The media has been keeping Team Ethanol Driver Ryan Hunter-Reay busy. When I popped in for the first session of driver interviews I saw that media interest in Ryan maintained a steady flow. Phillip Wilson from the Indianapolis Star got a quick video interview of Ryan. Phillip says the video will be posted on IndyStar.com later today. Be sure to check it out!
Sporting Ethanol from Head to Toe at Indy
Well, from head to shoe really. The E-logo is everywhere here at the Brickyard. From IndyCars and trailers to flags and t-shirts. But, so far, the most interesting places I spotted the logo during this year’s Indy 500 race weekend were on a ‘Cat in the Hat’ style hat and painted on a Keds kid-sized shoe.
Mark Lackner is the owner of the “special replica” of the Team Ethanol IndyCar. He says he won the painted shoe at a trucker’s event. He explained the “paint job” was done with official Team Ethanol IndyCar paint. I spotted him at the IndyCar driver autograph session where he was 
snagging a signature from former Team Ethanol Driver Jeff Simmons. Now, the shoe is signed by both Jeff and current Team Ethanol driver Ryan Hunter-Reay. I pointed out the shoe to Joanna Schroeder, the Director of Communications for the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council. She is going to have Bobby Rahal sign the shoe so Mark has a complete collection of sigs. She’s also sending him a real replica of the the Team Ethanol car. Mark has the Simmons and Hunter-Reay replicas, but not the Paul Dana replica. Joanna is making sure Mark’s collection of Team Ethanol IndyCar replicas is complete too.
The video of the 2008 Corvette winners is finally uploaded on Youtube. Click here to view our post with the video.
Ethanol Saves Motorists as Oil Continues to Climb
This Memorial Day weekend many motorists may be wistfully remembering the days of $2 a gallon gasoline as prices at the pump may hit $4 average nationwide by the holiday.
The American Automobile Association (AAA) predicts that nearly 32 million drivers will hit the road for the long holiday weekend. However, the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) says there is some good news. Because ethanol is keeping gasoline prices about 15% lower than they otherwise might be, RFA says the gasoline price savings this weekend alone will amount to over $200 million – enough for 133 million cups of Starbucks coffee.
Meanwhile, as crude oil prices jumped over $4 Wednesday to settle at more than $133 a barrel, oil company executives faced tough questions from the Senate Judiciary Committee on why prices continue to climb.
The oil executives defended their profits and the price increases with statements such as, “The fundamental laws of supply and demand are at work,” made by John Hofmeister, chairman of Shell Oil.
They also brought up biofuels and restrictions on drilling for oil in the United States. Peter Robertson with Chevron Corporation said, “Congress has recently made some hard policy choices on renewables and energy efficiency. We hope you can also make the equally hard choices to open up more federal lands and allow us to responsibly produce more American oil and natural gas, which can supply us for decades to come.”
Beer Waste Ethanol to Fuel DNC Vehicles
The Democratic National Convention in Denver will be fueled with ethanol made from beer waste, thanks to a donation from Molson Coors Brewing Company.
The Denver 2008 Convention Host Committee has announced that the leading global brewer and its U.S. subsidiary, Coors Brewing Company, will be the “Official E85 Ethanol Producer for the 2008 Democratic National Convention.”
Molson Coors is donating all the ethanol fuel for the fleet of General Motors flex-fuel vehicles to be used for Convention transportation needs. Coors’ ethanol is made from waste beer generated at their brewery in Golden, Colo.
Coors is the nation’s first major brewer to convert its waste beer into ethanol. The company began recycling waste beer and converting it to ethanol in 1996 and today the Golden ethanol facility produces about three million gallons of ethanol per year.
Biodiesel Board Praises Energy Incentive Passage
The National Biodiesel Board is welcoming the news of passage of the Renewable Energy and Job Creation Act of 2008 (H.R. 6049)… better known as the the Energy and Tax Extenders Act by the NBB.
It’s no wonder the group considers its final passage the NBB’s top legislative priority as it extends the biodiesel tax incentive, and contains other biodiesel provisions:
The House approval is an important step in allowing the U.S. biodiesel industry to continue to grow America’s energy security with cleaner-burning domestically produced biodiesel,” said Joe Jobe, CEO of the NBB. “Biodiesel is a new green industry that supports over twenty thousand jobs and added over four billion dollars to the U.S. economy last year. The extension of this incentive is an important investment in America’s long-term energy future.”
H.R. 6049 extends for one year a variety of renewable energy tax provisions and includes the following biodiesel-specific measures:
* Extends biodiesel tax incentive for 1 year through Dec. 31, 2009.
* Provides $1 per gallon incentive for all biodiesel regardless of feedstock.
* Shuts down the abusive “splash and dash” loophole that currently allows foreign produced fuel to enter the U.S, claim the biodiesel tax incentive, and be shipped to a third country for end use.
* Properly defines tax benefits available to co-processed renewable diesel.
As I mentioned in a previous post, the bill… and its tax incentives… are not out of the woods yet. It still faces opposition in the U.S. Senate and a threatened veto from the White House.
