New Analysis Shows RIN Prices Could Fall

Cindy Zimmerman

A new analysis from the University of Illinois shows conditions that caused high conventional biofuel (D6) RIN prices are changing rapidly and that “…it is not out of the realm of possibility for D6 RINs prices to fall back their pre-2013 level of just a few cents without making any changes to the RFS.”

According to a release from the Renewable Fuels Association, The authors argue that high D6 RIN prices have been driven by the “gap” that exists between domestic ethanol consumption (estimated at 14.5 billion gallons in 2017) and the 15-billion-gallon statutory requirement for conventional renewable fuels. The size of that “gap” continues to shrink rapidly as E10, E15, and E85 blending has expanded. Thus, as that expansion continues at a rapid pace, the “gap” will be fully closed and RIN prices will fall dramatically. As the Renewable Fuels Association has pointed out, this is exactly how the RFS was intended to work. Establishing RVP parity for E15 would certainly help accelerate the closing of that gap.

The price of RINS was a major topic of discussion at RFA’s National Ethanol Conference last week. RFA Senior Vice President Geoff Cooper moderated a panel “For your RINformation” with experts on the topic Sandra Dunphy, Weaver (aka Rinderella); Dr. Gabriel Lade, Iowa State University; and Dr. James Stock, Harvard University, who recently wrote a paper showing that RVP parity for E15 would lower RINS prices.

Learn more in this interview with Cooper –
Interview with Geoff Cooper, RFA Senior Vice President

Listen to the RINS panel at NEC –
Panel Discussion on RINS Market

2018 National Ethanol Conference Photo Album

Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, National Ethanol Conference, RFA, RFS, RINS

New Biodiesel Foundation Scholarship Honors Calabotta

Cindy Zimmerman

The National Biodiesel Foundation‘s new Beth Calabotta Sustainability Education Grant offers up to $2,000 to full-time students who are interested in science, research and biodiesel sustainability. Calabotta was director of Monsanto’s Bioenergy Development Program, and served on the biodiesel foundation board from 2007-2015. She passed away last March.

“Beth was an advocate for student development and a supporter of biofuel sustainability. She had an unquenchable love for agriculture and life-sciences” said Tom Verry, Executive Director for the National Biodiesel Foundation. “The National Biodiesel Foundation is honored to provide financial support to students following Beth’s passion to support advanced biofuels.”

To qualify, students must complete an application and if awarded the grant, commit to participate in the Biodiesel Sustainability Workshop and related activities, scheduled for September 26-27 in St. Louis, Missouri. Grant funds may be used for participation with the remaining funds applied toward academic expenses. Other eligibility requirements and full criteria are available on the grant homepage. Applications are due March 31, 2018. The grant winner will be announced April 30.

Biodiesel, NBB

Biodiesel Love in the Air at Iowa’s Capitol

Cindy Zimmerman

Members and supporters of the Iowa Biodiesel Board wore “I heart biodiesel” pins as they met with state legislators and Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds on Wednesday for the annual Biodiesel Day on the Hill. The group tied the message of how much biodiesel gives back to Iowa to the Valentine’s Day date of their visit.

“We love that Iowa is the top biodiesel-producing state, and we’re grateful that the feeling seems to be mutual,” said Grant Kimberley, Iowa Biodiesel Board executive director. “Our proactive state biodiesel policies have driven increased production and consumption in Iowa, benefiting our economy—which means jobs for Iowans and enhanced success for farmers.”

The group is asking legislators and the governor to protect state tax incentives that encourage biodiesel production and sales during tight budget times. They also hope to see continued fully funding of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Infrastructure Program. More than 500 retail stations and terminals have begun to carry biodiesel since the program began. In 2017, Iowa’s biodiesel plants produced an estimated 285 million gallons of biodiesel, generating about 3,000 full-time equivalent jobs and $278 million in household income, according to a study by ABF Economics.

Biodiesel

American Ethanol Driver Wins Daytona 500

History was made Sunday when the grandson of NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee Richard Childress drove Dale Earnhardt Sr.’s famous No. 3 Chevrolet across the finish line of the Daytona 500, 20 years after Earnhardt won the same race. American Ethanol driver and spokesperson Austin Dillon took the legendary No. 3 Dow/American Ethanol/AAA Chevrolet SS to victory in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series at the Daytona International Speedway.

