Corn Growers Make Economic Case for E15

Cindy Zimmerman

A new analysis from the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) shows that if Congress passed legislation allowing for year-round, nationwide access to 15% ethanol blended fuel (E15), corn use for ethanol could increase by 50% at full implementation, supporting a higher market price for corn and energy stability for Americans.

According to the report:
In their October Short-Term Energy Outlook, EIA forecasts finished motor gasoline use at 136 billion gallons for 2025 and 2026. Given current motor gasoline usage, a 1% increase in the national blend rate equates to 1.36 billion gallons of additional ethanol used domestically, or 486 million bushels more corn used in ethanol.

A 5% increase in the national blend rate equates to 6.81 billion gallons of additional ethanol used domestically, or 2.43 billion bushels more corn used in ethanol.

Over the next decade, USDA forecasts corn use in ethanol to stay near the current 5.6-billion-bushel level and near the current share of total corn use while the trend for corn production is expected to continue rising on productivity gains and expanded production area in other nations, which will further depress already below-breakeven market prices.

NCGA officials say without policy change to remove a dated and unscientific regulatory hurdle to allow expanded use of E15, the outlook for domestic corn use in ethanol is stagnant. “Congress could address the economic crisis affecting corn growers by passing legislation that would make higher blends of ethanol readily accessible to all Americans,” said NCGA President Jed Bower. “We urge Congress to act now to make that happen.”

corn, E15, Ethanol, Ethanol News, NCGA

Nebraska CO2 Pipeline Gives Edge Over Iowa Ethanol

Cindy Zimmerman

Iowa ethanol producers are losing their winning edge to Nebraska with the start of CO2 shipments on the Tallgrass Trailblazer pipeline last week, according to the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IowaRFA).

Mid America Agri Products/Wheatland (MAAPW) last week became the first plant to start carbon dioxide capture at its Madrid, Nebraska facility with volumes to be transported on the Tallgrass Energy Trailblazer Pipeline for permanent sequestration in Wyoming.

“Congratulations to Tallgrass for this monumental achievement,” said Iowa RFA Executive Director Monte Shaw. “Huge new markets around the world are demanding ultra-low carbon ethanol and carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) is the best tool to get there. The plants on the Tallgrass pipeline now have a leg up in many ways. IRFA will be working hard to ensure Iowa plants have access to the tools they need to compete.”

Shaw says ethanol plants able to capture and sequester CO2 can reduce their carbon intensity (CI) by up to 33 points, thereby qualifying for up to 66 cents per gallon under the federal tax credit program known as 45Z.

Iowa has been the most profitable place in the world to produce corn ethanol since 2000. As such, the industry expanded in the state to become the largest ethanol producer and many affiliated industries made investments in facilities and operations in Iowa. Last year, ethanol production in Iowa added nearly $5.2 billion to the state GDP, increased household income by $2.5 billion, and supported almost 33,000 jobs.

“For the first time since 2000, Iowa is no longer the best place to produce corn ethanol,” stated Shaw. “Alarm bells should be going off with any leader who values Iowa’s rural economy. We need to work to ensure this is temporary, not permanent. The huge economy-wide benefits that reverberate out from ethanol production in Iowa are not a given. If Iowa does not remain competitive, those investments will flow to areas that are competitive.”

Summit Carbon Solutions, which is working to build a 2,500-mile carbon-capture pipeline through the Midwest, including Iowa, recently filed a petition with the Iowa Utilities Commission to amend its current pipeline permit, approved in August 2024, requesting changes to the route and pipe. The project has been plagued with legal challenges in Iowa, as well as North and South Dakota.

Carbon, carbon capture, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Iowa RFA

Registration Unleashed for 2026 National Ethanol Conference

Cindy Zimmerman

Registration is now open for the Renewable Fuels Association’s 31st annual National Ethanol Conference, taking place in Orlando, February 24–26, with the theme “Ethanol Unleashed” to reflect the industry’s robust growth potential.

