Today some retail stations are offering E85 (for use in flex fuel vehicle only) at more than $1.00 per gallon less than regular unleaded and these retail stations are seeing E85 sales soar. One reason these stations are able to sell the fuel at such a competitive price is because some of suppliers are passing along RIN values. Fast Stop …
Army Awards Solar Contracts
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Engineering and Support Center, Huntsville, working with the Army Energy Initiatives Task Force (EITF), awarded Multiple Award Task Order Contracts (MATOC) to a group of 22 solar technology contractors. Solar is the second of four technologies being awarded under the $7 billion Renewable and Alternative Energy Power Production for DoD Installations MATOC. The …
SolarShield Offsets Cloudy Days
Potential commercial solar project investors have growing concerns about what happens with the sun doesn’t shine. In response to this issue, Walsh Carter & Associates Insurance Services has created SolarShield, a true performance warranty that will guarantee the minimum revenue generated by solar photovoltaic (PV systems) in the event of production shortfalls. “We are proud to offer the only true …
Growth Launches “You’re No Dummy” Campaign
In response to the major ad campaign funded by Big Oil in an effort to block higher blends of ethanol into the marketplace (such as E15), ethanol advocacy group Growth Energy has launched an advertising campaign called “You’re no Dummy“. The goal of the campaign is to help Americans better understand that the oil industry is trying to stop the …
20 Climate Change Steps for DOE
The Bicameral Task Force on Climate Change recently released a white paper recommending 20 steps the Department of Energy (DOE) should take in carrying out the President’s Climate Action Plan. The recommendations include strengthening specific energy efficiency standards, accelerating the development and deployment of low-carbon energy technologies, expanding the use of energy savings performance contracts to save energy at federal …
In Center Ring: Biofuels Versus Big Oil
The National Conference of State Legislators kicked off in Atlanta, Georgia yesterday and today the group has invited Geoff Cooper with the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) along with Patrick Kelly of the American Petroleum Institute (API) to debate the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). According to Cooper, the invitation was extended because state legislators want to learn more about the program …
The Pursuit of Greener Methanol
A Lehigh University Research team is working to create a new method of producing renewable fuel. Supported by a $2 million grant from the National Science Foundation, using only carbon dioxide, sunlight and water, the team is attempting to perfect a low-cost, environmentally friendly process that could enable the production of methanol—which can be used as fuel for cars, heating …
ZeaChem Recieves EPA Approval on Cellulosic RINS
ZeaChem Inc. has announced that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has given registration approval for the cellulosic biofuel produced at the company’s demonstration biorefinery in Boardman, Oregon. The EPA Fuels Programs Registered Company/Facility ID List has been updated accordingly with ZeaChem’s biorefinery verified as an approved registered facility for the production of Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS2) qualifying D3 cellulosic …
1st Offshore Wind Lease Sale in U.S.
Today the United States Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) held its first-ever offshore wind lease sale, leasing 164,750 acres off the coasts of Rhode Island and Massachusetts. The area was divided into two leases, the North Lease Area, which consists of about 97,500 acres, and the South Lease Area, covering approximately 67,250 acres. Oceana, an international advocacy group protecting …
Xcel Takes Aim at Rooftop Solar in Colorado
Renewable energy advocates, businesses and environmental groups have joined together to urge the Colorado Public Utilities Commission to reject a new proposal from Xcel Energy that would discourage rooftop solar growth in its territory. Issued last week as part of Xcel’s 2014 Renewable Energy Standard compliance plan, the proposal takes aim at net metering, one of the state’s most important …