Iowa Farmers Encouraged to Try Higher Biodiesel Blends

Cindy Zimmerman

The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) is once again offering the statewide On-Farm Biodiesel Credit Program that offers farmers who buy a biodiesel blend up to 50 cents per gallon.

“This is a great opportunity for farmers to try higher blends of biodiesel on their farm like B20, especially if they have previously used B11,” said IRFA Marketing Director Lisa Coffelt. “It truly goes to show that farmers are willing to use higher biodiesel blends in their farm operations. This program is a fantastic opportunity for farmers, and we would love to see more take advantage of these credits while using homegrown fuel. Especially when we’ve seen on-farm use of B20 increase by five times, according to the 2023 Retailers Motor Fuel Gallons Report.”

The program is managed by IRFA and supported by the Iowa Soybean Association and Iowa Biodiesel Board as well as biodiesel producers Western Iowa Energy, Western Dubuque Biodiesel and Chevron Renewable Energy Group. Biodiesel is supported by both John Deere and CASE IH engines.

Farmers will earn 25 cents per gallon for filling up with B11 (11 percent biodiesel) and 50 cents per gallon with B20 (20 percent biodiesel) up to a maximum credit of $500. Program funding is limited and will be awarded on a first-come, first-serve basis. To be eligible, farmers must meet the criteria and follow the procedures outlined at https://iowarfa.org/iowa-on-farm-biodiesel-credit-program/.

Biodiesel, Iowa RFA

RFA Provides Input to GREET Working Group

Cindy Zimmerman

As the clock continues to tick, the Sustainable Aviation Fuel Interagency Working Group continues its work on a modified GREET model for the 40B SAF tax credit.

The Renewable Fuels Association this week provided some input to the working group regarding what time period should be used for land use change (LUC) emissions accounting under the new model. In a letter to the agency heads, RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper explained why the time period should be 30 years.

EPA’s 2010 RFS lifecycle GHG analysis (and subsequent EPA rulemakings) used a 30-year timeframe to account for LUC emissions. Treasury has already determined that EPA’s 2010 RFS lifecycle analysis methodology, which integrates a 30-year time profile for LUC emissions accounting, satisfies the criteria of 211(o)(1)(H). Thus, using anything other than a 30-year period (e.g., 20 or 25 years) for the upcoming 40B(e)(2) GREET model would likely render the new model inconsistent with the requirements of CAA 211(o)(1)(H), as interpreted and implemented by EPA.

The working group – which consists of USDA, EPA, Energy, and Treasury – had set a March 1 deadline to announce the modified model, but has yet to give any indication when it may happen at this point. The clock is ticking because the 40B applies to fuel used or sold after 2022 and before 2025, or by the end of this year. The tax credits were included in the Inflation Reduction Act passed by Congress in 2022.

Ethanol, Ethanol News, Renewable Fuels Association, RFA

Ethanol Exports Down 7%, DDGS Up 9%

Cindy Zimmerman

February U.S. ethanol exports slipped seven percent, while exports of the animal feed co-product dried distillers grains (DDGS) rebounded nine percent, according to the latest analysis from the Renewable Fuels Association.

Ethanol exports in February totaled 139.0 million gallons (mg), with Canada as the top destination for the 35th consecutive month despite a 17% decline from January. “Exports surged to the United Kingdom (up 53% to 21.2 mg) and Colombia (up 93% to 15.0 mg) but volumes tempered to India (down 59% to 13.4 mg) and the European Union (down 39% to 9.7 mg). Escalating exports to other larger markets helped curb the slippage, including Singapore (6.0 mg, +501%), Mexico (5.8 mg, +5%), Peru (5.7 mg, +133%), and Jamaica (4.0 mg, +1040%). Notably, exports to Japan marked a 4-year high of 1.7 mg following concerted efforts to enlarge the market, while Brazil was again absent. Year-to-date ethanol exports totaled 289.0 mg, a whopping 30% ahead of last year at this time.”

Exports of DDGS in February totaled 986,337 metric tons (mt) on mixed markets. “Shipments to Mexico, our largest customer for the second straight month, climbed 4% to 259,658 mt—the nation’s second-largest monthly imports on record. South Korea imports of U.S. DDGS slipped 10% to 132,457 mt while volumes rallied to Indonesia, up 20% to 86,304 mt. The remaining half of February exports shipped to forty countries, including significant yet declining volumes to Vietnam (65,146 mt, down 8%), Japan (51,051 mt, down 11%), Canada (49,588 mt, down 24%), and Colombia (33,477 mt, down 26%). Year-to-date DDGS exports totaled 1.89 million mt, which is 23% more than last year at this time.”

Ethanol, Ethanol News, Exports, Renewable Fuels Association, RFA

Iowa Hits E15 and Biodiesel Records in 2023

Cindy Zimmerman

Last year was another record for E15 sales in Iowa at 178 million gallons, a whopping 47 percent increase from 2022. In addition, a record 68 million gallons of biodiesel was blended into Iowa diesel for 2023, according to the Iowa Department of Revenue 2023 Retailers Motor Fuel Gallons Annual Report.

