capacity is expected by the second quarter of 2013. Aquaviridis selected the Mexicali Valley as a strategic location due to favorable growing conditions, strong local and governmental support, and available sources of carbon dioxide.

“The Mexicali Valley is a great place to develop an algae industry, given its climate and access to industry research and resources throughout North America,” said OriginOil vice president of marketing Ken Reynolds. “With the U.S. as a neighboring market for high value exports, Mexico is in an excellent position to take the lead in areas such as research and production of algae for nutritional products, animal feed, and oil for biofuels, which would create long-term regional economic growth and job production.”

advanced biofuels, algae

Registration Open for Advanced Biofuels Conference

Cindy Zimmerman

The 2012 Advanced Biofuels Leadership Conference, presented by Biofuels Digest, is scheduled for April 2-5 at the Capitol Hilton in Washington D.C.

The main event will feature dozens of top officials from advanced biofuels companies, including industry leaders such as Amyris, Ceres, GEVO, Mascoma, Sapphire Energy, Solazyme, ZeaChem and many more. The conference also features two special full-day concurrent sessions April 5 – Military & Aviation Biofuels and the Bio-Based Investor Summit.

More information and registration details are available at advancedbiofuelssummit.com.

advanced biofuels, conferences

Sao Paulo Ethanol Import Tax Could Violate GATT

Cindy Zimmerman

*Updated with clarification comments from UNICA*

The president of the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) this week wrote a letter to the U.S. Trade Ambassador asking for an investigation into news that the Brazilian state of Sao Paulo was imposing a 25% tax on all imported ethanol.

“Because ethanol produced in Sao Paulo is tax exempt, ethanol imported into Sao Paulo from the United States and other areas is at a substantial economic disadvantage,” wrote RFA President and CEO Bob Dinneen to Ambassador Ron Kirk. “We believe this action is discriminatory and may severely—and immediately—restrict the exportation of U.S. ethanol to Brazil.”

Dinneen is pictured here sharing a lighter moment with Marcos Jank, president and CEO of Brazil’s UNICA during a session at the 2011 National Ethanol Conference.

In early December, the nation of Brazil extended a temporary suspension of a 20% federal tariff on imported ethanol.
“This action not only effectively reinstates the tariff on U.S. exports, but increases it by 5%,” wrote Dinneen. “Moreover, we believe the action taken by the state of Sao Paulo is in violation of Article III:4 of the Generalized Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and possibly Article 2.1 of the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) Technical Barriers to Trade Agreement.

Port Santos in Sao Paulo is the main port of entry for U.S. ethanol exports to Brazil, which accounted for an estimated 400 million gallons in 2011.

*In response to the RFA’s letter and resulting media reports, UNICA released a statement from president Marcos Jank noting that the Sao Paulo tax is a pre-existing value-added tax (VAT), known as ICMS (Goods and Services Tax), which is not equivalent to the return of Brazil’s tariff on imported ethanol.

“UNICA would like to clarify that the ICMS is a country-wide tax applied to nearly all products, imported or domestically produced, that has been in place for several years. It is applied by state governments on all anhydrous ethanol,” said Jank. “Contrary to what has been reported, the ICMS on imported ethanol has never been waived. Because Brazilian demand for imported anhydrous ethanol was significantly higher in 2011 than in previous years, the São Paulo state government deferred collection of the ICMS at the customs clearance point to speed up the import process.”

According to UNICA, the deferment period started on October 1, 2011 and is now scheduled to end on March 1, 2011.

Brazil, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Exports, International, RFA

National Biodiesel Conference Preview

Cindy Zimmerman

Only a couple days now until the kick-off of the Super Bowl – and the 2012 National Biodiesel Conference.

We caught up with National Biodiesel Board CEO Joe Jobe at the Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit to get a preview of what promises to be a great conference. “Attendance is up, exhibitors are up, sponsorship is up, which is really a reflection of the fact that the industry’s back,” Jobe says. “The industry has come back and it’s really one of the most exciting come back stories since maybe Harley-Davidson.”

Jobe says there’s enthusiasm and excitement, but also a lot of work that needs to be done. “We need to talk about how we think about the industry going forward through the lens of the RFS, which is going to be the cornerstone of the industry moving forward,” he noted.

The conference will be held February 5-8 at the Gaylord Palms Convention Center in Orlando and while on-line registration is closed, there will be on-site registration for last minute attendees.

Listen to an interview with Jobe here: Joe Jobe interview

Audio, Biodiesel, Biodiesel Conference, NBB

Eight Students Selected for Conference Scholarship

Eight students will receive a scholarship to attend the 17th Annual National Ethanol Conference: Accelerating Industry Innovation, according to the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) and the Renewable Fuels Foundation (RFF).

