Ethanol Economic Impacts Issue Brief Released

Joanna Schroeder

The Ethanol Across America education campaign has released the Economic Impacts of Ethanol Production Issue Brief this week. The purpose of the report is to illustrate the significant benefits of ethanol production to the U.S. economy. The latest Brief in the series examines the impacts of several fuel ethanol facilities in the states including South Dakota, Iowa, Nebraska, and Indiana and shows how they are positively helping the economy.

“We have long been aware of the benefits of ethanol production at the local level, and the case studies we provide clearly quantify that. This brief also makes it clear that jobs resulting from the ethanol industry, both direct and indirect, fuel the economy at all levels,” said Douglas A. Durante, the director of the Ethanol Across America Campaign.

According to the Brief, and citing a third party study, the ethanol industry added $2.9 billion of gross output to the U.S. economy in just 2009. It also highlights the reduction in Federal outlays for farm programs as well as the substantial energy costs savings. The Brief states that increasing the motor fuel pool with ethanol lowers the cost of gasoline to consumers and the potential for reducing oil imports could lower the U.S. oil bill by more than $60 billion dollars per year.

The report also calculates that full implementation of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS2), which will largely be met with ethanol, could increase net farm receipts across the country by $13 billion per year. One case study illustrates that a 50 million gallon per year biomass ethanol plant in the Northeast would generate $170 – $200 million in income and create between 4,000 and 6,000 jobs during construction. Ethanol production from wood, agriculture residues, waste paper, and other cellulosic sources is being looked at in every state.

“Displacing imported oil, reducing health costs, creating jobs, reducing federal outlays– the list goes on,” said Durante. “With Congress and the Administration calling for a renewed commitment to producing domestic, clean energy, biofuels like ethanol make more sense than ever. With so many new members of Congress eager to look at these issues, we wanted to make this information available to them as they begin this new session.”

Education, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Research

Adminstration Offers Boost for Advanced Biofuels

Cindy Zimmerman

In addition to loan guarantees for biorefineries in the southeast, the U.S. Departments of Agriculture (USDA) and Energy (DOE) announced other steps today designed to give the advanced biofuels industry a much-needed boost.

“With the renewable fuels standard goal, there’s going to be a need for additional biofuels and it must be met in large part by advanced biofuels,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack when making the announcement today.

Over 120 biofuel producers in 33 states will be receiving payments from USDA as incentives to produce advanced biofuels. Under the Farm Bill, the Bioenergy Program for Advanced Biofuels authorizes payments to eligible producers to expand production and use of advanced biofuels.

Payments, which range from less than $500 to over $1 million, are based on the amount of advanced biofuels a recipient produces from renewable biomass, other than corn kernel starch. Eligible examples include biofuels derived from cellulose, crop residue, animal, food and yard waste material, biogas (landfill and sewage waste treatment gas), vegetable oil and animal fat. The producers receiving payments include a significant number of biodiesel plants, since biodiesel is considered an advanced biofuel.

Meanwhile, the DOE is offering a $241 million loan guarantee Diamond Green Diesel – a proposed joint venture between Valero Energy Corporation and Darling International Inc. The loan guarantee will support the construction of a 137-million gallon per year renewable diesel facility in Norco, Louisiana, about 20 miles west of New Orleans. Valero Energy Corporation plans to direct the design, construction and operation of the project and market all of its output, while Darling International Inc. will supply feedstock to the project.

Biodiesel, biofuels, Cellulosic, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Government, USDA

USDA Announces Funding for Biorefinery Projects

Cindy Zimmerman

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced $405 million in guarantee loans for three biorefinery projects in the southeast under the Biorefinery Assistance Program. The three projects are located in Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida.

“We believe it’s critical and crucial to develop a biofuel industry powered by feedstocks produced in every corner of the country,” said Vilsack during a conference call to announce the loan guarantees.

In rural western Alabama, Coskata, Inc. has received a letter of intent for a $250 million loan guarantee to construct and operate a cellulosic ethanol biorefinery facility. This 55-million gallon-per-year renewable biofuel project will use woody biomass to produce ethanol.

