Wisconsin is poised to become the fourth to enact an ethanol blend requirement for gasoline. The state assembly last week passed a measure that will require all 87-octane gasoline to contain 10 percent ethanol by October 1, 2006. The state senate will vote on the bill after the holidays and if it passes the governor is expected to sign it. The three other states that already have ethanol mandates are Minnesota, Montana and Hawaii. According to the American Coalition for Ethanol, Minnesota’s E10 requirement has been on the books since 1997 and Hawaii’s will go into effect this coming April. Montana’s E10 law is contingent upon having 40 million gallons per year of in-state production capacity. Several other states, such as Missouri, have legislation in the works.
Agri-Ethanol Products Plant Annouced In North Carolina
Now we’ve got an ethanol plant being built on the east coast. That’s different! We’ve seen so many of them being built in the midwest that it was only a matter of time until we saw them popping up in other areas.
Thanks to Mark Simone at Andrew B.Bellingham Commodity Trade Analysis for the heads up on this announcement.
Dave Brady, managing member of Agri-Ethanol Products, LLC (AEP) today (Dec. 16) announced the location of a $150 million ethanol plant to be located in Beaufort County, near Aurora, North Carolina. Mr. Brady thanked Governor Easley for the assistance that the state of North Carolina provided in making the plant possible. He also expressed his sincere appreciation to Secretary of Commerce, Jim Fain, Secretary of Revenue, Norris Tolson, Senator Marc Basnight, Representative Arthur Williams, Representative Joe Tolson, Larry Shirley and NC Department of Energy, the Northeast Partnership, Tom Thompson and the Beaufort County Economic Development Commission, the Town of Aurora and Roseview Capital.
The plant will produce 114 million gallons of ethanol per year as well as co-products consisting of distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS) and CO2. This will be the first ethanol plant in North Carolina and the first on the East Coast of the United States. The ethanol production will be delivered in each of two, 57 million gallon per year phases, with the co-products output doubling accordingly. Phase I ground breaking and construction start-up is expected during the first quarter of ’06. Approximately $2 million will be utilized through various grant sources from the State to facilitate rail improvements critical to the operation of the plant.
Flex Fuel Ford F150’s Rolling
It’s time to get yourself a Ford Tough F150. Ford has just announced that the first flex fuel trucks are rolling off the production line.
As Ford continues to drive American innovation, a new version of America’s best-selling vehicle is rolling off the line at the Kansas City Assembly Plant. Production of the first Ford F-150 flexible fuel vehicles (FFVs) began this month, continuing the company’s commitment to producing 250,000 FFVs in the coming year. The flexible fuel technology is being built into the 5.4L, V-8 engine model and is available to consumers at no additional cost. FFVs can operate on gasoline or ethanol blends up to E85 – a blend of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline.
“We’re pleased to begin production of F-150 FFVs. Flexible fuel vehicles give customers the option of fueling with gasoline or the ethanol,” said Ken Ward, Kansas City Plant manager. “Customers will find that the F-150 FFV offers the same functionality as the gasoline version F-150 – including horsepower and torque.”
Made in America, ethanol is a renewable fuel that supports U.S. jobs and reduces the nation’s dependency on foreign oil. It is produced primarily from corn grown in the Midwest and is generally less expensive than regular unleaded gasoline – saving consumers money at the pump.
As I was checking this story out I came across FordF150.net which has a user forum set up. Here’s a link to a conversation thread on ethanol.
Yet Another Nebraska Plant
Colorado-based Biofuel Solutions and Cargill are together on a deal to build a 110-million-gallon per year ethanol plant in Wood River, NE. The plant is expected to use about 41 million bushels of corn annually from the Cargill elevator adjacent to the plant, and Cargill will also market and distribute the ethanol, in addition to 375,000 tons of dry distiller grains a year for animal feed. Construction on the facility is expected to begin early next year. Biofuels Solutions recently announced plans for a similar plant in Fairmont, MN that would utilize the same type of deal with Cargill. Thanks to Mark Simone of A.B. Bellingham Commodity Trade Analysis, Inc. for passing that story on to us. We appreciate it!
Energy Conference in St. Louis
Farm Foundation and USDA’s Office of Energy Policy and New Uses kicked off their Energy from Agriculture conference today in St. Louis. I was not able to attend and I have not seen any coverage of the event yet anywhere – even on USDA’s newsline. Seems that the WTO talks in Hong Kong is the bigger news story this week – that and the opening of the Japanese beef market. But, several of the top USDA head honchos were scheduled to be at the event today, including NRCS Chief Bruce Knight. I was supposed to interview the chief about USDA’s energy initiatives tomorrow (Thursday), but he had to reschedule so that will have to wait until next week. I will post that interview on Tuesday. Of course, the Secretary himself is in Hong Kong for the talks.
The agenda for the conference today included an assessment of current technologies, market impacts, energy production from non-traditional feedstocks and a review of the USDA energy program. The conference will conclude on Thursday at noon after a look at some energy from agriculture success stories and energy legislation.