Iowa Renewable Fuels Association Executive Director Monte Shaw says for the first time, E15 sales accounted for more than 10 percent of Iowa gasoline sales in 2023, hitting 13.3 percent according to the report. “A nearly 50 percent increase in E15 sales in one year is remarkable. We expect to keep setting records as Iowa Governor Kim Reynold’s E15 Access Standard legislation is fully implemented in 2026. When given a choice, Iowa consumers have shown they want E15 at the pump.”

For only the second time, the report found that sales of on-road B11 and higher biodiesel blends eclipsed 60 percent of the market. The average percentage of biodiesel in on-road blended gallons hit a record 14.4 percent. In off-road diesel, usually used in farm and construction equipment, the report found a 5-fold increase in B20 and higher blends.

“Setting a record blend level in 2023 sends a strong message about the staying power of biodiesel,” said Shaw. “IRFA members have worked hard to expand biodiesel use in off-road markets, so seeing progress there was very encouraging. Overall, 2023 was a great year for biofuel use in Iowa and we’re not taking our foot off the accelerator pedal.”

Biodiesel, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Iowa RFA

Farmers and Ethanol Workers Call for E15 Waiver

Cindy Zimmerman

Nearly 1,000 farmers, ethanol industry workers and other supporters from across the country sent a letter to President Biden this week calling for action to allow continued access to E15 throughout the upcoming summer driving season.

“With the 2024 summer driving season just a few months away, we are urging your administration to take additional action that will ensure consumers across the nation have uninterrupted access to lower-cost, lower-carbon E15,” the letter states. “Allowing gasoline blenders and retailers to sell E15 this summer would help moderate prices at the pump, extend fuel supplies, and deliver relief to American families at a time of year when gasoline prices typically are at their highest. Today, E15 is selling for 10- 25 cents per gallon less than standard E10 gasoline, allowing the average American household to save $125-200 on its annual gasoline bill.”

Read the letter.

Ag group, corn, E15, EPA, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Farming

E15 Sales Set 2023 Record as Summer Remains Uncertain

Cindy Zimmerman

It’s certain at this point that sales of E15 in the United States hit a record last year, but the future of sales this year after May 1 is still uncertain.

According to a Renewable Fuels Association analysis of data released by state agencies in Minnesota and Iowa, total U.S. sales are estimated to have hit a record 1.11 billion gallons in 2023, up 8% over 2022. The increase was due to a combination of an expansion in the number of retail stations offering E15 and the savings that E15 continued to offer to consumers.

There are no official statistics on U.S. E15 volumes, but national sales can be estimated using Minnesota and Iowa data, given that the two states account for nearly 30% of all U.S. stations offering E15. RFA estimates national sales by multiplying its count of U.S. E15 stations by the average estimated volume per station in the two states. More than 3,000 stations offered E15 on average over the course of 2023, compared to 2,700 in 2022.

A key reason why the average E15 volume per station has increased over the last five years is that sales have been allowed during the summer months in conventional gasoline areas. However, if the administration does not take action within the next month, E15 sales will drop precipitously in most of the country this summer, as occurred in conventional gasoline areas prior to 2019.

RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper says at this point the only practical solution this summer is for waivers to be issued again by EPA as it has done in the past two years due to market conditions. “And frankly the market conditions that justified those waivers last year and two years ago still exist and in fact, you could argue that the the circumstances are worse,” said Cooper. “We have actually lower inventories of crude oil and petroleum products today than we had a year ago or two years ago. The Strategic Petroleum Reserve remains at a 40 plus year low. You’ve still got the the situation in Ukraine and now you’ve got a situation in the Middle East that is affecting global global energy markets.”

RFA joined several other organizations last week in sending a letter to EPA Administrator Michael Regan urging him to act swiftly on an emergency waiver for E15 sales.

Listen to Cooper’s comments on the need for a waiver.
RFA CEO Geoff Cooper need for E15 waiver 1:43

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

Ontario Plant to Install Whitefox System

Cindy Zimmerman

Whitefox Technologies is pleased to announce that IGPC Ethanol in Aylmer, Ontario will install a Whitefox ICE® membrane dehydration system. The installation project is anticipated to be completed by the end of this year.

Jackie Hayes, Whitefox Business Development Manager North America, said this represents the company’s first installation in Canada. “Whitefox has had a strong presence in Canada for over 20 years, as it is home to our Engineering and R&D centers in Calgary,” said Hayes. “Once the Whitefox ICE® solution is installed, it will assist IGPC to achieve key strategic objectives of Canadian biofuels policy – to make more fuel ethanol gallons in Canada, with reduced carbon intensity – and do so with lower energy and operating costs.”

The Whitefox ICE® system treats existing recycle streams to free up and debottleneck distillation-dehydration capacity, enabling IGPC Ethanol to lower natural gas use, cut carbon emissions, improve plant cooling, and increase potential production capacity depending on the system design. Whitefox ICE® is integrated into existing corn ethanol production plants with minimal disruption and a small footprint.

Ethanol, Ethanol News, Facilities, Processing, Production

Sen. Klobuchar Tours Heartland Corn Products

Cindy Zimmerman

Sen. Klobuchar (green jacket) tours Heartland Corn Products (MN Bio-Fuels)

Sen. Amy Klobuchar toured Minnesota ethanol plant Heartland Corn Products (HCP) last week to discuss her efforts in addressing some of the challenges facing Minnesota’s ethanol industry with members of the Minnesota Bio-Fuels Association.

Among those efforts include securing an emergency waiver from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to allow sales of E15 during the summer months this year. In February, the EPA approved a petition to allow eight midwestern states to sell E15 year-round. The rule, however, won’t go into effect until April 28, 2025.

Klobuchar said she will urge the EPA to issue an emergency waiver for this summer while continuing work on the Consumer and Fuel Retailer Choice Act, which would provide for the permanent nationwide, year-round sale of E15.

In addition, Klobuchar highlighted her recent efforts in urging the Biden Administration to update the GREET model for the sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) tax credit program which was supposed to be released on March 1.

Ethanol, Ethanol News

Clean Fuels Disappointed in Heavy Duty Vehicle Standards

Cindy Zimmerman

The Environmental Protection Agency was very proud of its new “Strongest-Ever Greenhouse Gas Standards for Trucks” released on Friday, but Clean Fuels Alliance America was extremely disappointed in the outcome.

EPA did not evaluate use of biodiesel and renewable diesel as part of engine systems to meet the new standards, focusing primarily on tailpipe emissions. However, the agency considered a range of alternative fuel and engine configurations, such as natural gas and hydrogen. EPA did recognize that equipment makers will continue to have the option to use biodiesel and renewable in their compliance strategies.

“EPA’s rule flatly dismisses the benefits of biodiesel and renewable diesel as the lowest-cost and most widely available options to kickstart decarbonization of the heavy-duty vehicle sector,” said Kurt Kovarik, Vice President of Federal Affairs with Clean Fuels. “There should be no uncertainty that biodiesel and renewable diesel also reduce criteria pollutants from heavy-duty vehicles, which will continue to be manufactured and used during the timeframe of this rule. EPA should recognize that biodiesel and renewable diesel merit a role in meeting these emission standards for heavy-duty vehicles.”

Biodiesel, Clean Fuels Alliance, EPA

RFA Supports Challenge to EU Maritime Fuel Regulation

Cindy Zimmerman

The Renewable Fuels Association has filed a petition to support a legal challenge brought by European ethanol producers against the European Union FuelEU Maritime Regulation, which considers crop-based biofuels to have the same emission factors as the least favorable fossil fuel pathway and effectively bans the use of renewable, crop-based marine fuels as a tool for decarbonizing the maritime sector.

RFA’s application to intervene in the proceedings supports the challenge brought by ePURE, a trade association representing European ethanol producers, and Pannonia Bio, one of Europe’s largest ethanol producers. Their application seeks to annul the relevant provisions of the FuelEU Maritime Regulation, which was adopted by the EU in 2023 and is set to take effect in 2025.

“The FuelEU Maritime regulation is unlawfully biased against crop-based biofuels and it harms ethanol producers around the world by denying them access to an emerging low-carbon fuel market,” said RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper. “In addition, the EU’s maritime regulation is entirely inconsistent with other programs, like the Renewable Energy Directive, in which the EU has confirmed the low-carbon benefits and sustainability of crop-based biofuels.”

David Carpintero, Director General of ePURE said the FuelEU Maritime regulation jeopardises the EU’s ability to meet ambitious decarbonisation targets. “Given the importance of achieving Europe’s goals for climate change mitigation, energy independence, food security and strategic autonomy, the EU should make better use of proven domestic solutions such as renewable ethanol.”

“Europe will be a climate laggard when the global maritime and aviation markets harmonise around solutions such as sustainable crop-based biofuels that the EU has ruled out but that are affordable, scalable and have low carbon intensity,” said Mark Turley, CEO of ClonBio Group, the owner of Pannonia. “EU investors like Pannonia are now choosing the USA for new investments in large part because EU transport decarbonisation policies are unstable.”

However, Cooper said the regulation would even hamper the ability of U.S. producers to sell low-carbon fuels to maritime shippers in the United States. “Because the regulation also applies to ships arriving at EU ports, it will affect the fuel choices made by EU-bound ship operators when they refuel outside the EU,” he said. “In this way, the regulation directly discourages development and use of low-carbon marine fuels here in the U.S.”

advanced biofuels, Carbon, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Renewable Fuels Association, RFA