Agriculture’s Role in Cellulosic Ethanol Production

Chuck Zimmerman

Acting Secretary of Agriculture Chuck ConnerThe Cellulosic Ethanol Summit is underway in Washington, DC. It’s an interesting mix of people who want to learn more about how we’re going to build this new segment of the fuel ethanol industry.

On hand at lunch time was our Acting Secretary of Agriculture Chuck Conner. He addressed the group on the subject of what agriculture’s role is in building a national cellulosic industry. I caught up to him outside as he was leaving and asked him what his department is doing in this regard.

He says that USDA has several ongoing research projects involving enzymes and the plants that will be needed to use in the production of cellulosic ethanol. However, he says more needs to be done. That’s why the Administration has asked for $1 1/2 billion more in the proposed farm bill for new research in this area. He says the House has supported it and they’re hoping the Senate will too.

You can listen to my interview with Acting Secretary Conner here: [audio:http://www.zimmcomm.biz/ethanol/cellulosic-summit-07-conner.mp3]

Audio, Ethanol, Government, News

Volkswagon Sponsoring Dieselution Revolution

John Davis

Volkswagon Dieselution TourAn interactive Volkswagon trailer has hit the road, making its way across the country in a four-month campaign to highlight current environmental issues. The Volkswagon Dieselution Tour is using interactive exhibits to display advances in diesel engine technology, design and performance.

Volkswagen of America, Inc. is launching the Dieselution Tour, a mobile marketing exhibit, to educate the media and the public on advances in clean diesel technology and alternative fuels.

The Dieselution Tour is centered around a 53-foot-long, double-expandable semi-trailer with exhibits and interactive displays. Elements include an “Alt Fuel/ Alt Film video area; a Dieselab with a series of interactive and video displays; a Diesel Heritage section, illustrating Volkswagen’s diesel history and leadership; a Sustainability Station, involving an interactive quiz and a Carbon Footprint Calculator; a Beyond Diesel perspective featuring SunFuel; and a Motorsports display, outlining Volkswagen’s recent history and international success in racing diesel vehicles in events like the Baja 500, Pikes Peak, and the Dakar rally.Read More

Biodiesel, Car Makers, Promotion

Higher Petroleum Prices Helping Ag Commodity Prices

John Davis

High crude oil prices are prompting more soyoil to be bought… with the idea that soyoil would be turned into an alternative to all that foreign oil: domestically made biodiesel.

dowjones.gifThis Dow Jones Newswires story posted on the Missouri Ruralist web site breaks down the rise and what caused it:

November soybeans settled 10 1/4 cents higher at $9.87 and January soybeans ended 10 1/2 cents higher at $10.05 3/4. December soymeal settled $2.30 higher at $281.20. December soyoil finished 53 points higher at 40.06 cents a pound.

Sharply higher crude oil futures attracted speculative buyers in soyoil, which spilled over into soybeans, and when wet conditions causing harvest delays in the western Midwest were added, futures were firmly underpinned, said Brian Hoops, president of Midwest Market Solutions in Yankton, S.D.

Soy product futures ended higher, with soyoil the upside leader of the complex. Soyoil rallied, buoyed by spillover strength from sharply higher crude oil futures. The momentum from crude oil attracted speculative buyers, with optimistic outlooks for biodiesel encouraging speculative interest as well, analysts said.

Biodiesel

Biofuels Helping Fuel Cargill’s Profits

John Davis

cargill.jpgEthanol and biodiesel are making “modest” contributions to ag products giant Cargill’s profits… according to numbers released by the U.S.’s largest agricultural company.

This story in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune says the company reports fiscal first-quarter profit rose 83 percent as more soybeans and corn were processed and the company was able to successfully hedge higher grain costs:

Cargill benefited from soaring worldwide demand for soybeans, corn and other agricultural products, more than making up for surging commodity costs and volatile credit markets. Corn prices were 49 percent higher in the quarter than a year earlier, wheat was up 67 percent and soybeans rose 41 percent.

“Cargill was able to handle the volatility,” said Anil Passi, an analyst with Dominion Bond Rating Service in Toronto who follows Cargill’s $9.9 billion in bonds.

Of course, a lot of that increased demand comes from the fact that more corn and soybeans are going to biofuels, which make up about 5 percent of the company’s net income.

Biodiesel, Ethanol, News

Canada Building First Canola Biodiesel Plant

John Davis

canadianbioenergy.gifGround has broken on a 50-million-gallon-a-year canola biodiesel refinery northeast of Edmonton, Alberta… the first large-scale canola biodiesel plant in Canada.

This story on Canadian Press says the Canadian Bioenergy refinery will be built next door to a canola crushing facility… on the province’s refining and pipeline hub:

“We are building a state-of-the-art facility capable of producing a large quantity of clean, sustainable canola-based biodiesel to help meet the Canadian renewable fuel standard and U.S. demand for a superior cold weather, high-quality fuel,” said Canadian Bioenergy president Doug Hooper.

The plant fits in well with recent moves by Ottawa to financially encourage development of renewable fuels. But it also steps boldly into the ongoing debate over whether biofuels are better for the environment.

Scheduled to begin production by the middle of 2009, the plant will have an expected future capacity of 225 million litres of biodiesel per year. It will also be a key component to feeding Canada’s escalating demand for the fuel as new federal regulations call for two per cent renewable content in all diesel by 2012 – requiring about 800 million litres annually.

Officials estimate that about one million tonnes of canola will be needed to meet that two per cent biodiesel commitment.