Biodiesel Book For Kids
While Googling around today, I came across this story from British Columbia, Canada – the New Society Publishers. This group has a website called RenewableEnergyAccess.com and they have this cute little kids book called “Have Fries Will Travel – the Adventures of a Veggie-Powered Car and an Eco-Rap Star.” They call it “The Perfect Holiday Gift: A book of exciting green adventures on the road with a biodiesel car.”
So, the car is named Tiny “his exhaust smelling like yummy French fries” and the “eco-rap star” is named Rock. The two set off on a road trip to encourage others to use biodiesel in their cars and to meet Senator Slade Twist in Washington, D.C.
* They visit farmers growing soybeans especially for making biodiesel;
* They pick up a colorful assortment of biodiesel converts, including the one and only Ms. Liza Merriweather;
* Rock performs rap songs about the need to stop global warming – with biodiesel cars being a good idea since biodiesel is a very clean fuel.
* A parade of vehicles, including a biodiesel-fueled farm tractor and a big rig follow Tiny into D.C. where a surprise ending awaits.
Hmmmmm….. Anyway, the book is 12.95 in USD and is available at the above link, if you want to check it out.
The mission of the New Society Publishers, according to their website, is to publish books that contribute in fundamental ways to building an ecologically sustainable and just society, and to do so with the least possible impact on the environment, in a manner that models this vision.
Higher Oil Prices Forecast to Increase Domestic Fuel Demand
In the latest Long Term Energy Outlook report issued by the Energy Information Administration, higher oil prices are expected to increase demand for “unconventional sources of transportation fuel, such as ethanol and biodiesel.” The report revises projections for world oil prices upward based on the “volatility” of world oil markets. They are now calling for oil to be $54 a barrell in 2025, $21 more than the previous forecast, and be up to $57 a barrell by 2030. Production of “renewable energy” is projected to increase 1.8 percent by 2030 – but that category includes “grid-connected electricity from conventional hydroelectric; wood and wood waste; landfill gas; municipal solid waste; other biomass; wind; photovoltaic and solar thermal sources; non-electric energy from renewable sources, such as active and passive solar systems, and wood; and both the ethanol and gasoline components of E85, but not the ethanol components of blends less than 85 percent.” Consumption of “renewable products” is expected to increase the same amount during that time period, while consumption of “petroleum products”, which includes ethanol blended with gasoline at lower levels than 85 percent is expected to increase just over one percent. (Link to full report)
Cornhusker State Ethanol
More corn from the Cornhusker State will be going into ethanol production. In the past week, at least three ethanol plants have been announced in Nebraska, prompting Renewable Fuels Association president Bob Dineen to comment, “It seems not a week goes by that the state of Nebraska is not adding a new ethanol plant to its growing roster.” Today, Abengoa Bioenergy Corporation will celebrate the official groundbreaking of its ethanol facility in Ravenna, Neb., Abengoa Bioenergy of Ravenna. Last Friday it was Advanced Bioenergy, LLC near Fairmont, Nebraska. And earlier this week, Val-E Ethanol began construction on its new plant near Ord, Nebraska. All together, the three plants would produce 233 million gallons of ethanol a year using 84 million bushels of corn!
FTC Finds Ethanol Industry Competitive
The ethanol industry has been exonerated of charges that it is too highly concentrated in the hands of too few companies. Under the Energy Policy Act of 2005, the Federal Trade Commission was required to “perform a market concentration analysis of the ethanol production industry using the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index to determine whether there is sufficient competition among industry participants to avoid price-setting and other anticompetitive behavior.” I guess that’s because the energy bill provides incentives for increasing ethanol production and they don’t want to give all that money to a small handful of companies. Maybe there were fears by some in Congress that the ethanol industry was just like Big Oil? Anyway, the bottom line of the FTC’s pretty straightforward 17-page report is that “The level of concentration in ethanol production would be unlikely to provide the opportunity or incentive for one or more firms to act anticompetitively.” (Link to full report)
USDA Energy Strategy Supports Domestic Fuels
Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns today announced a strategy to help farmers and ranchers deal with higher energy costs and increase production of domestic fuels. As part of the plan – USDA is intensifying efforts to support the development, production and use of renewable fuels, such as ethanol and biodiesel, through an array of research, loan and grant programs. The Secretary has directed Rural Development to maximize the use of approximately $1.4 billion available this year in various business and electric loan and loan guarantee authorities. More specifically, Johanns directed these funds be used to help farmers, ranchers and rural communities efficiently create renewable energy systems and businesses. Since 2001, USDA Rural Development has awarded nearly $290 million in renewable energy funding. These funds support renewable energy projects such as ethanol plants, wind and solar power units that create jobs and spur growth in rural communities. The Forest Service and other USDA agencies will intensify their support of renewable fuels research, development and use. Click here to listen to Johanns’ comments about ethanol and biodiesel made during Wednesday’s tele-conference from Washington DC.