Casey’s General Stores Receives Biodiesel Impact Award

Cindy Zimmerman

Casey’s General Stores received this year’s Eye on Biodiesel Impact Award from the National Biodiesel Board. Nathaniel Doddridge, Casey’s Director of Fuels, received the award from NBB Technical Director Scott Fenwick and Chairman Kent Engelbrecht, ADM.

In the past year, Casey’s General Stores has become a leading player in the biodiesel industry, keeping biodiesel in high consumer demand. Casey’s is committed to providing customers the safest, most reliable gasoline and diesel fuel.They believe when customers pull up to the pump, they should get what they paid for. Now, Casey’s is enhancing that promise with new fuel options for consumers. Their stores have taken a pro-biofuels approach, and are promoting a new E15 ethanol program, “Prime the Pump,” in addition to blending more biodiesel.

Casey’s has now converted more than 590 stores to biodiesel and plans to expand the use of biodiesel products to another 300 locations. With this prominence across the country, the biodiesel industry has an opportunity to make strides in public awareness and usage of America’s Advanced Biofuel.

Doddridge also participated in a panel discussion with Geoff Howard, Valley Pacific Petroleum, and Andrew Richard, Sapp Brothers. Listen to that below.

NBB19 Truck Stop Coffee Shop panel

2019 National Biodiesel Conference Photo Album

Audio, Biodiesel, Biodiesel Conference, NBB

2019 Biodiesel Conference & Expo Lifts Off in San Diego

Cindy Zimmerman

The 2019 National Biodiesel Conference & Expo lifted off Tuesday in San Diego with hundreds of enthusiastic industry attendees ready to engage, innovate, and grow.

Acknowledging 2019 as the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11’s moon landing, National Biodiesel Board CEO Donnell Rehagen drew comparisons between the tenacity of the space program and U.S. biodiesel producers’ own efforts to get the first commercially available advanced biofuel industry off the ground. He pointed to Coachella-based Imperial Western Products and manager Curtis Wright as one of the many pioneers of the industry, explaining they had to overcome many obstacles in launching their new biodiesel product line at the turn of the century.

“There were times they wanted to give up,” Rehagen said. “There were days when it seemed like nothing at the plant worked correctly.” Today, the plant produces 10.5 million gallons of biodiesel annually and provides a significant amount of the diversified company’s profits, he said.

The biodiesel industry, like the explorers of America’s space program, benefited from clear direction from our political leaders that is necessary in fostering new endeavors.

Federal policies such as the Renewable Fuel Standard, which requires minimum volumes of biodiesel and other renewable fuels be blended into the national fuel supply, and California’s own Low Carbon Fuel Standard have proven to be effective stimulators of U.S. markets. Today, the industry produces nearly three billion gallons annually and supports more than 60,000 jobs across the country. The LCFS is expected to make California alone a billion-gallon market for biodiesel in the coming years.

This is the fifth time the conference has been hosted in the Golden State and the third time in San Diego, noting the significance of the California renewable fuels market. The inaugural National Biodiesel Conference was launched in Palm Springs in 2004 and the event was held once in San Francisco.

Listen to Rehagen’s conference address here:
NBB19 Opening Remarks from National Biodiesel Board CEO Donnell Rehagen

2019 National Biodiesel Conference Photo Album

advanced biofuels, Audio, Biodiesel, Biodiesel Conference, biofuels, NBB

RFA Asks EPA to Prioritize E15 Over RIN Reform

Cindy Zimmerman

With the government shutdown threatening to further delay approval of year-round sales of E15, the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) is urging the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to focus first on rulemaking for year-round E15 provisions and wait to address RIN reform measures in a separate action. With just 133 days remaining before the summertime prohibition on E15 sales begins, RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper says EPA is running out of time to propose, seek comment on, and finalize a rule allowing year-round E15 sales.

“Finalizing the year-round E15 rulemaking no later than May 31 will take a Herculean effort,” Cooper wrote in a letter to EPA Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler last week. “Therefore, we respectfully request that EPA bifurcate the rulemaking into two separate actions, moving forward immediately on the year-round E15 provisions and considering RIN reform in a subsequent and secondary actio

The letter notes that, unlike the year-round E15 provisions, there is no deadline by which RIN reform measures must be finalized in order to allow fair and efficient operation of the market. “While we support efforts to bring more transparency to the RIN market, there is no urgency to move forward quickly with RIN reform provisions,” according to the letter. “This is particularly true as the previous uproar from refiners about ‘high RIN costs’ has been reduced to a murmur as RIN prices have collapsed to historic lows.”