Renewable Energy Tax Credit Passes House
The U.S. House today has passed a measure seen as important because it extends renewable energy production and investment tax credits has cleared its latest hurdle. H.R. 6049, the Renewable Energy and Job Creation Act of 2008, got through the U.S. House by a 263-160 margin.
This story posted on RenewableEnergyWorld.com says if it clears Congress, it will mean billions of dollars for alternative energies:
H.R. 6049, is a US $54 billion tax extenders package that contains an extension of the federal production tax credit for wind power (PTC) through December 31, 2009 and contains a new small-wind investment tax credit (ITC). The bill also extends the 30% investment tax credit for solar energy property and qualified fuel cell property, and the 10% investment tax credit for microturbines through the end of 2014. Biomass, geothermal, landfill gas and other technologies receive a three-year extension under the legislation.
Passing through the House doesn’t mean it’s a sure thing to become law. There is already opposition in the U.S. Senate and President Bush has threatened to veto the measure.
Stay tuned… we’ll keep you updated.
Bulldogs & Biodiesel Dominate Challenge X
Biodiesel-powered vehicles were the dominating force during this year’s Challenge X… a four-year engineering competition with 17 university teams from across North America developing General Motors vehicles using alternative energies.
Drivers pulled up to the U.S. Department of Energy’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. earlier today in the final 400-mile rally for the competition. This press release from GM says a group of Bulldogs from Mississippi State University ending up taking top honors:
The Mississippi State team designed a through-the-road parallel hybrid electric vehicle powered by a 1.9L GM direct injection turbo diesel engine fueled by bio diesel (B20). It achieved a 38 percent increase in fuel economy over the production vehicle on a modified urban test cycle.
The second place vehicle, engineered by students at the University of Wisconsin is a through-the-road parallel hybrid electric vehicle with a 1.9L GM direct injection turbo diesel engine fueled by B20. Ohio State University was awarded third place for its power-split hybrid electric vehicle powered by a 1.9L GM direct injection turbo diesel engine and fueled by B20.
“I want to congratulate this year’s Challenge X champion, Mississippi State University, and all of the other participants for their innovative designs and applications of advanced clean vehicle technologies,” U.S. Secretary of Energy Samuel W. Bodman said. “This competition is a unique demonstration of how tremendous technological advancements that are occurring at universities across North America can help us achieve a new energy future — one that is cleaner, more sustainable, more affordable, more secure and less reliant on carbon-based fossil fuels.”
A dozen biodiesel-powered vehicles took part in the competition, while hydrogen was another popular fuel source. You can read more about Challenge X at the competition’s web site: www.challengex.org and the GM FastLane Blog.
Indiana Corn Goes Mobile with Ethanol Education
The 2008 Indy Pace Car corvette wasn’t the only shiny new toy to check out at the giveaway this morning. The Indiana Corn Marketing Council debuted its new interactive mobile marketing unit complete with videos detailing the production of ethanol and a database of local fuel retailers that offer E10 and E85 fuel blends. Visitors can even print off a list of local stations.
I caught up with Indiana Corn’s Mark Walters again, as well as ICMC’s Mike Shuter (pictured), the council’s President and a Frankton, IN farmer. We talked about the new mobile marketing unit, the truth about ethanol as they see it and how IN corn fits into the ethanol industry. You can listen to my interview with Mark and Mike here: [audio:http://www.zimmcomm.biz/epic/shuter-walters-indy.mp3]
First E85 Conversion Kit Approved by EPA
The National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition reports that Flex Fuel U.S., a member of the coalition, has announced that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved an E85 conversion kit which fits the 2006 Dodge Charger 5.7 liter Hemi.
The system is the first and only E85 conversion unit certified by the EPA for passenger and fleet vehicles. A copy of the EPA certificate issued to Flex Fuel U.S. can be found on their homepage at: www.flexfuelus.com. With this Federal certificate of conformity, the Flex-Box Smart Kit™ is approved for the most popular Dodge vehicles: the Dodge Charger, Dodge Magnum, Chrysler 300 2wd and AWD 5.7L Hemi.
The FLEX-BOX SMART KIT™ is an easy-to-install system that lets you operate your vehicle on any combination of ethanol and gasoline. One can fill up on E85 (85% ethanol and 15% gasoline), E20 (20% ethanol and 80% gasoline), E10 (10% ethanol and 90% gasoline) or pure gasoline.
Indianapolis Radio Supports Ethanol
Taking the 2008 Corvette is fun… and a bit dangerous. Tom Severino will promise you that. Tom is the Vice President and Market Manager of Emmis Indianapolis radio, the parent company of Hank FM. I spoke with Tom about Hank FM’s joint effort with the Indiana Corn Marketing Council and the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council to promote ethanol. The three organizations hosted three pump promotions and a 2008 Indy Pace Car corvette giveaway. Tom said ethanol is a great fuel and a good use of corn and pump promotions are a great
You can listen to my interview with Tom here: [audio:http://www.zimmcomm.biz/epic/severino-tom-indy.mp3]