Australia Race Cars to Run on Ethanol

Cindy Zimmerman

Race cars in the Land Down Under will be running on 85 percent ethanol next year.

V8 SupercarsAustralian media sources report that V8 Supercars chairman Tony Cochrane announced on Sunday that all cars in the main V8 series and the Fujitsu Development Series will run on E85 made from sugar cane for at least five years starting in 2009.

“We want to be a leader in the area of emissions and renewable resources – we don’t want to be a follower,” Cochrane said. “Our job is educational. We want to show if we can run it in our cars, maybe it’s a consideration for the average motorist.”

Ethanol, News, Racing

Team Ethanol Partners With Drivers Edge

Cindy Zimmerman

Team EthanolTeam Ethanol has teamed up with Driver’s Edge, a nonprofit organization that travels the country teaching teens defensive driving techniques for free.

Driver’s Edge was prominently displayed on the No. 17 Team Ethanol car, driven by 2008 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year and 2008 Watkins Glen winner Ryan Hunter-Reay, during Sunday’s IndyCar® Series Honda Indy 200 in Mid-Ohio. Team Ethanol finished 10th in the race, making Hunter-Reay now ninth in this year’s standings.

EPICReece Nanfito, senior director of marketing for the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council (EPIC), says they teamed up with Driver’s Edge because each year nearly 6,000 teens are killed in car accidents, making car crashes the number one killer of America’s youth. “Through hands-on education, they are teaching young drivers how to safely handle a car, while providing information so they make good renewable fuel choices at the pump,” said Nanfito.

Drivers EdgeDriver’s Edge president Steven Tepper says being featured on the No. 17 Team Ethanol car is a great opportunity to draw attention to their effort. “Most people have no idea that the number one killer of young Americans ages 16 to 24 is motor vehicle collisions,” said Tepper. “With the proper behind-the-wheel instruction, these are avoidable tragedies, and that’s what Driver’s Edge is all about.”

Driver’s Edge provides a free educational program for young drivers taught by true driving professionals through a unique combination of behind the wheel and classroom experiences. Check driversedge.org to find out where the Drivers Edge National Tour will be the rest of this year

EPIC, Ethanol, Indy Racing, News

Who is OPEC Kidding?

John Davis

Ethanol makers all over the world are asking the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), “Who do you think you’re kidding?”

In a full page ad in the Financial Times, the biofuel industries of Brazil, Canada, Europe and the United States are challenging the oil cartel’s “outrageous, misleading, and unsubstantiated claims about the role of ethanol in world oil markets.” This press release has more details:

“Efforts to obfuscate and mislead the public about biofuels will do nothing to alleviate the energy crisis gripping the world. We realize that biofuels may be reducing your windfall profits. But, perhaps, the time for OPEC to face some competition has finally arrived,” the groups wrote.

The growing volume of biofuels in the global fuels market is helping to keep world oil and gasoline prices lower than OPEC may like. A recent Merrill Lynch analysis shows that biofuels keep world oil prices 15% lower than they otherwise would be.

The groups –- the Canadian Renewable Fuels Association (CRFA), the European Bioethanol Fuel Associations, the Brazilian Sugarcane and Ethanol Industry Association (UNICA) and the US Renewable Fuels Association – were answering the charges by OPEC that ethanol was in part responsible for the soaring price of crude oil, a price that will fetch OPEC nations more than $1.2 trillion dollars this year alone.

“According to the International Energy Agency, ‘biofuels have become a substantial part of faltering non-OPEC supply growth, contributing around 50% of incremental supply in the 2008-2013 period,’” the groups pointed out. “Without the growing production and use of biofuels worldwide, IEA calculates that more than one million barrels per day of new oil production would be required.”

The groups also cited a Merrill Lynch analysis that biofuels are helping keep oil prices 15 percent lower than if they weren’t around and gas prices in the U.S. would be 50 cents a gallon more without ethanol in the picture.Read More

Ethanol, News

Dakota Wind Gathering Public Investment

John Davis

Dakota Wind Energy has announced South Dakota’s first intrastate public offering, where shares in the community-based wind project are offered to residents of that state.

This press release says Dakota Wind Energy wants to develop more than 750 megawatts of community-owned wind farms throughout South Dakota:

“We want landowners participating in Dakota Wind Energy to have the opportunity to own units in the company,” says Gerry Fisher, a member of the Dakota Wind Energy board of advisors. “An intrastate public offering makes this possible. It also allows us to return a portion of the development proceeds to Dakota Wind Energy members over a long-term period.”
All South Dakota landowners that reside within the project’s footprint may receive ownership units in Dakota Wind Energy. Landowners who grant wind-related rights to Dakota Wind Energy can receive either a traditional cash payment, or units in Dakota Wind Energy through this offering.

“Shared ownership is what makes Dakota Wind Energy different from traditional wind developers,” says Mark Lucas, Vice President of National Wind. “Most other developers do not offer ownership; they only provide turbine lease agreements. In our wind developments, even if landowners do not end up with a wind turbine on their property, they still have the opportunity to own a part of Dakota Wind Energy. More than any other private offering structure, an intrastate public offering allows for the greatest number of local landowners to participate.”

Back in April, Dakota Wind announced it had put up two on-site meteorological towers to measure the wind regime in Marshall County, where part of the community-based wind project will be located.

Wind

Good News for Ethanol in OECD Report

Cindy Zimmerman

OECDThe Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) report on biofuels policies out this week claims that that biofuel production “has a limited impact on reducing greenhouse gases and improving energy security, and has a significant impact on world crop prices.” However, an analysis of the findings indicates the opposite.

RFAAccording to a review of the report by the Renewable Fuels Association, the “OECD data does not support the conclusions of the report or a call by OECD officials for a moratorium on biofuels.”

