Ethanol Industry Responds to Corn Harvest Report

Joanna Schroeder

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) released its final report on the total 2010 corn crop and supply and well as its updated estimates of corn use. The total 2010 corn production was 12.45 billion bushels, the third largest crop in U.S. history.

There were some unanticipated changes in the report as well. First, the corn yield was lower – 152.8 bushels per acre but overall, this is still the 4th highest. The reduction in yield was offset by the addition of 100,000 harvested acres. Second, the USDA increased its demand forecast to 4.9 billion bushels for the marketing year that runs from September 1, 2010 through August 31, 2011. This should equal ethanol production of nearly 13.5 billion gallons. When taking into account the contribution of distillers grains and other feed co-products of ethanol production, USDA lowered its livestock feed usage by 100 million bushels.

Ending stocks of corn were reported at 745 million bushels, down from last month’s report.

The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) took time to analyze the report and determine how it may impact the ethanol industry. They stated, “While not as large as originally thought, the 2010 corn crop is quite robust considering the challenges much of the Corn Belt endured. With the 4th highest yields and 3rd largest crop on record, American farmers once again demonstrated their ability to produce a safe and abundant corn supply.”

RFA also noted that USDA kept their ethanol production estimates for the 2010/2011 marketing year in line with industry expectations. The organization also thinks it highly unlikely that the USDA will reverse their numbers in the future, especially in a higher direction due to the constraints of the E10 blend wall and the anticipated slow adoption of E15 ethanol blends.Read More

corn, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Growth Energy, RFA

EPA Delays Decision on Biogenic Carbon Emissions

Joanna Schroeder

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced that they will be delaying any decisions on greenhouse gas permitting requirements (GHG) for carbon dioxide from biomass combustion and other biogenic emissions. Last fall, the EPA said that they were considering adding these types of emissions to the required reporting under the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS2) Tailoring Rule. With this news, the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) expressed gratitude.

“EPA’s deferral of permitting requirements for biogenic emissions sources is good news and it is the right step, given that the science clearly shows using biomass for energy does not add to atmospheric CO2 levels on a net basis,” said RFA President Bob Dinneen. “Failure to exempt biogenic ethanol fermentation emissions from the GHG Tailoring Rule’s permitting requirements would have been unnecessarily costly and burdensome for our industry. Inclusion of biogenic fermentation emissions meant the permitting requirements would have applied to many ethanol plants that otherwise would not have been subjected to requirements. We appreciate EPA’s sensible approach to this complex issue and look forward to working with the agency on a commonsense solution.”

Agriculture Secretary Vilsack also made remarks about the delayed ruling. “I strongly support EPA’s announcement today that it is starting an expedited rulemaking so that it can defer for three years greenhouse gas permitting requirements for biomass and that it is also undertaking a scientific assessment of how emissions from biomass should be treated under the Clean Air Act.”

Vilsack continued, “America’s forest owners, farmers and ranchers can play a crucial role in providing renewable energy from wood, switch grass and other agricultural products. Homegrown energy can provide jobs in rural America while reducing greenhouse gases. Markets for woody biomass in particular can be especially important in allowing the US Forest Service and other landowners to reduce the threat of catastrophic wildfire while restoring more natural conditions in our forests. EPA’s action today will provide the agency with the time it needs to ensure that greenhouse gas policies properly account for the emissions and carbon sequestration associated with biomass.”

The deferment of a decision means for the time being, biogenic CO2 emissions from ethanol fermentation will not be subject to newly enacted permitting requirements under EPA’s GHG Tailoring Rule for at least three years. In the past, biogenic emissions had never been considered for monitoring because they are naturally occurring as plants die and decay and their emissions are offset when the carbon is removed from the environment by living, thriving plants – a process known as photosynthesis.

Therefore, the industry was alarmed when the EPA failed to exempt biogenic carbon emissions from determinations of the applicability of the Prevention of Significant Deterioration and Title V Permitting Programs under the GHG Tailoring Rule. You read a history of RFA’s comments on the issue to the EPA here.

Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA

Raptor Opens Florida’s Newest Biodiesel Plant

John Davis

No, it’s not a scene from Jurassic Park where the dinosaurs become environmentally conscious, but rather, a company that Raptor Technology Group, Inc. is in the process of acquiring has started up a new biodiesel plant.

This company press release says Raptor Fabrication and Equipment, Inc. got the first batch of ASTM certified biodiesel and will now begin its commercial production of biodiesel fuel at Fort Lauderdale-based Greenwave Biodiesel’s 3.6 million-gallon-a-year refinery, using Raptor’s mid-sized, multi-feedstock production system:

“The Greenwave plant is our first launch of the new year and we have introduced exciting new remote monitoring technology in the plant giving us the ability to monitor production and diagnose any problems increasing overall production and customer satisfaction,” said Tom Gleason, President and CEO of Raptor Fabrication and Equipment. “With the reinstatement of the federal biodiesel tax-credit and facilities we currently have in production for customers, 2011 is expected to be a strong year for Raptor,” added Gleason.

Biodiesel

Latest Poll Shows Mixed Response On Biofuels Policy

Chuck Zimmerman

It should be an interesting year in the biofuels debate. The response to our latest poll shows some pretty divided results which might make it interesting to see how Congress handles things after hearing from their constituents. In answer to the question “What do you think will happen with biofuels policy this year?” Our results are that 38% say there will be another one year extension of the tax incentive, 22% say there will be new incentives for infrastructure, 20% say there will be no federal biofuels incentives, 14% say there will be a multiple year extension and 6% chose other. If you chose other then feel free to comment with what you think will happen.

Our next ZimmPoll is now live and asks the question, “What do you think about the number of farm groups? Let us know what you think and thank you for participating.

ZimmPoll is sponsored by Rhea+Kaiser, a full-service advertising/public relations agency.

ZimmPoll

Biodiesel Board to Hold Symposium with Ford & GM

John Davis

The National Biodiesel Board, along with auto industry partners Ford Motor Company and General Motors, will be holding a symposium at the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit on Wednesday, January 12th from 2:00 – 3:30 p.m. in Cobo Center’s Michigan Hall.

This NBB press release says the biodiesel symposium, entitled “Biodiesel: Powerful Fuel, Promising Future,” will highlight how biodiesel is and will be used to power “vehicles in a cleaner, greener, more sustainable manner”:

“We are extremely pleased to have this opportunity to feature biodiesel as America’s first Advanced Biofuel to the global automotive industry,” said Joe Jobe, CEO of the National Biodiesel Board. “The U.S. Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS-2) established realistic goals of supplementing the nation’s fuel supply with advanced biofuels which reduce lifecycle carbon by more than 50 percent. Biodiesel is the first advanced biofuel to reach commercial scale production in North America, and it reduces direct lifecycle carbon by more than 80 percent. Biodiesel is thus very well-positioned to help the nation meet its immediate and long-term advanced biofuel goals.”

As part of the biodiesel symposium, General Motors and Ford are presenting information on their new 2011 diesel vehicles, which are all fully approved for use with B20 biodiesel blends (20 percent biodiesel blended with 80 percent petroleum diesel). General Motors extends B20 approval to its full diesel line-up, which includes the Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra pick-ups, as well as the Chevy Express and GMC Savana cargo vans. Ford supports the use of B20 on its full line of 2011 Ford Super Duty diesel trucks.

Jim Michon, Truck Fleet Marketing Manager for Ford Motor Company, said, “Many of our fleet customers are very conscious of the environment, and had been asking us for a truck approved for use with B20 biodiesel. In the process of developing our all-new Ford-designed, Ford-built 2011 Super Duty truck, we thoroughly tested B20 in our new engine under the harshest of conditions. B20 proved itself to provide the same fuel economy, power and performance our customers expect of our high performance diesels – there are no trade-offs for using B20”.

