Governors Urge Immediate Biofuels Action

Cindy Zimmerman

The Governors’ Biofuels Coalition is calling on President Obama to tap the job growth potential of the biofuels industry.

Governors Biofuels CoalitionAccording to the 35 member coalition, the nation’s biofuels industry is poised to provide immediate job growth, generate economic activity and prepare the nation for the next increase in world oil prices and they are urging the president to capitalize on the opportunity.

Coalition chairman Governor John Hoeven of North Dakota says biofuels are helping to transform communities, broaden the tax base and provide solid job growth. “Help from the federal government in terms of fiscal support and policy leadership could revitalize this critical industry, create jobs, spur investment and strengthen the ability of biofuels to address the economic, energy and environmental challenges that face our nation,” said Governor Hoeven.

During a Washington press conference today, the coalition urged President Obama to take specific actions to advance the contribution of the biofuels industry to the nation’s workforce, economy and energy security including the establishment an interagency task force on lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions and transportation fuels, involving the U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). They are also requesting an immediate ruling from EPA approving 13 percent ethanol blendss, which are already within EPA’s allowable variance.

In addition, the coalition called for a grassroots effort to strengthen and broaden public awareness and support for biofuels development and market availability, acknowledging support and cooperation from a number of organizations including the American Coalition for Ethanol, Growth Energy, Biotechnology Industry Organization, Renewable Fuels Association, National Biodiesel Board,
Clean Fuels Development Coalition, Environmental and Energy Study Institute, National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition and 25x’25.

Biodiesel, Ethanol, Government, News, RFA

Willie to Play at Carl’s Corner Biodiesel Truck Stop

John Davis

willienelsonThe Red Headed Stranger is at it again, as country music legend and biodiesel advocate Willie Nelson performs at the Willie’s Place at Carl’s Corner Truck Stop tomorrow and Wednesday (Feb. 24 & 25) for the opening of the Texas biodiesel facility.

earthbiofuelsThis press release posted on MarketWatch.com has details:
The truck stop, which is 50% owned by Earth Biofuels, Inc., launched a “soft opening” last December and has increased sales of blended biodiesel fuel since that time. The state-of-the-art truck stop features 12 diesel/biodiesel fueling lanes for tractor-trailers plus a wide load island. There is a separate fueling island for cars and trucks.

williesplaceIn addition to the truck stop fueling facilities, “Willie’s Place at Carl’s Corner” features two restaurants, a convenience store, a saloon, a gift shop featuring official Willie Nelson merchandise and memorabilia, and the 500 seat “Night Life” theater that will feature regular live music performances. Additionally, this destination for travelers features wireless internet access, clean restrooms, hot showers, laundry facilities, and plenty of parking.

Asleep at the Wheel will join Willie for the show, and if you weren’t one of the lucky ones who snapped up tickets to these sold-out performances or aren’t going to be in the Carl’s Corner, Texas area, you can still get updates on the concert on the satellite radio show, “Willie’s Place,” XM channel 13 and SIRIUS channel 64. The broadcasts originate from the SIRIUS XM studios at the truck stop.

Biodiesel

TDOT to Give Money for E85 and B20 Infrastructure

tdotIn 2006, Tennesse Governor Phil Bredesen allocated $1.5 million to the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) to develop a Biofuel Green Island Corridor network along Tennessee’s interstate system and major highways. TDOT has recently opened a solicitation for grant funding to assist in converting or installing fuel storage tanks and equipment to dispense B20 and E85 to the public.

The goal of the Green Island program is to help establish readily available “green island” refueling stations for B20 biodiesel and E85 ethanol no more than 100 miles apart along these corridors. This competitive grant program seeks to identify partner retail stations in areas where reasonably accessible and convenient retail biofuel stations are not in place. A minimum of 20 percent in nonfederal matching funds is required.

A statewide network of biofuel stations will encourage and expand the use of biofuels in Tennessee, which in turn will stimulate rural economic development, increase farm income, reduce vehicle emissions, help protect public health, and reduce dependence on petroleum.

Potential E85 and B20 retailers can view the solicitation by clicking here. Sumission is due by April 17, 2009.

Biodiesel, E85, Facilities, Government, News

New Report Outlines Ethanol’s Economic Impact

Cindy Zimmerman

Despite difficult current economic conditions, the ethanol industry is poised to meet the production targets of the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS), according to a report released today by LECG LLC, a prominent economic consulting firm.

UrbanchukThe report, “Contribution of the Ethanol Industry to the Economy of the United States,” was prepared by John M. Urbanchuk, Director, LECG LLC for the Renewable Fuels Association.