During a hearing before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on his nomination to take the job of administrator, Wheeler confirmed the agency’s commitment to getting a rule on year-round E15 out in time for the summer driving season, as long as the partial government shutdown ends soon.

E15, EPA, Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA, RFS

Ethanol Production Back Up

Cindy Zimmerman

Weekly U.S. ethanol production recovered after the holidays to more like what we were seeing throughout 2018.

According to Energy Information Administration data analyzed by the Renewable Fuels Association, ethanol production for the week ending January 11 increased over five percent to the largest volume in six weeks at an average of 1.051 million barrels per day (b/d)—or 44.14 million gallons daily. The four-week average for ethanol production rose fractionally at 1.026 million b/d for an annualized rate of 15.73 billion gallons but was still 1.8% lower than the level a year ago.

There were zero imports recorded for the ninth week in a row. (Weekly export data for ethanol is not reported simultaneously; the latest export data is as of October 2018.)

Average weekly gasoline supplied to the market pulled back 1.9% at 8.565 million b/d (359.7 million gallons per day), equivalent to 131.30 billion gallons annualized and the lowest level since February 2017. Refiner/blender input of ethanol rebounded 5.8% (up 47,000 b/d) at 862,000 b/d—equivalent to 13.21 billion gallons annualized.

Given the lackluster volume of gasoline supplied to the market, daily ethanol production increased to a 58-week high of 12.27% of daily gasoline supplied.

Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA

South Dakota Farmers Union Advocates for E30

Cindy Zimmerman

With EPA yet to start the rulemaking process for year-round sales of 15% ethanol, South Dakota Farmers Union president Doug Sombke penned an editorial this month advocating approval of blends double that amount, up to 30 percent.

“As fuel prices decrease, farmers are seeing corn ethanol markets drop. What to do? Well, let’s hope we don’t see the price at the pumps go up. Instead, let’s use more ethanol,” wrote Sombke.

What I’m suggesting is oil companies increase the amount of ethanol blended into gasoline – from the mandatory 10 to 30 percent.

And, my reasons are not purely economic. Without higher ethanol blends, a century of research shows the only way to better octane ratings is more carcinogens.

Let me explain. There’s no such thing as pure gasoline. Typical gasoline is made up of 10 percent ethanol and 90 percent other petroleum products. And, anywhere from 25 to 40 percent are classified as highly toxic carcinogens. These aromatics include: benzene, toluene and xylene or BTEX.

Click here to read the editorial.

Ethanol, Opinion, Urban Air Initiative

Iowa Budget Includes $3M for Biofuels Infrastructure

Cindy Zimmerman

Governor Kim Reynolds released her 2019 Iowa budget proposal this week, including $3 million for the Iowa Renewable Fuels Infrastructure Program (RFIP), which provides cost-share grants to help Iowa retailers incorporate blender pumps, storage tanks, and other necessary equipment to offer higher blends of biofuels.

“IRFA members want to thank Gov. Reynolds for prioritizing funding for blender pumps through Iowa’s Renewable Fuels Infrastructure Program in her budget,” said Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) Executive Monte Shaw. “RFIP was identified in the Iowa Energy Plan as one of the best ways to help Iowa become number one in both the production and use of homegrown energy like ethanol and biodiesel. Gov. Reynolds continues to play a key role in pressing the Trump Administration to keep its commitments to renewable fuels, and she continues to lead here in Iowa as well.”

Biodiesel, biofuels, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Iowa RFA

Ethanol Stakeholders React to Wheeler Hearing

Cindy Zimmerman

Ethanol industry organizations commended Acting EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler for his commitment to getting a rule allowing year-round sales of E15 (15% ethanol blended fuel) before the start of this year’s summer driving season but still expressed some concerns.

“We were encouraged to hear Acting EPA Administrator Wheeler commit to completing the year-round E15 regulatory fix before the summer driving season begins, but we are disappointed that there was no commitment to repair the significant damage to the ethanol industry caused by his predecessor’s issuance of RFS compliance bailouts to highly profitable oil refiners,” said Renewable Fuels Association CEO Geoff Cooper. “And despite Mr. Wheeler’s assurance on the timing of the E15 rule, we remain concerned that the partial shutdown is compressing a timeline that was already very tight. We believe EPA would greatly improve its chances of getting the regulatory fix done before summer if it separated the year-round E15 provisions from so-called ‘RIN reform’ provisions that are also being considered as part of this rulemaking package.”

American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) CEO Brian Jennings commended Senators Joni Ernst (R-IA), Mike Rounds (R-SD), and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) for pressing Wheeler about the E15 rule, as well as demand destruction created by the large number small refinery exemptions.

