BBI International and NEAtech have formed a joint venture, called BBI Consulting Services, to offer bioenergy consulting to thousands of companies and organizations worldwide, as well as state and federal departments in the United States. BBI International originally started as a bioenergy consulting firm in 1995 and has since grown into a media and events company focused on growing the …
Federal Judge Finds California LCFS Unconstitutional
A Federal District Court judge in Fresno, California has sided with America’s ethanol industry in ruling that the State of California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) violates the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution and is therefore unconstitutional. In a joint statement, Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen and Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis said: “The state of …
Butamax Signs First ‘Early Adopter’ Agreement
Butamax Advanced Biofuels has entered into an agreement on commercialization principles with Highwater Ethanol, a leading ethanol producer based in Lamberton, Minn. Butamax, a leading global biobutanol technology development company, is working to offer current ethanal producers proprietary biobutanol technology to permit improved biofuels growth and plant profitability. “We are developing relationships with a group of early adopters. These facilities …
RFA Responds to EU Ethanol Probe
The European Union (EU) has initiated anti-dumping and countervailing duty investigations regarding U.S. exports of ethanol to Europe and current U.S. policies surrounding ethanol production and use. Allegations by EU ethanol producers, represented by the organization ePure, suggest that U.S. ethanol exports to Europe are taking advantage of the expiring volumetric ethanol excise tax credit, or VEETC, prior to export …
Major Global Companies Sign on to WindMade™ label
Major global companies including Motorola Mobility, Deutsche Bank, Bloomberg, Method and BD (Becton, Dickinson and Co.) announced their commitment to use at least 25 percent wind energy and become certified under the new WindMade™ consumer label at a Global Launch event in New York last week. The label allows participating companies to communicate the share of wind power and other …
Ethanol Train Terminal to Open in Birmingham
Birmingham, Alabama is going to be the new home of an ethanol unit train terminal located on the BNSF Railway, owned by BlendStar, LLC, a subsidiary of Green Plains Renewable Energy. The new terminal will have 160,000 barrels of storage and accept 96-car unit trains of ethanol per day. Expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2012, it …
Nebraska Ethanol Coalition to Promote FFV Awareness
A new grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture will be used to promote flex fuel vehicles, flex fuel pumps, and driver education in Nebraska, one of six states that will be working with the FlexFuel Vehicle Awareness Campaign. The Nebraska Ethanol Industry Coalition (NEIC) will be heading up the statewide project with partners including the Nebraska Ethanol Board, …
Biodiesel Industry Pleased with Supreme Court Decision
The U.S. Supreme Court will not hear a case brought by petroleum interests against the Environmental Protection Agency over the expanded Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS2). The petition made by the National Petrochemical Refiners Association (NPRA) and the American Petroleum Institute (API) was rejected by the District Court of Appeals in December 2010. The petition filed in March 2010 claims that …
Event to Promote Open Fuel Standard Act
Ethanol and other alternative fuel industry leaders will be on Capitol Hill Tuesday to urge Congress to an Open Fuel Standard (OFS). Representatives John Shimkus (R-IL) and Elliot Engel (D-NY) introduced the Open Fuel Standard Act in June with the support of the Open Fuel Standard Coalition. Tuesday’s event in the nation’s capitol will include an Energy Security Roundtable and …
UOP Breaks Ground on Hawaii Cellulose Plant
UOP, a honeywell company, has broken ground on a biofuels demonstration plant in Hawaii that will convert forest waste, algae and other cellulosic biomass to fuel. The project is being helped along by a $25 million U.S. Department of Energy grant. The project will help meet federal biofuel mandates as well as help Hawaii reach its clean energy goals of …