In Pontotoc, Miss., Enerkem Corporation has been selected to receive an $80 million loan guarantee to build and operate a biorefinery that will be capable of producing 10 million gallons of advanced biofuel (cellulosic ethanol) per year by refining some 100,000 metric tons of dried and post-sorted municipal solid waste through a thermo-chemical cellulosic process.

In Vero Beach, Fla., the INEOS New Planet BioEnergy, LLC. has been selected to receive a $75 million loan guarantee to construct and operate a biorefinery capable of producing 8 million gallons-per-year of cellulosic ethanol and gross electricity production capacity of 6 MW. The feedstock for the process will include primarily vegetative waste (citrus and agricultural wastes), yard wastes, wood waste, and municipal solid waste.

When asked about Range Fuels in Georgia, which has received USDA loan guarantees but is having to shut down due to lack of additional investment, Vilsack said he is hopeful that the company will work through the technology issues that are causing investment concerns. “Our efforts along with the energy department’s efforts are really designed to prime the pump,” Vilsack said. “The fact that we’re making these announcements today in a variety of states across the country indicates our belief that this industry is here to stay.”

Vilsack also announced investments to study renewable energy feasibility in rural communities and payments to eligible producers to expand production of advanced biofuels.

Listen to or download Vilsack’s press conference here: Tom Vilsack on Biofuels Projects

Audio, Biodiesel, biofuels, Cellulosic, Ethanol, Ethanol News, USDA

Brazil Sugarcane Harvest Update

Joanna Schroeder

The Brazilian sugarcane harvest is in full swing and sugarcane crushing in the South-Central region totaled 2.44 million tons in the second half of December 2010, a 76.39 percent drop from the same period in 2009. This raises the total since the beginning of the 2010/2011 harvest to 555.00 million tons. In early January, only 21 mills were operating in the region and between now and the end of the official harvest on March 31st, numbers are only expected to change slightly.

In the second half of December, sugar production reached 67.48 thousand tons, adding to the 33.46 million tons produced from the beginning of the harvest to December 31, 2010. That total is 18.22 percent more than the amount produced during the same period of 2009, and 16.82 percent more than the final tally for the entire 2009/2010 harvest.

The country’s ethanol production reached 142.7 million liters in the second half of December. Of this total, 53.24 million liters were anhydrous and 89.23 million were hydrous ethanol. Since the harvest began through the end of December 2010, total ethanol production was 25.27 billion liters, which was an increase up 10.34 percent compared to the same period in 2009. Of this volume, 17.87 billion liters were hydrous ethanol – a 6.25 percent increase from last year, and 7.41 billion liters were anhydrous ethanol, an increase of 21.64 percent from last year.

When you take into account the current harvest is near completion, and compare overall production at the end of December with final numbers for last year’s harvest, there were increases of 2.41 percent in total cane crushing, 16.82 percent in sugar production and 6.71 percent in ethanol production. However, when you only factor ethanol and sugar into the equation, the increase is 11.10 percent.

Sales of ethanol by mills in the South-Central region totaled 2.22 billion liters in December, a 2.64 percent increase compared to the previous month. Of that, 108.33 million liters were exported and 2.11 billion liters went to the domestic market. On the domestic front, 1.50 billion liters of hydrous ethanol were sold in December, a 2.44 percent increase compared to December of 2009. Anhydrous ethanol sales totaled 608.66 million liters against 524.39 million liters in 2009, an increase of 16.07 percent.

During a meeting held on Wednesday Jan.12 with members of the various government organizations, it was determined that there would be continuous monitoring of the ethanol market during the inter-harvest period, with regular meetings between the government and market agents.

“Given the latest figures, it became evident that the current productive scenario offers total peace of mind as far as supplies of ethanol for the domestic market. Mills in South-Central Brazil should produce about two billion litters more ethanol in the current harvest year and, so far, exports are down by more than a billion liters compared to the previous harvest,” said UNICA’s Rodrigues. The numbers show the amount of ethanol available for domestic needs should increase by approximately three billion liters, he added.