Biodiesel, Car Makers, NBB

New California Center to Focus on Jatropha Biodiesel

John Davis

A new center in California will focus on turning jatropha into biodiesel.

Global Clean Energy Holdings has established a new non-profit research organization called the Center for Sustainable Energy Farming:

Research at the Center will be focused on increasing agricultural production; creating a sustainable feedstock supply; reducing inputs including the use of fossil fuel, pesticides, water and fertilizer, and developing new and sustainable biofuels. In furtherance of the P3 (People, Planet, & Profit) concept, the Center’s work will strive to improve the quality of life of the farming communities, and preserve and renew the environment through the application of plant
science and biotechnology, while generating sustainable profits for the farmers and other stakeholders.

Dr. Mark Guiltinan, Professor of Plant Molecular Biology and Director of the Plant Science Center at the Huck Institute of Life Sciences at The Pennsylvania State University, will serve as the Center’s Chief Scientific Officer. “It is our vision that this Center will help facilitate the development of industry and scientific partnerships, and provide a common research platform from which a new generation of sustainable biofuels can be produced,” Guiltinan remarked.

“To develop truly sustainable biofuel feedstock production systems, it will take the coordinated efforts of scientists with expertise in a wide array of interdisciplinary fields such as plant genetics and breeding, entomology, soil sciences, agronomy, plant pathology, environmental and social sciences as well as agricultural technologies.” Initially, the Center will focus on Jatropha curcas as a feedstock species for the development of the model bioenergy farms of the future. “Jatropha is of particular interest for its high quality oil and suitability for production of renewable fuels, and it holds a tremendous potential for future improvements,” said Dr. Guiltinan. “This could be one of the first crops domesticated and improved using the techniques and tools of modern genomics.”

The center hopes to triple jatropha yields in the next 10 years, while reducing the amount of inputs to grow it.

Biodiesel

“For the Good of the Land” Co. Gets Biofuels Contract

John Davis

A company whose name means “for the good of the land” has landed a contract from Hawaiian Electric Company to provide sustainable biofuels for the utility.

This press release says ‘Āina Koa Pono will partner with HEC to help the state reach its clean energy goal of meeting 70 percent of its electricity and ground transportation needs from clean, renewable energy sources by 2030 by building a 13,000 acre energy farm able to produce biofuels in the next two years:

“The time has come to take a bold step toward establishing a self-sustaining energy future for our state and we are excited and honored to be selected by Hawaiian Electric Company to produce biofuels for Hawai‘i,” said Dr. Melvin H. Chiogioji [co-founder of Āina Koa Pono]. “This partnership is critical in helping Hawai‘i reduce its reliance on imported fossil fuels and expand our state’s green energy initiative.”

“We are very pleased to award this first contract as a result of our request for proposals for locally grown and processed biofuels to be used in our power plants on Hawaii Island, Oahu and in Maui County,” said Hawaiian Electric Executive Vice President Robbie Alm. “We look forward to a long and productive partnership.”

‘Āina Koa Pono will invest approximately $320 million in the Ka‘ū Energy Farm, to cover the costs of building a cutting-edge processing facility as well as planting and harvesting biofeedstocks including sweet sorghum and eucalyptus. The Ka‘ū Energy Farm will be located on private land under long-term lease agreements with the Olson Trust and the Mallick family.

When completed, the energy farm will produce 16 million gallons of biofuels a year.

biofuels, biomass

Farm Bureau Supports Change in Biofuels Policy

Cindy Zimmerman

AFBF Annual MeetingThe American Farm Bureau Federation is supporting a new direction in biofuels policy away from the blenders tax credit and toward increasing infrastructure.

“The whole discussion has been evolving within the industry and within the Congress,” said AFBF President Bob Stallman during a press conference following the conclusion of the organization’s 92nd annual meeting. “It doesn’t surprise me that that showed up in our policy this year and our members have said it’s a good idea for us to make that transition.”

AFBF Annual Meeting“Part of that is the recognition that maybe that blend credit isn’t serving as good a purpose as it could and the fact that it is a pot of money that may be subject to budget reductions and if we could shift that to infrastructure you can make the case that its a better use of public funds,” Stallman added.

