Minnesota Teen Takes Part in ACE DC Fly-in

Cindy Zimmerman

Attending the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) DC Fly-in last month was a great experience for a high school junior from Minnesota.

Michael Nagler says his dad David Nagler, a board member for Chippewa Valley Ethanol Company, invited him to attend this year’s event. “I didn’t really know all that much about ethanol before,” said Michael, who had the opportunity to meet with Rep. Collin Peterson (D-MN), which he thought was pretty cool. “You always hear about them and then you’re standing next to them and they’re not much taller than me!”

David Nagler says it was important for him to bring his son with him to learn how what happens in Washington impacts them on the farm. “This affects rural America, it affects the economy,” he said. “We’re here to try and move this industry into the future.”

Joining the Naglers on their visits to Congressional offices was Patrick Buckwalter, a farmer who serves on the board of Al-Corn Clean Fuel. “This is my first time (at the fly-in),” said Buckwalter. “It’s always been something I was interested in and the timing is very good. There’s a lot of movement and activity in Washington regarding the RFS and I think it’s important to make our voice heard.”

Listen to my interview with them here: Interview with Pat Buckwalter, Dave and Michael Nagler, MN

2018 ACE DC Fly-in Photo Album

ACE, Audio, corn, Ethanol

RFS Waiver for Big Refiner Sparks Backlash

Cindy Zimmerman

A Reuters report about EPA exempting one of the country’s largest oil refiners from complying with the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) touched off a backlash from farm groups and ethanol organizations Tuesday.

The National Farmers Union (NFU) was first to respond to the report that Texas-based Andeavor received small refiner economic hardship waivers for three of its 10 refineries that exempted them from complying with 2016 blending obligations. NFU President Roger Johnson called the alleged actions “deeply disturbing,” noting that waiving RFS requirements for large refining corporations undercuts the effectiveness of the law. “What’s equally disturbing is that these actions have purportedly been taken without any transparency, which violates central tenets of responsible governance,” said Johnson. Andeavor reported a $1.5 billion net profit last year and the waiver was reportedly granted earlier this year.

“Providing a small refiner waiver to a company like Andeavor is laughable and abandons the commitment of President Trump to protect the RFS,” said Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) president and CEO Bob Dinneen. “Suffice it to say we are exploring all our options to return the RFS to what the statute intended and what the President has supported.”

The impact of the waiver removes additional Renewable Identification Numbers (RIN) from the total 2016 obligation, effectively reducing the total Renewable Volume Obligation (RVO) for the year. The agency previously disclosed that it had exempted at least 14 small refiners from the 2016 RFS requirements, and has approved exempting bankrupt Philadelphia Energy Solutions from a majority of its obligations for 2016 and 2017, a settlement expected to be approved in bankruptcy court today.

“Since EPA refuses to disclose which refiners get these RFS exemptions, it blurs the transparency of the RIN market giving an advantage to refiners receiving waivers,” said American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) CEO Brian Jennings. “Waiving RFS obligations based on ethanol use thresholds violate the intent of the RFS and invite litigation.”

The waivers impact both ethanol producers and corn farmers, who are facing their fifth year of prices at or below the cost of production.

“Granting these waivers significantly reduces the number of gallons of fuel blended with ethanol hurting rural economies and the nation’s corn farmers,” said National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) president Kevin Skunes of North Dakota. “When refiners aren’t meeting their blending obligations, corn farmers pay the price.”

Two of the Andeavor refineries receiving the waivers are in North Dakota and one in Utah.

ACE, corn, Ethanol, Ethanol News, NCGA, NFU, RFA, RFS, RINS

Rep. Peterson Visits Chippewa Valley Ethanol

Cindy Zimmerman

Janet Lundebrek (CVEC board member), Chad Friese (CVEC CEO), Rep. Collin Peterson and David Thompson (CVEC board member).

Rep. Collin Peterson (D-MN) visited the Chippewa Valley Ethanol Company (CVEC) plant in Benson, Minnesota last week to reiterate his support for the state’s ethanol industry.

During his visit, which coincided with Ridgewater College’s tour of the plant on March 28, Peterson briefed CVEC on the latest attacks on the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).

“I recently met with Secretary Perdue to emphasize the importance of these programs for rural Minnesota, and will continue to fight changes to the RFS that would undermine its success,” said Rep. Peterson. “A cap on RIN prices would cost Minnesota corn farmers $370 million and hurt a lot of the investments farmers have made in our homegrown biofuels industry.”

Tim Rudnicki, executive director of the Minnesota Bio-Fuels Association, said they are glad to have Rep. Peterson working for ethanol and defending the RFS in Congress. “Thanks to the RFS, in 2017, the ethanol industry contributed $2.1 billion to Minnesota’s economy and supported 18,813 jobs while reducing 715,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions,” he said.

The association recently released a short video to show the importance of the ethanol industry to Minnesota – watch it here:


Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFS

ITC Vote Levels Playing Field in Biodiesel Trade Dispute

Cindy Zimmerman

U.S. biodiesel interests have won the final procedural battle in the case of unfair dumping of biodiesel from Argentina and Indonesia, clearing the way for final antidumping orders to be issued later this month.