Brazil, Ethanol, UNICA

Part 1: An Overview of Waste-to-Energy

Joanna Schroeder

Earlier this week, I announced that I was kicking off a series on waste-to-energy and many people have already expressed comments and feedback on the subject. It is probably no coincidence that the hot button was the term incineration, aka combustion or burn. No one can see this term and not think pollution. While incinerators are still in use today, and will be the focus of Part 1 of this series, there are many new cutting edge waste-to-energy technologies that don’t use incineration and as the series progresses, we’ll be discussing these technologies.

One of the first people I spoke with was Ted Michaels with the Energy Recovery Council based in Washington DC. The first question I asked him was how has the technology developed from the 1970s until now? Michaels began by explaining that the commercial waste-to-energy industry has existed since 1975 and today there are 86 waste-to-energy (WTE) facilities in 24 states that turn trash into energy through combustion.

The biggest differentiation of WTE facilities today, versus the WTE facilities of yesteryear, according to Michaels, are their ability to capture the energy and their utilization of emission control equipment. “America’s waste-to-energy facilities meet some of the most stringent environmental standards in the world and employ the most advanced emissions control equipment available,” said Michaels. “In fact, the US Environmental Protection Agency concluded in 2003 that America’s waste-to-energy plants have demonstrated “dramatic decreases” in air emissions, and produce electricity “with less environmental impact than almost any other source of electricity.”

According to Michaels, WTE achieves the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) through three separate mechanisms: 1) by generating electrical power or steam, waste-to-energy avoids carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from fossil fuel based electrical generation; 2) the waste-to-energy combustion process effectively avoids all potential methane emissions from landfills thereby avoiding any potential release of methane in the future; and 3) the recovery of ferrous and nonferrous metals from MSW by waste-to-energy is more energy efficient than production from raw materials.

Michaels explains that these three mechanisms provide a true accounting of the greenhouse gas emission reduction potential of waste-to-energy. “A lifecycle analysis, such as the EPA Municipal Solid Waste Decision Support Tool, is the most accurate method for understanding and quantifying the complete accounting of any MSW management option,” explained Michaels.Read More

bioenergy, Electricity, Energy, Waste-to-Energy

Perdue to Install Solar Installation Spanning 2 States

Joanna Schroeder

In what Perdue believes to be one of the largest commercial solar installations on the East Coast, the company has announced they are installing 11,000 solar panels divided between two different facilities. The agribusiness company has entered into a 15-year agreement with Washington Gas Services, Inc. (WGES) to purchase the electricity generated by the solar panels at a set price. WGES will own and operate the system that is expected to generate an average of 3,700 megawatt hours of electricity each year, or approximately enough electricity to power 340 American homes. At peak production, the panels could produce at much as 90 percent of the electrical demand for each facility.

The ground-mounted panels will cover nearly 10 football fields. Nearly half of the solar installation will be located at the Perdue corporate offices in Salisbury, Maryland and the remaining will be located at their feed mill in Bridgeville, Deleware. The panels are being installed by Standard Solar Inc.

“Stewardship is one of our company’s core values, so this is a perfect fit for the way we do business,” said Steve Schwalb, Perdue’s Vice President of Environmental Sustainability. “Using solar power means we’ll have a clean energy source that doesn’t pollute or create greenhouse gases, while lowering Perdue’s energy costs over the life of the project.”

Perdue has also engaged in several other “green” projects. Last year they began renovation their corporate office and hope to obtain LEED certification for environmental leadership from the U.S. Green Building Council. Three years ago, the company began the first to sign a Clean Waters Environmental Initiative with the EPA to aid poultry growers in adopting better pollution prevention practices.

Harry Warren, president of WGES said of the project, “By hosting this project, Perdue is also helping both Maryland and Delaware achieve their statewide solar energy goals. “The Maryland and Delaware Renewable Energy Portfolio Standards Acts call for a growing contribution from solar energy each year through at least 2022, and Perdue’s project will contribute significantly to Maryland’s and Delaware’s total solar power production goals for 2012 and beyond.”

Agribusiness, Electricity, Environment, Solar, Utilities

Ethanol Conference Registration Going Strong

Cindy Zimmerman

Attendance for the 16th annual National Ethanol Conference on February 20-22 in Phoenix is going so strong that they have added an overflow hotel for attendees and there is still a few more days to get the early bird discount for registration.