RFAThis is the third year the scholarship has been available to students in higher education. Recipients receive complimentary registration to the conference and the opportunity to connect with hundreds of ethanol leaders, policy makers and experts in the renewable fuels industry.

The National Ethanol Conference (NEC) is one of the preeminent conferences for delivering accurate, timely information on marketing, legislative and regulatory issues facing the ethanol industry. This year’s program will highlight how the ethanol industry continues to evolve to meet the demands of a rapidly changing marketplace. With federal policy changing, the global, market-driven environment in which the industry must compete comes with new market challenges. Industry leaders and experts will address how we are meeting these new demands by accelerating innovation in technology, marketing, logistics and feedstocks for the production of advanced ethanol.

“It is very encouraging to see such high levels of interest in biofuels from students year after year through this program,” said Mike Jerke, RFF Chairman and General Manager for Chippewa Valley Ethanol Company. “Networking with experts in the U.S. ethanol industry gives these students a first-hand look behind an evolving industry and the direction it is heading. This is a chance for them to explore the opportunities the industry has to offer.”

Each scholarship recipient has focused their studies on renewable energy and biofuels and is interested in pursuing a career in the industry. Read more about the eight recipients of the NEC Scholarship.

conferences, Ethanol, RFA

NBB Testifies Before Senate Finance Committee

The National Biodiesel Board (NBB) testified this week to the Senate Finance Committee about the importance of reinstating the industry’s tax incentive. The $1-per-gallon biodiesel tax incentive expired on Dec. 31 for the second time in three years.

Anne Steckel, NBB vice president of federal affairs, said in her testimony, that when the incentive was reinstated last year after a lapse in 2010, it helped boost biodiesel production to a record volume of nearly 1.1 billion gallons in 2011. That volume – triple the production of 2010 – supported more than 39,027 jobs and $3.8 billion in GDP, according to a recent study conducted by Cardno ENTRIX, an international economics consulting firm.

“The biodiesel industry is poised to continue that momentum so long as Congress and the Administration continue supporting strong policies such as the biodiesel tax incentive,” Steckel said. “The recent expiration of the $1 per gallon biodiesel tax incentive poses a significant threat to the industry’s continued growth.”

Under projected expansion, with the tax incentive in place, the industry is expected to support more than 74,000 jobs by 2015 and some $7.3 billion in GDP.

Bipartisan legislation has been introduced in the House and Senate to extend the tax incentive for three years.

Biodiesel, Legislation

Indiana Ethanol Industry Eager to Expand

Cindy Zimmerman

Leaders in the ethanol industry got together last week in Indianapolis to discuss the future of the industry in Indiana.

Steve Pittman, Director of the Indiana Ethanol Producers Association and General Manager of POET-Portland, is especially excited about the future of the cellulosic ethanol industry. “We see corn ethanol still stay as the basis of what we do and then we’ll see growth in cellulosic over the next ten years,” Steve said. “We don’t see corn going away. The concept is to reap the corn stover off the same fields we’re harvesting corn off of. We’ll have another opportunity for farmers to sell another product without having to grow another crop.”

Listen to an interview with Pittman here: Steve Pittman interview

Right now, infrastructure is important to expanding consumer choice, according to Rosalind Leeck, Director of Biofuels for Indiana Corn Marketing Council (ICMC). “Our farmers believe that expanding infrastructure to allow consumers more access to ethanol-blended fuel is crucial to the success and growth of the industry,” said Leeck, adding that ICMC is funding a program to encourage fuel retailers to add flex fuel pumps that offer mid-level blends, like E30, in addition to E85 to drivers of Flex Fuel Vehicles. “Through this program, 14 flex fuel pumps will be added to fuel stations across the state over the next several months.”

Listen to an interview with Rosalind Leeck here: Rosalind Leeck interview

Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis agrees that building infrastructure is critical to the increasing consumer choice. Buis told Gary Truitt of the Hoosier Ag Today (HAT) that he is optimistic about the future of ethanol in Indiana and nationwide. “Unlike Big Oil, ethanol is not stuck in the past, we’re focused on moving forward. With the introduction of E15 into the marketplace and increased build out of Flex Fuel pumps, American consumers will finally have choice when they fill up at the pump,” Buis says. “We know we can do more, we know it’s good for America.”

Listen to Truitt’s interview with Buis here: Tom Buis interview

Indiana produces 1.1 billion gallons of ethanol every year in 13 different ethanol plants across the state. Thanks to Gary Truitt of HAT for attending the Indiana ethanol forum and provided the photos and audio interviews.

Audio, corn, Ethanol, Growth Energy