The International Trade Commission (ITC) Tuesday voted 4-0 in favor of the National Biodiesel Board (NBB) Fair Trade Coalition’s position that the industry has suffered injury due to unfairly dumped imports of biodiesel from Argentina and Indonesia. “Foreign producers dumping product into American markets below cost has undermined the jobs and environmental benefits that U.S. biodiesel brings to the table,” said NBB CEO Donnell Rehagen. “Establishing a level playing field for true competition in the market will allow the domestic industry the opportunity to put to work substantial under-utilized production capacity.”

Last month, the Commerce Department calculated final dumping rates ranging from 60.44% to 86.41% for Argentine producers, and 92.52% to 276.65% for Indonesian producers. A final determination by the Commerce Department in the companion countervailing duty determination was announced in early November, resulting in duty deposit rates of 71.45% to 72.28% for Argentina and 34.45% to 64.73% for Indonesia.

Biodiesel, Trade

UF Joins New Center to Create Fuel from Plants

Cindy Zimmerman

The University of Florida is one of 17 institutions partnering with the University of Illinois in the Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation (CABBI) to develop efficient ways to grow, transform and market biofuels.

UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences agronomy professor Fredy Altpeter will receive more than $4.2 million for his research during the next five years to develop new strategies for biofuel production from sugarcane.

“Our goal is to genetically enhance sugarcane so that the stems and leaves accumulate large amounts of oil while retaining the plants ability to produce large amounts of biomass,” Altpeter said. His team recently created a prototype of this oil-producing sugarcane in collaboration with the Brookhaven National Laboratory, another CABBI partner.

“This breakthrough demonstrates an enormous potential for producing large amounts of renewable and energy dense drop-in fuels, like biodiesel. Sugarcane is one of the most productive high biomass crops on this planet,” Altpeter said.

Using advanced genome editing technologies, sugarcane could far exceed traditional oil crops like soybeans or canola in terms of oil production per acre, according to scientific models.

Read more

advanced biofuels, Biodiesel, biofuels, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Research, sugarcane

Ethanol Groups See Opportunity in EPA GHG Revision

Cindy Zimmerman

As expected, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced Monday the Revised Final Determination Regarding Model Year 2022-2025 Light-Duty Vehicle GHG Emissions Standards, with the conclusion that “the current standards are not appropriate and should be revised.”

“The Obama Administration’s determination was wrong,” said EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt. “Obama’s EPA cut the Midterm Evaluation process short with politically charged expediency, made assumptions about the standards that didn’t comport with reality, and set the standards too high.”

Ethanol organizations say this opens up an opportunity for the high-octane renewable fuel to play a role in helping automakers reduce GHG emissions as the standards are revised later this year.

“For several years, Growth Energy has strongly emphasized the fact that fuels and engines are a system and that high-octane fuels – such as ethanol blends like E25-E30 – should be part of this discussion,” said Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor. “We have provided a wealth of data to show that mid-level ethanol blends can be used by automakers to produce smaller, more efficient engines that will help meet future vehicle standards.”

EPA notes in the final determination that, “…ethanol producers and agricultural organizations commented in support of high octane blends from clean sources as a way to enable GHG reducing technologies such as higher compression ratio engines. They provided information suggesting that mid-level (e.g., E30) high octane ethanol blends should be considered as part of the Mid-term Evaluation and that EPA should consider requiring that mid-level blends be made available at service stations.”

American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) CEO Brian Jennings says they are encouraged EPA Administrator Pruitt is seeking more information on the potential for high-octane blends.

“Some might argue today’s decision means EPA will eventually relax GHG standards allowing more gasoline use and tailpipe pollution, but not if the new standards pave the way for E25-30 high-octane fuel in future engines,” said Jennings. “Ethanol-enriched, high-octane fuel enables automakers to simultaneously reduce GHG emissions and improve fuel economy. We are confident E25-30 blends will be the most affordable way to thread that needle.”

Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) President and CEO Bob Dinneen adds, “For too long, our light-duty vehicle fuel economy and GHG emission regulations have focused exclusively on the vehicle. We have repeatedly encouraged EPA, NHTSA and the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to also consider the important impact of fuels on fuel economy and emissions…(H)igher octane fuel would unleash and enable a wide pallet of low-cost engine technologies that offer proven fuel efficiency and GHG emission improvements at a low cost for consumers.”

ACE, EPA, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Growth Energy, RFA

China Strikes Back

From almonds to frozen edible swine offal, the majority of the 128 products on which China imposed retaliatory tariffs Monday are agricultural, making farmers bear the brunt of the reaction to U.S. steel and aluminum tariffs.

“This is a tax on American farmers, brought about by protectionist trade policies,” said Farmers for Free Trade (FFT) Co-Chair Max Baucus. “American farmers appear to be the first casualties of an escalating trade war.”