The theme for this year’s conference is “Building Bridges to a More Sustainable Future” and features a variety of session focused on the future, including Biofuels Tax Policy, Next Generation Biofuels Commercialization, Moving Beyond E10, Global Ethanol Outlook and a “Behind the Scenes Look at Impact of 2010 Elections on Congress and Presidential Politics, featuring Mary Matalin and James Carville.”

Rooms at the conference hotel, the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort & Spa, have sold out, but there are still plenty of rooms available at the Marriott Residence Inn Phoenix Desert View just one mile away. Early bird registration for the conference ends January 26 – after that, registration goes up $100.

Hope to see you there!

National Ethanol Conference, RFA

Biodiesel Helps Melt the Snow in Minneapolis

John Davis

From what I’m hearing from my friends back up north, it’s been a particularly tough winter, especially in Minneapolis, where snowfall has been plentiful this year. Remember the collapse of the Metrodome? (By the way, to my friends shivering their way through another below-zero, snowy night, a balmy 70 degrees in south Texas today).

But Corn & Soybean Digest reports that a biodiesel-powered Snow Dragon is helping the city battle back by melting 30 tons of snow an hour:

The snow melter’s 9-million-BTU boiler separates pollutants and trash from the water, which is then sent down a storm drain cleaner than when it was snow.

The melter is being used primarily around parking meters and intersections. The only municipally owned snow melter in Minnesota, the city received federal funds to help purchase it as part of a transit upgrade.

The Snow Dragon helped clear the field when the Vikings had to move their last home game to the University of Minnesota’s outdoor stadium. Now, if it could just help my Vikes chalk up a few more wins next season!

Biodiesel

Biodiesel Conference Registration Extended

John Davis

Recognizing just how important the National Biodiesel Conference & Expo is to everyone with ties to the industry, our friends at the National Biodiesel Board have extended the deadline to register for the Feb. 6-9 event in Phoenix, Arizona to Feb. 1.

NBB CEO Joe Jobe says:

The uncertainty surrounding the biodiesel tax credit and the implementation of the Renewable Fuels Standard-2 made 2010 tough on all of us, to be sure. But we have high hopes that this conference will be the springboard to greater opportunities. In fact, 2011 has the potential to be a banner year for biodiesel production. The RFS2, now that it is fully implemented, will be the driving force behind biodiesel demand in 2011 and beyond. NBB recognizes that this relatively new legislation is still unclear to many in the industry. That’s why we are offering a comprehensive workshop, free with your full registration, which will dive into the “nuts and bolts” of the RFS2, featuring some of the top experts on the issue. This is truly a “can’t miss” event if you plan to be part of the biodiesel industry moving forward.

More information is available on the conference website. Plus, you can follow our coverage of the event on the conference blog!

Just a quick update …
The good folks at Renewable Energy Group (REG) will host their Corporate Update & 2011 Market Outlook at the biodiesel conference. Make sure to join them on Monday, Feb. 7, 2011 at the Phoenix Convention Center, North131C, 100 Level.

E-mail your RSVP to alicia.clancy@regfuel.com.

Biodiesel, conferences, NBB

New Product Reduces Methanol for Biodiesel Production

John Davis

A new product from a Florida biodiesel technology developer could cut down on the amount of methanol to brew biodiesel by up to 5 percent.

Biodiesel Magazine reports that Florida Biodiesel Inc. has developed the Cyclonic Mixer:

“The Mixer is a device that is made to shear the catalyst and the feedstock,” said Bill Gehrs, president of Florida Biodiesel, “giving a more complete mixing, which is able to reduce the amount of methanol used.” The mixer, Gehrs said, can save the plant operator between 2 to 5 percent in methanol costs.

Described by Gehrs as a “passive” device, the mixer has been used in other consumer and commercial systems and the Florida Biodiesel version can be scaled to work in a 60 gallon system all the way up to a 2.3 MMgy facility. “It has no moving parts. The high shear mixer is encased in a pipe and when the feedstock and the catalyst are moved through the multi-veined system in the mixer,” Gehrs explained, “it creates a high shearing action,” that ultimately does a better job of mixing.

Florida Biodiesel doesn’t produce the green fuel itself, but it has 187 dealers who sell add-on pieces for the industry.

Biodiesel