While the biodiesel industry’s biggest advocacy group is praising a bill that could make B99 a thing of the past, not all biodiesel makers are glad to see the change.
This article from Biodiesel Magazine says the Biodiesel Tax Incentive Reform and Extension Act, introduced last month by U.S. Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA), is being hailed by the National Biodiesel Board as a “common sense” proposal that will bring stability and reliability to the marketplace by extending the tax incentive for five years and will change the excise tax for biodiesel from a blender to a producer credit. But some sources aren’t so happy or optimistic about its effects:
“I don’t understand their wanting to change that,” said one NBB member, who asked not to be named. “I don’t see the sense or the advantage in it.”
The source indicated that producers who sell B100 are able to keep their books clean because they don’t file any claims with the Internal Revenue Service. This allows them to bill the $1 per gallon credit into their sale price and let distributors, who blend the fuel, deal with the paperwork. “It usually takes about 10 days for us to get paid by our customers,” said the source. “When you’re dealing with the federal government, 45 days is good.”
The longer a producer has to wait to get paid, the more of its own capital it has to invest to maintain its inventory and procure feedstocks, which could be a problem imposed by a conversion of the credit. “I understand that it’s a cash flow issue,” said Bobby Heiser of Bulldog Biodiesel. “But most of the time we’re the blender of record anyway, so we’re already dealing with the IRS. The way that this change will make it easier for us will be by eliminating B99.”
Management at Lake Erie Biofuels, a plant with a 45 MMgy capacity in Erie, Pa., agreed. “We sell maybe a couple of truckloads of B100 while B99 makes up almost 90 percent of our total sales,” said Michael Noble, director of operations at LEB. “Changing the excise tax will be better for our customers, but it doesn’t change our position.”
Still, others say converting the credit gets rid of the paperwork for blenders and will encourage sales.
And you thought all the debate in DC was just about health care!
Klein Ileleji, an assistant professor of agricultural and biological engineering, tested blends of 20 percent, 50 percent and 100 percent degummed soybean oil – an unrefined and cheaper product to produce than soy methyl esters, commonly known as biodiesel – and found that the 20 percent blend didn’t degrade a home furnace’s parts or heat output. The only issue found with the 20 percent blend was a slight early degradation of the furnace’s seals and gaskets, which manufacturers could fix by switching to a higher quality product. Ileleji’s findings were reported in the recent early online version of the journal Fuel.
The deadline for getting in your two cents’ worth on the U.S. EPA’s proposed Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS2) is rapidly approaching, as this Friday, Sept. 25th will mark the end of the comment period.
The project will be developed by the Renewable Energy Group of Ames, Iowa, in conjunction with Bunge North America and International-Matex Tank terminals, two companies with a presence in the River Parishes. The project will be located on property on IMTT’s St. Rose terminal.
More homes across the country, especially along the East Coast, could soon be burning a combination of biodiesel and heating oil better known as Bioheat®.
The National Renewable Energy Laboaratory (NREL), a laboratory for the Department of Energy, is testing higher blends of ethenol to be used in vehicles. Researchers are trying to find out, because these new ethanol blends could play a significant role as America tries to wean itself off petroleum based fuels.
They say that fiction is truth sprinkled with a few well placed lies. In this week’s book, “Black Monday,” by 
Although UNICA supports the idea in some aspects, they also note that various aspects need further analysis. One such area of concern involves the challenges in defining the concept of food security, due to the crop’s dual functions as to provide both food and energy. The proposal, as currently written, could lead to restrictions in growing sugarcane that would, according to UNICA, “have the reverse effect in terms of food security, by restricting the production of additional sugar.” Brazil supplies 60 percent of the world’s sugar needs after supplying its own.
Mark your calendar for October 1st and 2nd for the third annual Alternative Energy Symposium held at the campus of Chicago State University.