“It was so awesome to take the 3 car back to victory lane,” Dillon said. “This is for Dale Earnhardt Sr. and all those Senior fans.” Childress, celebrating with his grandson in Victory Lane, called it a “storybook tale.”

“This is an amazing accomplishment and a monumental victory for the No. 3 team,” said Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor. “The Daytona 500 is so rich with history, and Richard Childress Racing taking home the checkered flag – in this race – in the iconic No. 3 car is truly a momentous occasion in the sport of NASCAR. Austin Dillon and the entire RCR organization have been phenomenal partners, and they are instrumental in telling the wonderful story of American Ethanol to race fans and drivers across the country and around the world.”

NASCAR race cars are all powered by Sunoco Green E15, made with 15 percent American ethanol.

AgWired Energy, Ethanol, Growth Energy, NASCAR

Ethanol Report from #RFANEC18

Cindy Zimmerman

The Renewable Fuels Association 23rd National Ethanol Conference with the theme “Ethanol Strong” was held February 12-14 in San Antonio, Texas. The event featured the annual “State of the Industry” address by RFA president and CEO Bob Dinneen, as well as panels and speakers on a number of important topics, from electric vehicles to RINs to the expanding export market.

In this edition of the Ethanol Report, we hear from Dinneen, RFA Chairman Mick Henderson, Industry award winner Ron Alverson, RFA’s Robert White and Geoff Cooper, and USDA-FAS acting associate administrator Daniel Whitely.

Listen to it here: Ethanol Report from #RFANEC18

Links to additional RFANEC resources:
National Ethanol Conference home page
2018 National Ethanol Conference Virtual Newsroom
2018 National Ethanol Conference Photo Album
RFA CEO Bob Dinneen State of the Industry address

Subscribe to the podcast via RSS
Subscribe via iTunes

Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Ethanol Report, National Ethanol Conference, RFA

DOE Studies Show Benefits of High Octane Ethanol

Cindy Zimmerman

Two studies released by the Department of Energy the day after this week’s National Ethanol Conference find that ethanol-based high octane fuels can deliver substantial fuel economy improvements and emissions reductions when paired with optimized internal combustion engines

Among the findings, according to the Renewable Fuels Association are that alcohol fuels, including ethanol, offer many desirable properties that will help achieve the goals of greater fuel economy and lower emissions. “Alcohols generally impart high Research Octane Number (RON), octane sensitivity, and heat of vaporization when blended into representative gasoline blendstocks,” the study found.

“We strongly encourage the Environmental Protection Agency to take note of this research as it completes the Final Determination of the Midterm Review for the 2022-2025 fuel economy and GHG standards,” said RFA President and CEO Bob Dinneen. “Pairing advanced internal combustion engine technologies with high-octane, low-carbon fuels like E25 or E30 would be the lowest cost means of complying with increasingly stringent GHG and fuel economy requirements through 2025 and beyond.”

Tom Kloza, Global Head of Energy Analysis for the Oil Price Information Service (OPIS), spoke at NEC18 about the future outlook for high-octane liquid transportation fuels, especially ethanol, despite growing consumer interest in electric vehicles. Listen to his remarks here: Remarks from Tom Kloza, OPIS

2018 National Ethanol Conference Photo Album

Audio, Energy, Ethanol, Ethanol News, National Ethanol Conference, RFA

#NEC18 Scholarship Winner is Ethanol Strong

Cindy Zimmerman

RFA chair Mick Henderson with scholarship winner Chris Wense

A former steel mill worker pursuing a degree while working full-time in the U.S. ethanol industry is this year’s student scholarship attendee at the Renewable Fuels Association 23rd National Ethanol Conference this week.

Christopher Wense is a full time Ethanol Plant Operations Technician at the National Corn-to-Ethanol Research Center (NCERC) at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and is working toward a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Management and Applied Engineering at SIU in Carbondale, Ill.

Just last month, Wense told his story in a St. Louis Post-Dispatch op-ed, then he was encouraged to apply for the scholarship and received it. In this interview, he talks about the great opportunity that the ethanol industry offers for him. Interview with Chris Wense, NEC scholarship winner

2018 National Ethanol Conference Photo Album

Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, National Ethanol Conference

Global Panel Wraps Up #RFANEC18

Cindy Zimmerman

UNICA’s Elizabeth Farina with RFA’s Bob Dinneen

The National Ethanol Conference concluded this week with the always popular panel of international industry organization leaders.

Bliss Baker with the Global Renewable Fuels Alliance moderated the discussion which included Emmanuel Desplechin, ePURE; Jim Grey, Renewable Industries Canada; Elizabeth Farina, Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association (UNICA); and Bob Dinneen, Renewable Fuels Association.

As always, Dinneen used the panel to publicly address any issues the global leaders may be having, which this year focused on Brazil’s imposition of a U.S. ethanol import tariff last year. Farina read an statement on “what we call a temporary solution to a temporary problem” and Dinneen responded by “attempting to be Canadian-nice about it.”

Listen to the panel here, with the Brazil-US exchange starting about 9:35: NEC18 Global Industry Leaders Panel

2018 National Ethanol Conference Photo Album

Audio, Brazil, Ethanol, Ethanol News, International, National Ethanol Conference, RFA

More Biofuels Vital to Improving U.S. Energy Outlook

Jamie Johansen

Federal forecasts in the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) newly released Annual Energy Outlook 2018 (AEO2018) demonstrate a clear and growing need for U.S. biofuels says Chris Bliley, vice president of regulatory affairs at Growth Energy.

The EIA “reference” case, which contains projections through 2050 based on current trends and regulations, predicts an 18 percent increase in miles traveled by U.S. motorists in traditional light-duty vehicles. That’s an increase from 2.8 trillion miles in 2017 to 3.3 trillion miles in 2050. EIA also reports that, “Retail prices of motor gasoline and diesel fuel are projected to increase from 2018 to 2050 in the reference case, largely because of expected increases in crude oil prices.”

“Blending more homegrown, cost-efficient biofuels into the fuel supply is the ready-made solution to lowering prices at the pump while also dramatically reducing emissions,” Bliley said.

“We don’t need federal data to remind us that gasoline prices never stay low forever. Homegrown fuels like ethanol are already saving the average American household $142, according to the American Journal of Agricultural Economics, and those savings will only grow as the demand for transportation rises in the decades to come.

“Federal experts agree that ethanol slashes emissions by 43 percent over the full energy life-cycle – from farm to engine – but that the level of carbon savings is rising with each passing year thanks to innovations in biofuel production and precision agriculture. We must reduce emissions in the transportation sector, and that means deploying higher ethanol blends like E15 and E85 as well as mid-level ethanol blends like E30 alongside advanced and cellulosic biofuels. A strong Renewable Fuel Standard is vital to that effort, and we urge the Environmental Protection Agency to reject calls from a few fossil fuel advocates who want to hold back the rapid growth of ethanol production in rural America.”

biofuels, Energy, Growth Energy

RFA Honors Farmer Ron Alverson with 2018 Industry Award

During the 23rd Annual National Ethanol Conference (NEC), farmer and ethanol plant founder Ron Alverson was presented the Renewable Fuels Association’s (RFA) 2018 Industry Award. The award is given annually to individuals that demonstrate great dedication and innovation within the industry.

For more than 40 years, Alverson has grown corn and soybeans near Chester, S.D. He is a founding member and past president of the South Dakota Corn Growers Association, helped establish the corn checkoff program to create new markets and uses for corn and helped pass South Dakota’s first ethanol productive incentive. Alverson founded Dakota Ethanol LLC, which operates a 48 million gallon per year ethanol plant in Wentworth, S.D., and is a past chairman of the American Coalition for Ethanol.

“Ron has done more than anyone to help decisionmakers understand carbon sinks and made it his life’s mission to educate and inform anyone willing to listen on the astounding gains in efficiency that farmers have experienced in recent decades, including yield increases, improvements in tillage practices, and reduced fertilizer use,” said RFA President and CEO Bob Dinneen. “While some have dismissed the environmental and economic impact of carbon, Ron realizes accurate carbon accounting will be the key to future success for both farmers and ethanol. His vision is why this recognition is so deserving.”

Listen to Cindy’s interview with Ron here: Interview with Ron Alverson

Listen to complete award presentation here: Remarks from Bob Dinneen & Ron Alverson

Download and/or view photos from the event here: 2018 National Ethanol Conference Photo Album

Ag group, AgWired Energy, Audio, Ethanol, National Ethanol Conference, Renewable Fuels Association, RFA