“At the upcoming National Ethanol Conference, more than 1,000 industry professionals will have opportunities to network and collaborate, learn and share best practices, and celebrate our industry’s achievements,” said RFA Board Chairman Derek Peine, Western Plains Energy. “We’ll also be looking forward to the important work that still needs to be done to fully unleash ethanol’s potential. We hope to see everyone who has a stake in renewable fuels at this important conference.”

Since 1996, NEC has been the nation’s most widely attended executive-level conference for the ethanol industry, where sessions featuring globally renowned speakers are interspersed with numerous networking opportunities to help the industry connect and collaborate. Last year in Nashville, RFA hosted industry stakeholders from 37 states and 18 foreign countries.

Early-bird registration provides substantial discounts until December 9, and RFA members enjoy additional savings.

Ethanol, Ethanol News, National Ethanol Conference, Renewable Fuels Association, RFA

Sen. Fischer Promotes E15 on Senate Floor

Cindy Zimmerman

During a speech on the Senate floor Monday, U.S. Senator Deb Fischer (R-NE) addressed the economic crisis facing ag producers across America, highlighting how year-round, nationwide E15 can help farmers weather with a long-term solution that can provide stability and real opportunity for ag producers.

“Permanent nationwide access would increase corn demand by 2.5 billion bushels a year. It would lower gas prices for families. And it would drive new revenue into rural communities. President Trump’s Day 1 order to promote E15 through his National Energy Emergency Declaration was a strong start, but temporary fixes won’t cut it,” said Sen. Fischer. “That’s why I reintroduced my Nationwide Consumer and Fuel Retailer Choice Act earlier this year. When I first introduced this bill nearly a decade ago, it felt like an uphill climb. Today, momentum is finally on our side. We have strong bipartisan support. We have new industry partners, including members of the oil and refining sector at the table. This is a key piece of Republicans’ plan to lower energy costs, to strengthen American production, and to give consumers more choices at the pump.”

Fischer noted that trade is the other half of the equation. “At the end of the day, farmers and ranchers want programs that work and markets to sell their products,” she said. “Simply put, they just want a fair shot.”

Listen to Fischer’s comments here:
Sen. Deb Fischer - senate floor speech 6:56

Audio, E15, Ethanol, Ethanol News

Ethanol Report with New RFA Chair

Cindy Zimmerman

The Renewable Fuels Association elected officers and its board of directors for the 2026 fiscal year at its annual membership meeting in Omaha, Nebraska last week and Derek Peine, CEO of Western Plains Energy in Oakley, Kan., was elected chairman.

Also last week, RFA celebrated the signing Assembly Bill 30 into law by California Gov. Gavin Newsom, immediately legalizing the sale of E15 in the Golden State.

In this edition of “The Ethanol Report” podcast, we get to know RFA’s new chairman and hear his reaction to E15 in California, as well as the prospects for the organization’s number one priority – nationwide, year-round E15. Peine also comments on new research from RFA showing consumer support for ethanol, as well as other RFA priorities, including defense of the Renewable Fuel Standard and increasing global markets for U.S. ethanol exports.

Ethanol Report 10-7-25 23:09

The Ethanol Report is a podcast about the latest news and information in the ethanol industry that has been sponsored by the Renewable Fuels Association since 2008.

Choose an option to subscribe

Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Ethanol Report, Renewable Fuels Association, RFA

Ethanol Industry Encouraged by California E15 Approval

Cindy Zimmerman

Finally getting E15 on the road in California is a major win for the ethanol industry and could help push nationwide legislation across the finish line.

American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) Chief Marketing Officer Ron Lamberty says California’s approval of E15 is a milestone for the U.S. fuel market.

“With California now on board, momentum for E15 is stronger than ever,” Lamberty added. “The future of the U.S. fuel market includes higher ethanol blends, and the next step is ensuring year-round, nationwide access to E15, so retailers can make changes without worrying about having to switch fuel offerings during the busiest time of their year, and drivers everywhere can rely on low-cost E15 being available every time they pull up to the pump.”

National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) President Jed Bower encouraged Congress to make E15 available year-round, nationwide. “While today’s development is a sign of progress, many consumers across the country still lack year-round access to E15. We call on Congress to pass legislation that will extend access nationwide.”

ACE, corn, E15, Ethanol, Ethanol News, NCGA

California Governor Signs E15 Bill

Cindy Zimmerman

California Governor Gavin Newsom today signed legislation that could help bring down the cost of gasoline in California, making way for lower cost 15 percent ethanol fuel (E15) to be made available for the first time in the state.

Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Geoff Cooper says California was the only remaining state to not permit sales of E15. “Many other states have already seen the benefits of E15—healthier air, better engine performance, and cost savings at the pump. Now, California drivers are about to experience those same advantages for themselves, and we thank Gov. Newsom for voicing his support for E15 throughout the legislative process,” said Cooper.

The Governor signed Assembly Bill 30, which passed unanimously out of both the Assembly and Senate, allowing E15 to be sold immediately in the state while the Air Resources Board (CARB) completes its ongoing work to study whether the additional blend can meet the state’s clean air requirements.

Last October, the Governor directed CARB to accelerate studying how California could increase ethanol blending in gasoline while maintaining environmental protections. Authorizing the use of this alternative gasoline fuel blend reduces the state’s dependence on petroleum and further diversifies the state fuel supply, helping to avoid gasoline price spikes and costs to consumers at the pump.

RFA has been helping California retailers prepare for this moment in earnest over the past month, holding E15 workshops all over the state, starting in San Diego at the California Fuels and Convenience Alliance trade show.

RFA Senior Vice President of Industry Relations and Market Development Robert White says they have received tremendous response. “We believe that E15 value proposition is going to be even stronger than it is here in the Midwest and parts of the East Coast and Southeast so that when one retailer starts to do that blending we think it’ll take hold a little bit faster than we’ve seen in other areas,” said White. “So here’s this strange scenario where the last state to legalize E15 could really become the poster child for the rest of the country.”

RFA has set up a website to provide information about selling E15 in California called E15forCA.com.

Listen to White’s interview here.
Robert White, RFA - E15 for CA (12:35)

Audio, E15, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Renewable Fuels Association, RFA

EPA Holds Hearing on SRE Proposal

Cindy Zimmerman

The Environmental Protection Agency held a virtual hearing Wednesday to get feedback on its recent supplemental proposed rule regarding small refinery exemptions and the reallocation of affected volumes under the Renewable Fuel Standard and the biofuels industry was unanimous in its call for 100 percent reallocation of all exempted renewable fuel blending volumes.

Just two weeks ago, EPA co-proposed “additional volumes representing complete (100 percent) reallocation and 50 percent reallocation for SREs granted in full or in part for 2023 and 2024, as well as those projected to be granted for 2025, as part of the ongoing RFS rulemaking.”

In testimony to the EPA, the Renewable Fuels Association strongly disagreed with EPA’s decision to grant 140 small refinery exemptions (SREs) based on a new approach to determining “disproportionate economic hardship (DEH).”

“If EPA is going to resume granting SREs under its flawed notion of DEH, it must reallocate 100 percent of those exempted volumes,” RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper said. “Without reallocating 100 percent of the exempted volumes, the volumes originally proposed cannot be achieved and any final volumes will be illusory.”

Cooper also objected to EPA’s reliance on the Department of Energy’s outdated small refinery study and “scoring matrix” in the SRE process. “EPA has a duty to independently evaluate petitions and assess whether a small refiner has experienced DEH,” he said. “EPA should not be deferring to the DOE’s long-outdated 2011 study and scoring matrix. In 2022, the Government Accountability Office faulted the DOE study as ‘critically flawed,’ and EPA itself asserted that the study fails to provide useful information.”

American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) CEO Brian Jennings emphasized in his testimony that without full reallocation, obligated parties could use the oversupply of low-priced renewable identification numbers (RINs) to satisfy the 2026 and 2027 obligations without buying or blending physical gallons of ethanol and other renewable fuels.

“This type of demand destruction undermines the integrity of the RFS,” Jennings said, adding that demand destruction occurred in 2018 and 2019 when SREs and low RIN prices discouraged refiners from blending ethanol above E10 and artificially restrained sales of E15, E30, and E85.

Jennings commended EPA for working to reallocate volumes that should have been legally blended and stated ACE’s view that the Agency is bound by statute to finalize full and complete reallocation for 2026 and 2027. “In other words, the Agency must reallocate 100% of the 2023 through 2025 exempted RVOs – an estimated 2.18 billion gallons – to the final Set 2 rule,” Jennings said.

ACE, EPA, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Renewable Fuels Association, RFA

New EU Report Supports Use of Food Crops for Biofuel

Cindy Zimmerman

A new report out of the European Union extols the benefits of using crops to produce biofuels and essentially dispels the notion of food versus fuel.

The report released from the nova-Institute and the European Bioeconomy Alliance (EUBA) says using “first-generation agricultural biomass, i.e. crops like cereals, sugar and oil plants, to produce bio-based energy and materials in Europe results in important benefits for food security, biodiversity, agriculture and climate-change mitigation.”

“Despite widespread concern and frequent policy pushback against the use of first-generation biomass for industrial applications, often originating from concerns of undermining food security, scientific evidence suggests that these concerns are largely misplaced,” the report states. “The debate is shaped by emotional and political arguments rather than robust data or a comprehensive understanding of the global food system.”

The new research highlights four key benefits to the EU from the use of biomass including food crops for non-food applications such as fuels, chemicals and materials:
Enhancing a resilient and competitive EU agriculture
Increased food security
Supporting climate change mitigation
Supporting biodiversity protection

Read the full report.

Biodiesel, biofuels, biomass, Ethanol, Ethanol News, International

RFA Elects 2026 Board and Leadership

Cindy Zimmerman

New RFA Chair Derek Peine, Western Plains Energy

At its annual membership meeting this week in Omaha, the Renewable Fuels Association elected Derek Peine, CEO of Western Plains Energy in Oakley, Kan., as chairman of the organization for 2026.

Peine has spent the last 25 years working in production, technical, and management roles within the agricultural processing and renewable fuels sectors. He also serves on the board of directors for the Renew Kansas biofuels association and the Collaborative Sorghum Marketing Transformation Program.

“I’m honored to serve as chairman of the Renewable Fuels Association and grateful for the trust our members have placed in me,” Peine said. “‘m excited to work alongside our members and stakeholders to expand biofuels’ role in driving economic growth, supporting rural communities, and strengthening America’s energy independence. Together, we’ll build on the progress we’ve made to capture the opportunities ahead.”

RFA Vice Chair Thomas Harwood, Al-Corn Clean Fuel

RFA’s board also elected Thomas Harwood, CEO of Al-Corn Clean Fuel in Claremont, Minn., as vice chairman.

Elected to continue in their RFA board leadership roles are Tim Winters, president and CEO of Western New York Energy, as board secretary, and David Zimmerman, CEO of Big River Resources, as board treasurer.

Elected to leadership of the Renewable Fuels Foundation for 2026 were Chairman Neal Kemmet, Ace Ethanol; Vice Chairman Eric Baukol, Redfield Energy; and Treasurer Wayne Garrett, Chief Ethanol Fuels. The foundation is dedicated to meeting the education, research and strategic planning needs of the U.S. fuel ethanol industry.

Ethanol, Ethanol News, Renewable Fuels Association, RFA