Biodiesel

U.S. Consumers Support Renewable Fuels

John Davis

Clean Fuels Development Coalition Ask the American public about renewable fuels and odds are you’ll get two thumbs up. At least, that’s what a poll conducted by Harris Interactive found.

A new poll conducted by Harris Interactive(R) shows overwhelming American support for expanding renewable fuel options with nine in 10 U.S. adults (88 percent) agreeing the U.S. should pursue renewable energy sources.

The poll, commissioned by the Clean Fuels Development Coalition, concludes that 72 percent of adults believe that higher oil prices have had a substantial impact on the rising cost of food in recent months, compared to only 35 percent who believe ethanol production has had a significant impact on rising food prices.

The poll asked 2,199 U.S. adults about their attitudes regarding ethanol. Other results indicate that nearly eight in 10 adults (78 percent) believe usage of ethanol would lessen the country’s dependence on foreign oil.

Energy policy is at the forefront of national debate with pending energy legislation expected to hit congressional calendars this fall. The Senate- approved version of the energy bill contains a provision mandating the use of 36 billion gallons of ethanol by 2022.

Biodiesel, Ethanol, News

Biofuel to Hit the Skies

John Davis

Yahoo!NewsFrom the coverage we’ve provided on energy.agwired.com so far, I think it’s safe to say biofuels are continually gaining traction with ground transportation and machinery. So, it seems quite natural that air travel would be the next frontier for biofuels. Yahoo!News reports that Virgin Group CEO, Richard Branson plans to fuel one of his jets with biofuels in 2008. Here’s a small blurb from the Yahoo!News article:

Virgin will be conducting a test jet flight on renewable fuels. “Early next year we will fly one of our 747s without passengers with one of the fuels that we have developed,” Branson told the annual conference.

Virgin is developing biofuels for aircraft in conjunction with Boeing Co and engine-maker GE Aviation, a unit of General Electric Co. Previously, Branson had said the company would test the fuel sometime next year and that some people had said it would be late in the year.

But Virgin isn’t the only company seeking “cleaner” air travel. The article mentions that Branson is trying to beat Air New Zealand’s attempt to pilot a jet with biofuels.

Biodiesel, News

Biogas-powered Swiss Cheese Production

Cindy Zimmerman

PA Ag WolffThe Fairview Swiss Cheese Plant in Pennsylvania soon will be running in part on biogas made from its own waste products.

The plant broke ground last week on the renewable energy project, which converts food waste into gas, according to a release from the office of Pennsylvania Agriculture Secretary Dennis Wolff.

“The Fairview Swiss Cheese Plant is just one more exciting example of how Pennsylvanians are developing ways to tap into a growing renewable energy market,” said. Wolff during the ceremony. “This project will not only save the company money on energy bills, it will help decrease overall dependency on foreign oil.”

Wolff said this renewable energy project falls in line with Governor Edward G. Rendell’s Energy
Independence Strategy, which is designed to cut the commonwealth’s reliance on imported oil and support development of homegrown energy sources. For more information on the strategy, visit www.depweb.state.pa.us.

The $2.2 million project involves constructing an anaerobic digester that will use cheese whey from the plant and cone batter waste from the Joy Cone Co. to make 40 million cubic feet of biogas annually – the equivalent of 28 million cubic feet of natural gas.

Energy

Flex Fuel Conversion Kit Receives EPA Certification

Cindy Zimmerman

Flex Fuel USAn alternative fuel conversion unit has received certification from the Environmental Protection Agency for use on certain types of fleet vehicles.

Flex Fuel U.S. of Chicago reports that its Flex-Box Smart Kit™ fuel conversion system is “the first and only E85 conversion unit has been certified by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for fleet vehicles.”

The Flex-Box Smart Kit is mounted to the engine compartment and works by continuously monitoring engine and emission controls, allowing the vehicle to operate on all unleaded gasoline-ethanol blends. At this time Flex-Box Smart Kit has been approved for fleet vehicles made in the year 1995 or after, including the Ford Crown Victoria, Mercury Grand Marquis and the Lincoln Town Car.

E85, Ethanol, Flex Fuel Vehicles, News

USDA Lowers Corn for Ethanol Forecast

Cindy Zimmerman

USDAOn Friday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s supply and demand forecast has lowered its estimate of how much of this year’s corn harvest the ethanol industry would use by another 100 million bushels. It was the second straight month the forecast has been reduced reflecting lower indicated plant capacity utilization and lower returns for ethanol producers due to recent declines in ethanol prices and continued strength in corn prices.

During a conference call from the Minneapolis Grain Exchange following the report release on Friday, market analyst Brian Hoops with Midwest Market Solutions noted that the decrease was in line with market expectations. “Over time in the next 12 months, if you look at the big picture, the trade would anticipate that ethanol usage would expand rather than contract,” Hoops told reporters. “But at this time it was believed that we would see a small contraction of the usage.”

Meanwhile, exports are projected to be a corresponding 100 million bushels higher on tighter foreign grain supplies and strong export sales. At the projected 2.35 billion bushels, 2007/08 exports would be the highest in 18 years.

It’s also interesting to note that USDA’s objective yield data report in this month’s crop forecast indicates that the number of ears per acre in the ten biggest corn producing states is the highest on record, surpassing the previous record set in 2004.

In summary, corn usage for ethanol is lower than expected this year because the market is adjusting, corn exports are higher than ever, and corn yields are higher than ever.

corn, Ethanol, Government, News