“As this report points out, these are unquestionably tough times for the economy and the ethanol industry,” said LECG Director and report author John Urbanchuk. “Nevertheless, it also finds that ethanol capacity continues to expand and that the industry is in position to meet the 36 billion gallon renewable fuels goal set for 2022. Through additional investment in both grain and cellulosic ethanol capacity, the industry will not only create new green jobs and provide increasing tax revenue to federal, state and local governments, but will continue to reduce our dependence on foreign oil.”

The report notes that the net benefit to the federal government, after for ethanol related tax credits, was more than $7 billion in 2008, providing a return on every dollar invested of 2.5 to 1.

Read the report here.

Ethanol, News, RFA

RFA Chairman Previews National Ethanol Conference

Chuck Zimmerman

Chris StandleeThe 2009 National Ethanol Conference is underway in San Antonio. Cindy and I are on location and will be bringing you as much of the activities as we can courtesy of the Renewable Fuels Association. We’ll also be posting content onto The Ethanol Report site for RFA.

Today, one of the main activities is the annual golf tournament which is being played at The Club at Sonterra. It’s a beautiful sunny morning and we have a good crowd out having a good time. I’ll be here with them through lunch at their awards before heading back to the hotel. This evening we’ll have an opening reception and then tomorrow the main conference programs get started.

Just prior to the start of the golf tournament I spoke with RFA Chairman, Chris Standlee, Abengoa Bioenergy Corp. Chris is expecting this to be a great conference and said that not only are we in oil country but that there are more attendees this year from the oil business than usual. Chris says that he’s very optimistic about the health of the ethanol industry even in light of the challenging year we just completed.

You can listen to my interview with Chris here: [audio:http://www.zimmcomm.biz/rfa/nec-09-standlee.mp3]

Keep an eye on our conference photo album which we’ll be adding to throughout the event: 2009 National Ethanol Conference Photo Album

Audio, National Ethanol Conference, RFA

Solar Panel Array Backdrop for Stimulus Bill

John Davis

obamasolarWhile Pres. Obama’s signing of the nearly $800 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act… better known as the Stimulus Bill… attracted lots of attention, especially for the billions that will be going to alternative energy, a Colorado company in the renewable energy field just was glad to help provide the backdrop for the event.

Denver based Hybrid Energy Group owns and operates the solar array on the roof of the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, where Obama and Vice-President Joe Biden toured during the bill-signing ceremony:

“It was a spectacular event for Colorado and the renewable energy industry, and we are pleased that our solar array was the backdrop to this important moment in history,” said HEG President, Woody Beardsley. “The stimulus package will double the amount of renewable energy produced over the next three years and that bodes well for clean energy projects across America.”

The $720,000 museum array includes 465 solar panels generating 134,500 kilowatt hours of electricity on average—enough to power 30-35 homes. Under the terms of a twenty-year agreement, Hybrid Energy Group owns and operates the photovoltaic array, selling the solar electricity it generates to the museum. Namaste Solar was the installer on the project.

“We structured the development and ownership of the array so that an investment in solar energy was much more attractive to the museum,” said Beardsley. “By working with HEG, the museum was able to acquire renewable energy for less than if it had purchased the array on its own.”

This particular array at the museum is the first in a broader program HEG has unveiled to provide solar power to non-profit institutions and governmental entities.

Solar

Biodiesel Board Moves to Set Record Straight on Deforestation Issue

John Davis

nbb-logoThe National Biodiesel Board is attempting to set the record straight and debunk some research the NBB sees as faulty.

The research in question comes from Holly Gibbs, a postdoctoral researcher at Stanford’s Woods Institute for the Environment. Gibbs contends that the biodiesel production is contributing to deforestation.

But NBB CEO Joe Jobe argues the biodiesel industry is built on sustainable practices that produces “a fuel proven to lower greenhouse gas emissions and provide energy from a renewable resource.” Jobe also challenges Gibbs’ methodology:

“Holly Gibbs’ research measured deforestation based on images spanning the eighties and nineties, long before biodiesel became a viable alternative to foreign oil. Agriculture expansion is spurred mainly by the demand for food and feed, particularly in developing nations. The solution to reducing deforestation is improving global sustainable agriculture practices and addressing the major causes of deforestation, such as logging and infrastructure development. Biodiesel is a part of that solution, driving research that increases crop yields, and improves supplies of protein and higher outputs for food and feed on the exact same acres of land.

“Biodiesel is also among the most powerful tools to fight carbon emission, chipping away at the largest contributor of greenhouse gas emissions-fossil fuels. In fact biodiesel has a 78 percent life cycle carbon reduction according to the USDA/DOE.”