For instance, OECD credits ethanol produced from corn starch with a 30% reduction in greenhouse gas
(GHG) emissions if using natural gas, and a 50% reduction in GHG if the facility is powered by biomass.
Based on this finding, a moratorium is not warranted.

In addition, the modeling included in the report suggests that a 28% drop in world oil prices would cause a 12% reduction in world coarse grain prices ($0.75 per bushel in the case of corn today), underscoring the fact that skyrocketing oil prices are the largest driver behind increasing grain prices. By contrast, removing biofuel mandates like the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) would reduce coarse grain prices by just 1% ($0.06 per bushel of corn). Even abandoning all biofuels policies would only yield an average coarse grain price reduction of 7% ($0.45 per bushel).


Read the RFA review here.

corn, Ethanol, Food prices, News, RFA

Dow Catalyst Could Be Key to Cellulosic Ethanol

Cindy Zimmerman

Dow Chemical Company will work with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to develop and evaluate a process to convert biomass to ethanol and other chemical building blocks.

DowThe partnership will evaluate a mixed alcohol catalyst from Dow that could hold potential for making cellulosic ethanol more commercially viable. “NREL is interested in reducing the cost of biofuels in support of the nation’s energy goals,” NREL Director Dan Arvizu said. “Dow’s catalyst technology and expertise in catalyst development and testing will be extremely helpful as we evaluate the viability of this approach on a larger scale.”

The joint evaluation program will focus on improving the mixed alcohol catalyst, as well as demonstrating pilot scale performance and the commercial relevance of an integrated facility.

Cellulosic, Ethanol, News

Shell Increases Cellulosic Ethanol Investment

Cindy Zimmerman

ShellRoyal Dutch Shell is nearly doubling its investment in cellulosic ethanol.

IogenShell announced this week that it is increasing its shareholding in Iogen Energy Corporation from 26.3% to 50%. Shell first took an equity stake in 2002. The terms of the agreement include a significant investment by Shell in technology development with Iogen.

Iogen’s first demonstration commercial plant opened in Ottawa in 2004. Shell is considering investing in a full-scale commercial cellulosic ethanol plant and is contributing to Iogen’s detailed feasibility and design assessment work.

Cellulosic, Ethanol, News

Study: Hydrogen Could Replace All Oil in 50 Years

John Davis

A new study shows that hydrogen-powered vehicles have the potential to eliminate the use of all petroleum from American transportation in the next 50 years.

This story from TradingMarkets.com says the National Research Council study also recommends biofuels should be used in the meantime:

In a press call with reporters, the Department of Energy’s Mike Ramage analyzed the findings of the study, which focused on the best case outcomes for the use of hydrogen energy by the year 2023. Best case means that “technical hurdles are solved – vehicles are cost- effective, and that consumers will buy them,” Ramage said.

“In the best case, by 2023 hydrogen could be economically competitive,” Ramage said.

In the short term, over the next 15-20 years, Ramage urged the continued use of biofuels, noting that they “would have most likely impact on oil reduction and carbon dioxide reduction.” However, as technology allows hydrogen to maximize its potential, hydrogen will overtake biofuels and have a “dominant effect” on the industry, Ramage said.

“Hydrogen by itself in this best case scenario could eliminate 60 – 70 percent of oil and carbon dioxide from transportation system by 2050,” Ramage said. Combined with biofuels and other environmentally friendly solutions, Ramage said “you could potentially in the best case eliminate all oil from U.S. transportation.”

Ramage adds hydrogen fuel cells are only a decade away from being commercially-viable. The article goes on to say that a diverse renewable energy plan is needed that uses all available resources.

Hydrogen

EPIC Steps Up to Take Charge of Ethanol

John Davis

The Ethanol Promotion and Information Council is the organization that takes charge of educating consumers about ethanol. Just last month, the young non-profit held it’s first ever annual meeting, where new ideas were presented, new members were elected and new goals were set.

e-podcastEPIC executive Director Toni Nuernberg says EPIC has already achieved much success in its first two years, but the organization is charged for even greater success to come. She says it’s time for EPIC to no longer just respond to the debate about ethanol, but become proactive, get out front and change the debate. EPIC board members new and experienced agree.

The podcast is available to download by subscription (see our sidebar link) or you can listen to it by clicking here (4:00 MP3 File):
[audio:http://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3?http://www.zimmcomm.biz/epic/epic-podcast-07-08.mp3]

The Fill Up, Feel Good theme music is “Tribute to Joe Satriani” by Alan Renkl, thanks to the Podsafe Music Network.

“Fill up, Feel Good” is sponsored by the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council.

Audio, EPIC, Ethanol, Fill Up Feel Good, News

Home of Pony Express Making Run at Biodiesel Capitol

John Davis

St. Joseph, Missouri is becoming a center for renewable fuels in this country as the city will soon become home to its third biodiesel plant, joining an ethanol refinery in the area.

This story in the St. Joseph News-Press says the groundbreaking ceremony this week was purey ceremonial as Terra Bioenergy has been busy for some time, pouring concrete slabs for the storage tanks and installing much of the equipment:

The $25 million plant is scheduled to be complete in February. It will employ 25 to 30 people and produce 15 million gallons per year, said David Holcombe, chief executive officer of Terra.

Terra’s plant will primarily use animal fat to produce biodiesel, which can be used in virtually all diesel engines. The animal fat gives Terra an edge over most other operations, which use soybean or vegetable oil, Mr. Holcombe said.

St. Joseph has two operating biodiesel plants and an ethanol facility. Rep. Martin Rucker said the city is well on its way to being the state’s alternative fuel capital.

“The renewable fuels industry is a big part of our future,” he said. “Whether we want to get on board or not, it’s going to happen.”

Nearly 100 investors own Terra Bioenergy.

Biodiesel