U.S. exports of fruits, nuts, and wine will see a 15% tariff, while U.S. pork products were slapped with a 25% tariff, which is a significant blow to the industry that has China as the third largest value market, with more than $1 billion in U.S. pork being shipped there last year.

China added another 15% tariff on U.S. ethanol imports to an already-imposed 30% duty, making the total tariff 45%. “This one-two protectionist punch will ultimately harm Chinese consumers who are being denied access to the lowest-cost, highest-octane, and cleanest fuel on the planet,” said Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen. “But it will also hurt farmers in the U.S. who have worked to build value-added markets for their commodities here and abroad.”

The good news is that soybeans were not on the list announced Monday, since it could mean an overall drop in U.S. soybean exports of 40 percent, according to a study commissioned by the U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC). FFT has been sharing videos of soybean growers who are concerned about the possible trade disruption that would cause for their number one market, worth $14 billion annually. Watch one here:

AgWired Animal, AgWired Energy, Ethanol, Exports, International, RFA, Soybean, Trade

How EPA is Destroying Demand for Ethanol and Corn

Cindy Zimmerman

Recent actions by EPA have effectively reduced the Renewable Fuel Standard conventional renewable volume obligation (RVO) for 2016 by more than 1 billion gallons, and the agency appears poised to take similar actions to effectively reduce the 2017 and 2018 conventional RVOs by comparable amounts, according to Renewable Fuels Association Executive Vice President Geoff Cooper.

In a blog post last week, Cooper explains how these cuts have resulted in significantly lower prices for Renewable Identification Numbers, reduced corn and ethanol demand, avoided legal obligations for highly profitable businesses, and windfall profits for certain small oil refiners.

“In total, nearly 2.4 billion gallons of ethanol demand and 860 million bushels of corn demand have potentially been lost over the past two compliance years due to EPA’s recent actions,” Cooper says. He details how EPA’s actions to exempt refineries from the 2016 RFS requirements, not enforcing the full 2016 Renewable Volume Obligations (RVO) of 15 billion gallons and excusing Philadelphia Energy Solutions from its 2016 and 2017 RFS obligations results in the 2016 RFS requirement being lowered from 15 billion gallons to just 13.82 billion, an 8% reduction.

Click to read the analysis.

Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA, RFS

Show Me Ethanol Celebrating 10 Years

Cindy Zimmerman

Show Me Ethanol (SME), a dry-mill ethanol production facility located in Carrollton, Missouri is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. The plant broke ground in March 2007 and began commercial production in May 2008. Today, the facility produces more than 60 million gallons of ethanol and 160,000 tons of distiller grains animal feed per year. SME marked the occasion in a ceremony last week at the plant.

“It’s been an amazing decade here at Show Me Ethanol,” said General Manager Richard Hanson. “We have accomplished so much, producing above our initial capacity and helping to grow ethanol co-products like DDGS and distillers corn oil. We are pleased to reach this anniversary and look forward to continuing to contribute to our economy, energy security, and environment.”

Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen congratulated the RFA member plant on the milestone. “True to its name, Show Me Ethanol has led by example and proven the many benefits of renewable fuels to the Carrollton community, the state of Missouri, and our nation,” said Dinneen.

SME is operated by 40 employees, has more than 460 investors, and uses more than 20 million bushels of Missouri corn every year. In 2012, the company also began producing distillers corn oil, which is sold into the animal feed and biodiesel markets.

Ethanol, Ethanol News, Facilities, RFA

Siouxland Ethanol Educates Tomorrow’s Drivers

Cindy Zimmerman

Pam Miller (back row center) visits 5th Grade class at Harney Elementary School

Pam Miller, Board Chair and Director of Industry and Investor Relations for Siouxland Ethanol in Nebraska, recently visited a local fifth-grade classroom to educate the next generation of drivers about ethanol.

Using the Renewable Fuels Association’s “Ethanol in the Classroom” curriculum as a guide, Miller says the students at Harney Elementary in South Sioux City Community Schools sat with rapt attention as she outlined how ethanol is produced, its environmental and economic impacts, and the overall use of the renewable fuel.

“The ethanol curriculum is an incredibly useful tool,” Miller wrote in a blog post for RFA. “It’s broken down into three levels: Grades 3-5, Grades 6-8, and Grades 9-12. After selecting the appropriate level, students choose a vehicle that runs on ethanol to navigate through the program. These students loved selecting the vehicles (the choices are a sports car, a motorcycle, a small car, or a pick up truck), and tracking the progress along the way. At the end of each stop, they completed activities to test how much they learned and then earned badges.”

Two weeks after her classroom visit, Miller returned the favor by hosting the students for a tour at Siouxland Ethanol. “I was surprised at how much the students remembered, including that ethanol is made primarily from corn and that the fuel is transported via railcars to the West Coast,” said Miller. “It won’t be long before these fifth graders are driving and I want to make sure they understand the numerous economic, environmental and energy security-related benefits of this fuel made in their own community.”

Read more.

Education, Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA