USDA Promises Canola Biodiesel Won’t Be Left Behind

John Davis

The Ag Department is promising that canola-based biodiesel won’t be left behind as provisions of the 2008 Farm Bill are implemented.

Biofuels Digest says that’s music to the ears of some of the folks from northern states, including Congressman Earl Pomeroy of North Dakota, who personally got the assurance from USDA assurance after the EPA failed to complete an evaluation of canola biodiesel:

This commitment was made during a House Agricultural Committee hearing when Deputy Under Secretary for Rural Development stated that canola based biodiesel plants, such as the one in Velva, North Dakota, will be allowed to0 participate in the program while the EPA concludes its evaluation.

Congressman Pomeroy noted ” “Canola is the feedstock of choice for 10 percent of the biodiesel plants in the United States. It makes no sense to penalize them simply because the EPA hasn’t done its job and finished this evaluation yet. I’m pleased that USDA has committed to making sure our canola biodiesel producers will be given a fair shake.”

Biodiesel, USDA

Biodiesel Credit Moving Again, But Too Slow for IRFA

John Davis

The U.S. Senate is moving again on renewing the $1-a-gallon federal biodiesel tax incentive, but the action is too slow for many in the biofuels business.

Biodiesel Magazine reports the Senate today invoked cloture on the larger bill that contains the credit, ending debate and setting up a final vote:

Sources say there is still some debate regarding Medicare payments and negotiating “price-downs” and “pay-fors,” but they say $20 billion has already been negotiated out of the massive piece of legislation, in which the biodiesel tax credit is tied up, to reduce the overall cost of the $145 billion package.

And even it passes the Senate, the measure has been amended since it’s time in the House, meaning this changed version will have to pass that chamber as well. All these machinations are getting to be too much for the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA), who also called on President Obama, after last night’s address on the Gulf oil spill, to come up with a little less talk and a lot more action:

“Instead of kicking tar balls on beaches, President Obama ought to be kicking the backside of Congress to reinstate the biodiesel tax incentive,” stated IRFA Executive Director Monte Shaw. “Biodiesel is one of the country’s cleanest energy opportunities; yet U.S. biodiesel production remains crippled by 165 days of Congressional inaction. While the focus must be on confronting the massive plume of crude oil enveloping the Gulf region, our leaders certainly have the multitasking capability to enact legislation that moves us away from our dangerous addiction to that crude oil at the same time.”

“We watch in dismay as oil threatens the jobs and very way of life in the Gulf region. Yet thousands of jobs have also been lost with the expiration of the biodiesel tax incentive. With Presidential leadership, quick Congressional action can restart the biodiesel industry, thereby restoring those jobs and jumpstarting the country’s march toward a clean energy future,” added Shaw.

The IRFA says reinstating the biodiesel tax incentive would be a real move toward spurring domestic, clean energy production and restoring green collar jobs, as Obama says he wants to do.

Biodiesel, Legislation

Ethanol Industry Responds to EPA Delay Reports

Cindy Zimmerman

Reports late Thursday indicated that a decision on increasing the ethanol blend rate in gasoline could be delayed into the fall.

Reuters is reporting that Environmental Protection Agency says the Department of Energy (DOE) has to complete more testing before they can rule on increasing the amount of ethanol allowed in regular gasoline above the current 10%, and that it will be September or later before DOE completes testing on vehicles 2007 model year or newer. “While results from the tests conducted to-date look good, EPA will not make a final decision until DOE completes its current comprehensive testing of the newer vehicles,” Reuters quotes EPA as saying.

Renewable Fuels Association LogoThe report brought a swift reaction from the ethanol industry. “EPA is dropping the ball, and for no scientifically justified reason,” said Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen. “President Obama this week rallied the nation to an Apollo-like program to end our dependence on oil. By pursuing this path, EPA is failing to answer the President’s charge.”

Growth Energy, which filed the Green Jobs Waiver to increase the ethanol blend rate to 15 percent in March of 2009, responded with a direct letter to President Obama pointing out that a decision on the waiver had already been delayed by EPA well past the 270 days required under law.

Growth Energy“As you would expect, we find this further delay unacceptable,” writes Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis. “We urge you to direct the federal agencies involved in this waiver to expedite the testing process, add extra staff, additional shifts, or whatever other steps necessary to accelerate the completion of the testing. Again, the waiver decision should have been made in December 2009; when that deadline was not met, we were promised a decision in mid June of this year. Now we are again being told to wait for testing that we believe was unnecessary in the first place to make a decision.”

Meanwhile, Dow Jones reports that Archer Daniels Midland has reportedly received an answer from EPA on a request made last week seeking approval of ethanol-gasoline blends containing up to E12 for all cars. EPA assistant administrator Gina McCarthy wrote that they will give “careful attention” to ADM’s request, but that test data would be needed for such approval and they are “not aware of any test data using 12% ethanol blends.”

According to RFA, existing oxygenate stacking rules already allow for the addition of up to 2 percent MTBE on top of currently allowed 10 percent ethanol blends and since ethanol and MTBE are both oxygenates, that additional 2 percent volume could be ethanol since a vehicle engine would not recognize if the oxygen content was from one fuel or two.

Ethanol, Ethanol News, Growth Energy, RFA

Biofuels Promotions in ND and MN

The American Lung Associations of North Dakota and Minnesota are holding three E85 and biodiesel promotions in their respective states in just a few days.

First, discounted fuel will be offered at the Handi Stop station at 515 E. Highway 212 in Bird Island, Minnesota for their annual celebration of Customer Appreciation Day. The event will be held on Friday, June 18, from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m. E85 will be discounted 85 cents per gallon and B5 biodiesel will be lowered 20 cents per gallon.

The second promotion will be held in Breckenridge, Minnesota on June 24. The Breck Tesoro at 206 S. 5th Street will also reduce the price of E85 85 cents per gallon and 20 cent per gallon discount on their blends of E20, E30 and E50 from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. .

Lastly, the Frontier Travel Center at 705 Highway 12 in Bowman, North Dakota will hold a promotion from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. on Friday, June 18 at their fueling station. A $2 discount will be taken off the bill of those flexible fuel vehicle owners who fill up with E85 or the blend of E30.

For more information on any of these promotions, visit www.CleanAirChoice.org.

Biodiesel, biofuels, E85, Ethanol, Ethanol News, News

Ethanol Awards and Scholarships Presented

Cindy Zimmerman

FEW 2010Two current ethanol industry leaders and two potential leaders of the future received recognition at the 2010 Fuel Ethanol Workshop in St. Louis this week.

The High Octane Award for helping the ethanol industry mature and progress over the years was presented this year to Jeff Broin, CEO of Poet (pictured), while the research and technology Award of Excellence was given to Gunter Brodl, president of Vogelbusch USA. (The photo is courtesy of POET and you can see a video of Broin receiving his award on the POET blog, Rhapsody in Green.)

Two 2010 Kathy Bryan Memorial Scholarships were awarded this year to the children of ethanol plant employees, selected from more than 100 applicants representing 52 ethanol plants. The $2500 scholarships went to Mary Krull, the daughter of Peter Krull, a plant manager at Valero Renewables-Albert City, Iowa, and Nicholas Ballard, the son of Kim Ballard, a process operator at Big River Resources LLC, Galva, Ill.

Ethanol, Ethanol News, FEW, POET

SunBelt Biofuels is Now Repreve

Cindy Zimmerman

repreveSunBelt Biofuels and Unifi Inc. have formed a joint venture called REPREVE™ Renewables to develop and commercialize bioenergy crops, including Freedom™ Giant Miscanthus.

According to the companies, Freedom Giant Miscanthus is a heat and drought tolerant perennial that yields up to 25 tons per acre. It was developed at Mississippi State University and is the first and only University-released, licensed and branded variety of Giant Miscanthus available. The new venture plans to develop Freedom planting stock for sale to U.S. growers, who will in turn sell the energy crop as feedstock to the bioenergy and biofuel industries in the U.S. and E.U.

biomass

New Yeast Product for Ethanol Plants

Cindy Zimmerman

Nearly 400 exhibitors were on the floor of the 2010 Fuel Ethanol Workshop and Expo this week in St. Louis, many of them introducing new technologies and products for ethanol producers.

FEW 2010One of those was Lallemand Ethanol Technology, a global provider of fermentation ingredients to the fuel ethanol industry, which announced the introduction of Thermosacc® GOLD, a new yeast product for the fuel ethanol industry.

Thermosacc GOLD is a fresh-cake yeast of Saccharomyces cerevisiae specially selected to better withstand the rigors of fermentation. A crumble yeast that has not been dried, it produces a shorter lag phase. The increased budding rates and vitality of Thermosacc GOLD result in quicker starting fermentations compared to dry yeast.