“We appreciate that Acting Administrator Wheeler assured the senators that EPA is ‘still on schedule’ for issuing a final rule allowing year-round E15 sales in time for this summer’s driving season, but his caveat of if the government is back up and running in a “reasonable length of time’ is no excuse for a delay,” said Jennings. “It’s been more than three months since President Trump directed EPA to lift Reid vapor pressure (RVP) restrictions on E15, so why didn’t EPA set rulemaking wheels in motion in November, December, or January?”

ACE, E15, Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA, RFS

Wheeler Affirms Commitment to E15 Timetable

Cindy Zimmerman

Acting EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler confirmed the agency’s commitment to getting a rule on year-round E15 out in time for the summer driving season, as long as the partial government shutdown allows it to happen.

“We’re still on schedule for that, (but) we’re not able to work on it during the government shutdown,” said Wheeler during a hearing before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on his nomination to take the job of administrator.

Several senators questioned Wheeler on the E15 rulemaking, including Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) who wanted to know if EPA has been able to take any action on the rule during the shutdown. “I’m afraid not on the E15,” said Wheeler. “It’s not a court-ordered deadline for us and it’s not considered an emergency.”

Ernst also questioned Wheeler about small refinery waivers pending and if the current low price for Renewable Identification Numbers (RINS) will impact whether they are approved. Listen to the exchange between Ernst and Wheeler here: Sen. Ernst questions EPA nominee Andrew Wheeler

Senator Mike Rounds of South Dakota asked Wheeler specifically about the timeline for the E15 rulemaking. “We were originally planning on issuing the proposal in February,” said Wheeler. “We may be slightly delayed at this point, but we will get it done before the summer driving season.”
Sen. Rounds questions EPA nominee Andrew Wheeler

Oil state Senator James Inhofe (R-OK), critic of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), asked about the “reset” of statutory blending targets under the RFS and expressed concern that EPA was “only listening to one side of the argument” – that of the ethanol industry. EPA nominee Andrew Wheeler response on RFS reset

Audio, E15, EPA, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Government

RFA Launches E15 Awareness Campaign

Cindy Zimmerman

The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) has kicked off a new campaign aimed at educating consumers and policymakers about the benefits of E15 in anticipation of the blend being available year-round. The campaign started this week with digital ads on The Washington Post and the launch of a new consumer-facing web site.

The ads, with the tagline “E15. Clean. Affordable. Domestic. Fuel,” outline the numerous benefits of using E15, which is approved for use in more than 90 percent of the vehicles on the road today. Currently, E15 cannot be sold during the summer months in most of the country, due to an outdated regulation which President Trump has directed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to eliminate.

The partial government shutdown has made the timeline for EPA to propose and approve new regulations much tighter, but the agency has promised this regulatory barrier will be removed in time for consumers to be able to enjoy the benefits of E15 this summer and the rest of the year. Speaking to the American Farm Bureau Federation this week, the President confirmed that his Administration is “…ensuring that ethanol remains a vital part of America’s energy future with E15. We’re making it available year-round, all 12 months, that’s a big difference for the farmers.”

To view the full ad campaign, visit ethanolrfa.org/e15cleanfuel/.

E15, Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA

Biodiesel Conference Next Week in San Diego

Cindy Zimmerman

America’s largest celebration of all things biodiesel returns to San Diego next week for a record fifth visit in the Golden State. Local residents are invited to join in the festivities at no cost during the National Biodiesel Conference and Expo kick off at the Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina on Tuesday, January 22.

The conference, which runs through Thursday the 24th, will offer a diesel-vehicle ride-and-drive opportunity and dozens of demonstrations and presentations on the latest in public policy under the Trump Administration and a new Congress; the environmental and commercial benefits of biodiesel use; and more focus on California and Western carbon markets.

National Biodiesel Board CEO Donnell Rehagen says California is the largest market for renewable fuels, driven by the state’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS). “Biodiesel and renewable diesel have been the real stars of the LFCS,” Rehagen said. “Since 2011, biodiesel and renewable diesel use in California has grown from 14 million gallons to more than 500 million gallons today. That represents a compounded annual growth rate of 89 percent and was nearly 20 percent of the national market for biodiesel last year.”

And the future looks even brighter. According to targets set by the state, biodiesel and renewable diesel use could reach one billion gallons by 2021 and as much as two billion gallons by 2030.

NBB Director of Communications Kaleb Little provides a preview of the conference:
NBB conference preview with Kaleb Little

Follow the action next week on the Biodiesel Conference Blog for the 14th year!

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