Biodiesel

Warranties Against Biodiesel Use Might Be Invalid

John Davis

How much biodiesel can you run in your diesel-powered vehicle? Well, some manufacturers warn that if you use more than a 5 percent blend, you’ll void your warranty.

But this interesting post on the New York Times’ Green Inc. Blog says there might be some question about whether the auto companies can restrict warranties based on the fuel you use… including biodiesel:

In an e-mail message discussing the new TDI clean diesel technology, Steve Keyes, Volkswagen’s director of public relations, stated “All Volkswagen TDI models are warranted for the use of up to a B5 blend. Blends of biodiesel higher than B5 void the Volkswagen warranty.”

But apparently it’s not all that clear cut.

According to a statement drafted by the Northwest Biofuels Association and the Oregon Auto Dealer’s Association, the Magnuson Moss Warranty Act, a 1975 federal statute governing car warranties, prohibits any auto manufacturer from voiding a car’s warranty based on the type of fuel used in that car.

From the joint statement:

A vehicle’s warranty cannot be voided solely due to the use of biodiesel. Even if the manufacturer recommends a blend of 5% biodiesel and a customer uses a higher blend such as 20% or 99% biodiesel, this does not void the warranty. If a customer uses a blend of biodiesel that is not recommended, that in and of itself, does not void the warranty. If the biodiesel is not the cause of the engine or parts failure, the warranty must be honored (assuming the failure is not the result of another external factor).

The post goes on to point out that critics have long argued that car makers were setting biodiesel limits without actually testing to see what engines could take.

Then again, in this economy, who feels adventurous enough to run their own tests on a new vehicle… and see if your dealer will replace it if it breaks down. My guess is you’d never have to worry as long as you ran tested, proven biodiesel.

Biodiesel, Car Makers

DomesticFuel Cast Returns!

John Davis

df-logoThe podcast DomesticFuel Cast makes its return, along with the spiffy new logo you see here!

This show is one of great importance as we get to hear some of the Sandia National Laboratory’s press conference on the feasibility of producing 90 billion gallons of ethanol from sustainable biomass annually by the year 2030. That’s equal to one-third of the U.S.’s gasoline usage. The experts explain how the feedstock, water and transportation system will be or already are there to support this level of production.

Amazingly, a group of environmentalists from the Environmental Working Group quickly attacked the findings, dismissing facts with the mistaken rhetoric we’ve heard before. One of the group even went as far as saying it would be better to burn petroleum-based gasoline than clean-burning, renewable ethanol.

You’ve got to hear it for yourself, and you can do that here: [audio:http://www.zimmcomm.biz/domesticfuel/DFCast-2-19-08.mp3]

You can also subscribe to the DomesticFuel Cast here.

Cellulosic, Domestic Fuel Cast, Ethanol, News

Underwriters Laboratory Allows E15 in Gasoline Pumps

ulUnderwriters Laboratories (UL) released a press statement on February 19 noting that it will allow up to fifteen percent ethanol in gasoline dispensing units. The press release said that they support Authorities Having Jurisdiction (AHJs) who decide to permit legacy system dispensers, Listed to UL 87 and currently installed in the market, to be used with fuel blends containing a maximum ethanol content of 15%.

UL stresses that existing fuel dispensers certified under UL 87 were for intended use with ethanol blends up to E10, which is the current legal limit for non-flex fuel vehicles in the United States under the federal Clean Air Act. However, data the company has gathered as part of the organization’s ongoing research to investigate the impact of using higher ethanol blends in fuel dispensing systems supports that existing dispensers can be used with ethanol blends up to 15%. AHJs are advised to consult with the dispenser manufacturer to confirm that the dispenser is compatible with the fuel to be dispensed.

UL researchers found that using equipment certified to UL 87 to dispense ethanol blends with a maximum ethanol content of 15% should not result in critical safety concerns. However, the company stressed that dispensers pumping this higher percentage of ethanol should be subject to regular inspection and preventative maintenance as specified by the dispenser manufacturer for the blend of fuel being dispensed because the potential for degradation of the metals and materials (e.g., plastics, elastomers and composites) used in a dispensing system increases as the percentage of ethanol increases.

“UL determined that there is no significant incremental risk of damage between E10 and fuels with a maximum of 15% ethanol. This conclusion was reached after careful examination of the effects of varying levels of ethanol on components,” said John Drengenberg, Consumer Affairs Manager for UL. “We will continue to evaluate test and field findings, as well as the scientific literature, as it becomes available and make this information available to AHJs.”

“UL continues to support technological advancements, while protecting safety. That is why we have invested resources and effort that go far beyond any business benefit UL might gain from this work to support the ethanol industry’s desire to have safety certification requirements established for E85 fuel dispensers,” said Drengenberg.

blends, E85, Ethanol, News