Designed to utilize sugars more efficiently, Thermosacc GOLD leaves less sugar and glycerol at the end of the fermentation process. This translates into increased yield, while adding dollars to the bottom line.

“Lallemand Ethanol Technology is continually striving for product improvement,” says Bill Nankervis, General Manager. “Thermosacc GOLD is another example of understanding our customers’ needs and delivering on them. Thermosacc GOLD allows plants to achieve incremental steps toward more efficient and profitable operations.”

2010 Fuel Ethanol Workshop Photo Album

Ethanol, Ethanol News, FEW

NY

John Davis

With props to the old t-shirts that read “I <3 NY" (I Love New York), it appears the Big Apple <3 one of our favorite green fuels: biodiesel. It was back in 2005 that the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation piloted the city's first biodiesel program, and Biodiesel Magazine reports Gotham is continuing that commitment to this day:

The agency maintains more than 29,000 acres in New York City, including such well-known venues as Central Park, Battery Park, Flushing Meadows, Coney Island and much more. This enormous task requires a very large fleet—more than 2,300 vehicles, 850 of which are diesel-powered. The diesel fleet alone includes more than 40 different types of vehicles and equipment, everything from landscape and parks maintenance to road construction, snow removal and waste management.

Their experience has been extremely positive. In fact, things have gone so well that the department ran a B50 pilot program in 2007 in 45 vehicles.

“Our B50 trial was very successful and we hope to move to a B50 blend in all but the very coldest months in the near future,” said Keith Kerman, assistant commissioner for the parks and recreation department. “We view B20 as a stepping stone that will help move us toward New York City’s goal of reducing carbon dioxide emissions 30 percent by 2030.”

NY Parks and Rec is also using a B5 blend for its heating systems and boilers, with hopes of moving up to a 20 percent mixture one day. Plus, most of the department’s vehicles that don’t run on diesel use other alternatives, such as compressed natural gas, electric or solar power.

Biodiesel

Renewal of Biodiesel Tax Incentive Dealt Setback

John Davis

It’s getting to be an all-too-familiar refrain: renewal of the federal $1-a-gallon biodiesel tax credit has hit another roadblock.

This article from Reuters says the measure, contained in a $126 billion tax bill, failed a procedural vote today in the U.S. Senate. But the measure’s sponsor has introduced a new version:

Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus was expected to offer a less-costly substitute to the bill that would reduce Medicare spending. A Baucus aide did not respond to questions about the possible survival of the biodiesel credit, a popular cause in many farm states…

A spokesman for the National Biodiesel Board, a trade group, said it appeared the biodiesel credit would be retained. “There’s been no objection to it,” said the spokesman.

Biodiesel production may drop to 15 percent of capacity because of loss of the credit, said the trade group.

USDA estimates that just more than 10 percent of all U.S.-grown soybean oil this year will be made into biodiesel … that’s if the biodiesel industry can survive all these delays.

Biodiesel, Legislation

Ethanol Industry Wants to Answer President’s Call

Cindy Zimmerman

In his remarks to the nation Tuesday night about the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster, President Obama noted that “oil is a finite resource” and “the need to end America’s century-long addiction to fossil fuels.”

However, while he talked about wind turbines, solar panels and energy efficiency, the president made no mention of domestic transportation fuel alternatives such as ethanol and biodiesel. In an open letter to President Obama, the Renewable Fuels Association has offered to answer his call for a clean energy future.

“There is no other renewable fuel technology that can match the domestic ethanol industry’s ability to replace oil in American gas tanks,” reads the letter. “Wind, solar, and other renewable energies all must play a critical role. But theirs is to replace those fossil fuels from which we generate power and electricity. America uses precious little oil to generate electricity. Rather, oil is primarily used to create liquid transportation fuels. As such, America’s producers of renewable fuel are uniquely equipped to reduce and ultimately eliminate America’s need for oil in the tank.”

RFA asks the president to give ethanol the ability to answer the call by urging Congress to extend the tax incentives for ethanol, having EPA increase the amount of ethanol allowed in a gallon of gasoline to 15 percent, and expand the infrastructure needed to use higher ethanol blends.

“Throughout its brief history, American ethanol production has always risen to answer the call. Together with American farmers who provide the feedstocks from which we make ethanol, we stand at the ready yet again,” the RFA letter concludes. “Mr. President, when the phone rings American farmers and ethanol producers will be there to answer.”

Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA