EPA Schedules Hearing on Proposed RFS Volumes

Cindy Zimmerman

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will hold a public hearing in Ypsilanti, MI on July 31, regarding the proposed rule “Renewable Fuel Standard Program: Standards for 2020 and Biomass-Based Diesel Volume for 2021.”

On July 5, EPA proposed a total renewable fuel volume of 20.04 billion gallons, of which 5.04 billion gallons are advanced biofuel, including 540 million gallons of cellulosic biofuel. “Conventional” renewable fuel volumes, primarily met by corn ethanol, would be maintained at the implied 15-billion gallon target set by Congress. EPA proposes to maintain the biomass-based diesel (BBD) volume for 2021 at 2.43 billion gallons.

The proposal was met with harsh criticism by biofuel industry organizations because it fails to reallocate small refinery exemptions and ignores a court order to restore improperly waived gallons.

The hearing will be held at the Ann Arbor Marriott Ypsilanti in Ypsilanti, MI and will begin at 9:00 a.m. and end when all parties present who wish to speak have had an opportunity to do so.

EPA, Ethanol, Ethanol News

Corn Growers Continue Call for #NoMoreWaivers

The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) is continuing to call on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to follow President Trump’s commitment to farmers and stop giving Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) waivers to big oil companies.

NCGA is re-running a television ad that first aired last month after President Trump visited an Iowa ethanol plant and heard from NCGA first vice president Kevin Ross. During the event, Ross thanked the President for delivering on his promise to farmers but told him that “The EPA’s oil refinery waivers threaten to undo your good works.”

NCGA members are in Washington, D.C. this week for Corn Congress and meetings with lawmakers on Capitol Hill. Farmers will be urging policymakers to support legislation in the House, H.R. 3006, and Senate, S. 1840, that would seek to stop waiver abuse and address the harm these waivers are causing.

Since early 2018, EPA has granted 53 RFS small refinery exemptions (SREs), or waivers, totaling 2.61 billion ethanol-equivalent gallons of renewable fuel. There are currently 39 refinery exemption petitions pending for the 2018 compliance year. NCGA has highlighted 39 reasons why the EPA should not grant additional waivers.

Watch the ad below.

AgWired Energy, corn, EPA, Ethanol, NCGA

Mexican Fuel Marketers Learn From Iowa Ethanol Tour

Cindy Zimmerman

Mexican fuel marketers who took part in an ethanol industry tour last week in Iowa are excited about incorporating what they learned to offer ethanol blends in their businesses back home.

The American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) and Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) organized the tour in conjunction with the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) to show nine decision-makers from key Mexican retail and supplier groups how ethanol blends have been successfully and profitably incorporated across Iowa.

Tour leaders Ron Lamberty, ACE Senior Vice President, and Lucy Norton, IRFA Managing Director, said participants were engaged and enthusiastic about the prospect of adding ethanol blends.

“The week’s events exceeded our expectations,” Lamberty said. “We wanted this tour to end any lingering doubt these marketers might have about implementing ethanol blends in Mexico. After seeing stations and equipment just like theirs being used to sell E10, and hearing station operators say they’ve sold ethanol profitably for decades without any issues, some who attended plan to do tests in the next several months, and when those tests go well, we’ll encourage those marketers to share their success stories with peers in Mexico, as ACE has done to develop markets in the U.S.”

“We see this trip as just the beginning of a long relationship that leads to a new ethanol market in Mexico,” Norton said. “We were fortunate to have such an influential group participate that represented about 500 million gallons of fuel sales and distribution. IRFA was proud to showcase Iowa’s 40 years of success in marketing ethanol-blended fuels.”

Several tour attendees said they are ready for the many benefits ethanol can bring to Mexico, including lower-fuel costs, improved air quality, and quality fuel.

Click to read some comments about the tour from participants.

ACE, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Iowa RFA, Retailers

Phibro Ethanol Performance Group Offers New Yeast Products

Carrie Muehling

New yeast products from Phibro Animal Health Corporation‘s Ethanol Performance Group feature improved technology.

“Ethanol production is a very efficient industry. The technology keeps improving and lately yeast has been driving those improvements,” said Michael Giambalvo, President, Phibro Ethanol Performance Group. “We understand fermentation, preventing and managing plant infections and the key role of yeast in biofuel production. Yeast has been at the core of Phibro’s businesses for decades.”

A longtime industry leader in antimicrobials, Phibro Ethanol Performance Group provides solutions for ethanol producers based on its core competencies of fermentation, infection management and co-products for animal feed. Products include processing aids, cleaning aids, corn oil recovery and now its proprietary yeast products. PhibroADY™ and FortiPhi™ yeast products represent the latest product offerings by Phibro Ethanol Performance Group.

PhibroADY was developed for ethanol production, using a specially selected Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain. PhibroADY demonstrates robust performance across a wide range of operating conditions. With high temperature tolerance, organic acid tolerance, and high gravity substrate tolerance, this yeast has an efficient performance characteristic allowing for higher ethanol production. PhibroADY has a fast fermentation kinetic and also demonstrates superior longevity, remaining viable late in fermentation.

FortiPhi, a specialized nutritional supplement for industrial yeast, is specifically designed for grain mash fermentations producing ethanol. FortiPhi contains premium organic and inorganic compounds intentionally chosen to help improve the fermentability of standard grain mashes. The inclusion of inactivated yeast culture, vitamins and essential minerals provide a balanced supplement to help support yeast growth and metabolism.

“In recent years, the market has shifted. Ethanol producers are more interested in GMO technologies because of the multiple benefits they provide. Producers have recognized the value in yeast that will express enzymes and contribute to higher yields,” said Jenny Forbes, Vice President, Products and Services, Phibro Ethanol Performance Group. Phibro is responding to this market need with an entirely new higher performance yeast due out later this year. Initial tests have proven promising for Phibro’s next generation genetically engineered yeast product that is under development. This next-gen yeast will enhance yeast robustness and performance, while reducing processing costs such as enzymes.

“We have been a leader in the ethanol production industry for many years, and we’ve been very fortunate to be able to grow with our customers,” said Giambalvo. “This is just the natural progression in providing more solutions to meet the needs of our customers. Phibro’s innovations in yeast will help the industry achieve higher productivity, higher efficiency and process optimization. If you’re not innovating, you fall behind.”

biofuels, Ethanol, Renewable Energy

Mexican Retailers Touring Iowa Ethanol Supply Chain

Cindy Zimmerman

Representatives from the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) and Iowa Renewable Fuels Association are leading Mexican retailers on a tour across Iowa this week to see how U.S. ethanol is made, distributed, and sold. The groups are working with the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) in an effort to show Mexican retailers the opportunities for sourcing, marketing, and retailing ethanol-blended gasoline as Mexico’s transportation sector evolves and they implement blends up to E10.

The trade mission group will visit a farm, ethanol plant, fuel terminal, bulk fuel storage facility and terminal, and a handful of retail and convenience store stations. In addition to tours of these locations, Mexican marketers will get the opportunity to sit down with key representatives of the businesses and gain information they can use in their own operations in Mexico. The tour will also include meetings with a design, construction and equipment installation company for retail stations and bulk storage facilities, as well as meetings with several ethanol marketers from across the region.

The tour is happening in Iowa this week as the 2019 BIO World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology is being held in Des Moines.

ACE, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Iowa RFA

Ethanol Report on 2020 RVO Proposal

Cindy Zimmerman

The Environmental Protection Agency on Friday issued proposed volume requirements under the Renewable Fuel Standard program for calendar year 2020, with a total renewable fuel volume of 20.04 billion gallons, of which 5.04 billion gallons are advanced biofuel, including 540 million gallons of cellulosic biofuel. That leaves the 15-billion-gallon requirement for conventional renewable fuels like corn ethanol unchanged from 2019.

Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) president and CEO Geoff Cooper says the proposal “completely betrays President Trump’s commitment” to uphold the integrity of the RFS by neglecting to prospectively reallocate small refinery exemptions and blatantly ignoring a court order to restore improperly waived gallons.

In this edition of The Ethanol Report podcast, Cooper explains why the industry is so dissatisfied with the proposal and how it undercuts President Trump’s support of ethanol.

Ethanol Report on 2020 RVO Proposal

Subscribe to the podcast via iTunes

Audio, biofuels, EPA, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Ethanol Report, RFA, RFS

NBB Highlights How Refinery Waivers Hurt Biodiesel Industry

Cindy Zimmerman

The National Biodiesel Board (NBB) has launched an ad campaign highlighting the economic damage to biodiesel and renewable diesel producers from the Environmental Protection Agency’s small refinery exemptions. The ads are currently scheduled to run for one week in Des Moines and Washington, DC.

“The president’s EPA is hurting farmers and eliminating jobs by giving special favors to big oil companies,” the ad states. “The EPA’s big oil bailout is destroying demand for biodiesel.”

An estimate from University of Illinois Professor Scott Irwin says the demand destruction could reach 2.45 billion gallons over the next few years causing a $7.7 billion economic loss for the biodiesel industry.

“Just one oil refinery waiver can put an entire biodiesel facility out of business, and that means fewer jobs for rural America,” the ad states.

NBB Vice President of Federal Affairs Kurt Kovarik notes that the biodiesel industry “does not benefit from approval of year-round E15 sales. While that approval was long overdue, it can’t make up for the damage from small refinery exemptions.” There are currently 38 more waiver applications pending at EPA.


Biodiesel, EPA, Ethanol, NBB, Video

Biofuels Groups Blast EPA for RFS Proposed Volumes

Cindy Zimmerman

The Environmental Protection Agency on Friday (EPA) issued proposed volume requirements under the Renewable Fuel Standard program for calendar year 2020, leaving them basically unchanged and not reallocating gallons lost due to small refinery exemptions.

Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) president and CEO Geoff Cooper says the proposal “completely betrays President Trump’s commitment” to uphold the integrity of the RFS by neglecting to prospectively reallocate small refinery exemptions and blatantly ignoring a court order to restore improperly waived gallons.

EPA has proposed a total renewable fuel volume of 20.04 billion gallons, of which 5.04 billion gallons are advanced biofuel, including 540 million gallons of cellulosic biofuel. That leaves, on paper, a 15-billion-gallon requirement for conventional renewable fuels like corn ethanol, unchanged from 2019.

Most notably, EPA failed to prospectively account for any expected small refinery exemptions in the 2020 proposal, even though it is almost a foregone conclusion at this point that the Agency will continue to grant more exemptions.

Cooper discusses the shortcomings of the proposal in this interview: RFA CEO Geoff Cooper interview on EPA RVO proposal

American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) CEO Brian Jennings says the proposal “fails to restore a 500-million-gallon shortfall the D.C. Circuit Court ordered EPA to handle following the Americans for Clean Energy et al v. EPA lawsuit, which recently resigned EPA Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation William Wehrum told ACE members EPA intended to address in the 2020 proposed rule at our D.C. fly-in in April.”

The National Biodiesel Board (NBB) criticized the proposed rule for both the 2020 advanced biofuel standards, which is 0.12 billion gallons higher than 2019, and 2021 Biomass-based Diesel Volume, saying it undermines market growth for biodiesel and renewable diesel.

The agency’s proposed advanced biofuel volume of 5.04 billion gallons provides no additional market growth for biomass-based diesel. Similarly, the proposal to set the 2021 biomass-based diesel volume at 2.43 billion gallons — the same as the 2020 volume — flatlines growth for the industry. EPA’s proposal could actually reduce market space for biodiesel and renewable diesel compared to this year, because it does not account for small refinery exemptions.

Lynn Chrisp, President of the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA), said. “If the EPA continues to grant retroactive waivers, the RVO numbers are meaningless and the EPA is not following the law. Farmers are facing a very tough economic environment and the continued waiver abuse chips away at farmers’ bottom line.”

EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler said the proposal release puts the agency on target to issue the final rule in the fall. “Unlike the previous administration, we have consistently issued the annual renewable volume obligations rule on time, which is critically important to America’s farmers and all stakeholders impacted by the Renewable Fuel Standard program,” Wheeler said. “We are on track to meet the deadline on time for the third year in a row and continue to provide greater regulatory certainty to farmers and refiners across the country.”

ACE, Biodiesel, corn, EPA, Ethanol, Ethanol News, NBB, RFA, RFS

CoBank Forecasts Weak Outlook for Ethanol

Cindy Zimmerman

According to a new report from CoBank’s Knowledge Exchange Division, operating margins for ethanol producers will likely remain weak for the rest of this year due to abundant production, while declining corn production this year will also “squeeze margins and some ethanol plants will be forced to shut down or idle their production due to high corn prices or insufficient supplies.”

Ethanol plants had expanded capacity after several years of positive margins. However, margins began sliding in the summer of 2018 and plants have struggled to remain profitable since then. With stocks expected to remain above 900 million gallons through the remainder of 2019, margins are expected remain low.

Exports are cited as one area of optimism for ethanol producers, but that is based on China’s plans to convert to E10 blend gasoline nationally by the end of 2020. In the meantime, the report says domestic U.S. ethanol demand will likely be flat over the next two years, but potential growth area is E15 sold year round.

Increased demand for ethanol due to E15 will be limited in the next three years as retailers make these investments and consumer acceptance builds. Longer-term, the E15 fuel market will be able to provide stronger support to ethanol plant margins.

Persistent, low margins will also drive ethanol plants to diversify their revenue streams becoming corn bio-refineries and expanding co-product lines.

Read the report.

Ethanol, Ethanol News

ACE Conference Agenda Highlights

Cindy Zimmerman

The agenda for the 2019 American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) annual conference in Omaha, Nebraska, August 14-16 has what it takes to focus of the major issues facing the industry.

Newly appointed President and CEO of the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) Ryan LeGrand will start it off with a keynote address following a welcome from Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts and an update from ACE leadership during the August 15 morning general session. He will discuss the efforts of the USGC and commitment to increasing the global use and trade of U.S. ethanol.

Next, the 32nd annual conference will present a discussion on how the ethanol industry can benefit from the emerging carbon economy and the new opportunities on the horizon during the “Capitalizing on Carbon” general session panel on August 15. The panel includes Pam Miller, Siouxland Ethanol LLC, sharing how they have benefited from selling low carbon ethanol in the California market; Ron Alverson, Dakota Ethanol, providing a breakdown of what the latest GREET [Greenhouse Gases Regulated Emissions and Energy use in Transportation] modeling reveals about corn ethanol; and Brendan Jordan, Great Plains Institute, discussing the opportunities for a Midwest Clean Fuel Standard.

Afternoon breakout sessions on Thursday will cover the latest in technology innovations, strategic planning advice, and ways to make ethanol plants more profitable.

Randy Gard of Bosselman Enterprises, owner of the Nebraska-based Pump & Pantry convenience store chain, will take part in a fuel retailer panel during the August 16 general session. Following up on his remarks about the company’s E15 growth on stage with President Trump during his recent visit to Southwest Iowa Renewable Energy, Gard will share Bosselman’s next steps with year-round E15 finalized.

Listen to Gard’s comments on stage with President Trump.
Randy Gard, Bosselman Enterprises, remarks with President Trump

More details and registration information are available at ethanol.org/events/conference.

ACE, ACE Ethanol Conference, Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News