The voting delegates of the nation’s largest general farm organization also adopted urged Congress to “pursue vigorous oversight” of the Environmental Protection Agency.

In approving the “sense of the delegate body” resolution, the delegates said “congressional action is necessary to restore common sense to environmental regulation on our farms.” EPA, they said, is limiting the use of private property, “encroaching on state land use and water quality planning efforts,” and impeding economic growth.

To change those regulatory trends, the delegates urged Congress to assess the impact EPA’s actions have had on agriculture, conduct a “critical examination of how the agency uses science,” and “determine an adequate budget for necessary agency activities.”

The resolution also asked lawmakers to consider legislation to “halt” EPA’s regulation of greenhouse gases.

Biodiesel, biofuels, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Farm Bureau

Online Briefing: “Roadmap to Bankability”

Joanna Schroeder

AltaTerra Research is hosting an online briefing aimed at the renewable energy industry, particularly, the solar industry, to help them learn how to obtain financing. “Roadmap to Bankability: A Discussion with Matt Cheney on Getting New Technology Financed & Deployed” will be held Thursday, February 3 at 11:00 am Pacific / 2:00 pm Eastern. Matt Cheney is the founder of Renewable Ventures and the CEO of CleanPath Ventures.

Project financing, also known as “bankability” is a critical issue facing the renewable energy industry today. The ability to successfully navigate your company through the paths to funding and onto commercialization is the key for new and improved technologies survive in the marketplace. Without access to private capital, the renewable energy industry will struggle to survive.

“Matt Cheney is a solar luminary and financing expert, who was the first to finance many emerging solar technologies in America. As the founder and former CEO of Renewable Ventures, Matt has financed, owned, and operated more than $300 million in solar assets,” said Jon Guice, managing director of research at AltaTerra Research and moderator of the online briefing. “We are excited to have Matt share his insights on how bankability is affecting the renewable and solar industries and discuss some potential solutions.”

During the online briefing, Cheney will discuss the challenges of project financing and commercialization for emerging and established renewable energy innovations. He will offer practical solutions for how companies are solving the bankability problem, including an exploration of innovative finance mechanisms, and he will focus on how bankability affects customers and investors in innovative technology solutions. In addition, the session will cover the broader issue of how bankability affects the commercialization of new, improved and emerging technologies.

Registration is now open for the live online briefing, and for post-event access.

Education, Solar, Wind

Available Land Could Produce 1/2 World’s Fuel

Joanna Schroeder

According to a new paper published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, “Land Availability for Biofuel Production,” authored by researchers from the University of Illinois, using detailed land analysis, biofuel crops cultivated on available land could produce up to half of the world’s current fuel consumption. This could be done, the researchers say, without negatively affecting food crops or pastureland.

The study was led by civil and environmental engineering professor Ximing Cai who identified land around the globe available to produce grass crops for biofuels, with minimal impact on agriculture or the environment. Cai noted going into the study that prior research concentrated on biofuel crop viability focused on biomass yield or how productive a crop could be regionally; yet, there was little research on land availability, a key constraint of biofuel development. He also noted that there is major concern as to whether, on a global scale, biofuels can meet fuel demand without compromising food production.

“The questions we’re trying to address are, what kind of land could be used for biofuel crops? “If we have land, where is it, and what is the current land cover?” said Cai.

For this particular study, Cai’s team assessed land availability from a physical perspective – focusing on soil properties, soil quality, land slope, and regional climate. The researchers collected data on soil, topography, climate and current land use from some of the best data sources available, including remote sensing maps but the point of differentiation of this research was that the study only considered marking land for biofuel crops. By doing this, current crop land, pasture land and forests were ruled out as viable land options for biofuel production. In addition, the research team ruled out any land that must be irrigated, thus eliminating concerns over the need to divert water from agriculture crops.Read More

biofuels, food and fuel, Indirect Land Use, Research