Minnesota Biofuels Promotes E15 to Drivers

Cindy Zimmerman

mn-bio-e15The Minnesota Bio-Fuels Association (MBA) spent an hour Tuesday at a retail station in St. Paul rewarding drivers who fueled up with E15.

The association joined with a local radio station at St Paul’s Tobasi Stop Minnoco to educate drivers and present those who switched to E15 with prizes such as $25 in cash, passes to the Minnesota Zoo and Wild Mountain. The retail station is one of the newest in the Twin Cities to offer E15. There are currently 17 stations in the metro that offer E15.

MBA executive director Tim Rudnicki says the event is the third time MBA has partnered with KS95 FM to educate and increase awareness of the benefits of using E15. “This is the third consecutive month where we have gone to a station with KS95 to directly engage with drivers and educate them on the benefits of using E15. Drivers are interested in using a fuel that has a high octane, is cheaper than regular unleaded gas, better for the environment and beneficial to Minnesota’s economy,” said Rudnicki.

In 2015, a record 3.09 million gallons of E15 was sold in Minnesota, nearly 12 times the amount sold in 2014. The volume recorded in December last was 527,574 gallons, a new monthly record and represented the second straight month in 2015 when E15 monthly sales breached 500,000 gallons.

E15, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Promotion

Tom Buis Delivers the “CEO Report”

Joanna Schroeder

Growth Energy Co-Chair Tom Buis delivered his “CEO Report” yesterday during the Leadership Conference in Orlando, Florida. During his remarks, Buis said, “Last year was an interesting year, we increased exports, had another great corn crop and defeated every single attempt to repeal or reform the RFS.”

The Growth Energy team.

The Growth Energy team.

Buis segued into how the ethanol industry stepped up to the plate to help change the flight of the ball on the renewable volume obligations (RVO’s), or how much biofuels are required to be blended into the nation’s fuel supply. He noted that while the rules remain flawed, it was better than the proposed rules and “the blend wall was finally cracked this year”. In addition he outlined how supporting the Renewable Fuel Standard (#RFS) along with expanding market access to E15 will continue to be top priorities for 2016.

“We need to grab the bull by the horns and discuss all the good work that this industry does, including the environmental benefits, reducing our dependence on foreign oil and all the good jobs we create across the nation, while helping bring choice to American consumers,” continued Buis. Who added in regards to their successes in working directly with retailers to bring E15 to the market, “Our work showed that we were not going to let others define us, we must share our story on how we are tomorrow’s fuel,” noting that “fossil fuels will go the way of the steamboat, horse and buggy and the blimp. Anytime we are compared to the oil industry, we win.”

Buis concluded his remarks by stressing, “I think as an industry, there is no industry that is better. With our knowledge, passion and engagement, we’re going to win this fight, but it’s going to take effort. Effort equals results. We will not sit back, we will roll up our sleeves and we will win.”

Listen to Chuck’s interview with Tom Buis following his CEO Report: Interview with Tom Buis, Growth Energy co-chair

Audio, biofuels, E15, Ethanol, Growth Energy

Auto Industry Veteran Joins RFA

Cindy Zimmerman

A veteran auto industry specialist has joined the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) as the organization’s new Technical Director.

rfa-kingTracey King, who spent 17 years as a technical specialist with Chrysler, will serve as the RFA’s top liaison to the automakers and will focus on forging the path to future high octane fuels and optimized spark ignition engines.

Previously, King worked in research and development at both Nissan and General Motors and most recently she was with Haltermann Solutions, a manufacturer of test and reference fuels. She also has extensive experience with ASTM and other standards developing organizations.

“Tracey brings an unrivaled wealth of knowledge and experience to the RFA,” said Bob Dinneen, RFA President and CEO. “Tracey’s background in the automotive industry and experience in developing certification fuels position her well to help chart the course toward an ethanol-based high octane fuel that will improve engine efficiency and reduce emissions.”

King will be based in Detroit and will be part of RFA’s research and technical team. “I am excited to join the RFA staff and look forward to working closely with the membership, automakers, regulators, and other stakeholders to help define the future for ethanol and optimized engines,” King said. “RFA has always been viewed as an effective science-based advocate for ethanol, and I am eager to contribute to the advancement of the organization’s technical objectives.”

Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA

BioFuelNet Heads to School

Joanna Schroeder

Infographics67BioFuelNet is heading back to school to get young men and women excited about biofuels. The organization is partnering with Talk Energy Week to participate in panel discussions at schools in eight Canadian cities. The discussions, targeted at grades 11 and 12 and reaching more than 1800 students, will include information on how to develop sustainable advanced biofuels. Each participating class will be sent a series of educational infographics illustrating various types of biofuels, where they come from and how they are made.

“As our use of fossil fuels is one of the major contributors to climate change, rethinking the energy sector will be a crucial undertaking for the next generation of decision-makers – many of which are currently in high school and beginning to learn about alternative energy solutions,” said Dr. Donald L. Smith, CEO & Scientific Director of BioFuelNet.

In addition, BioFuelNet has released an animated short film highlighting how Canadian scientists and students are working together through BioFuelNet to solve global environmental issues.

advanced biofuels, Biodiesel, Education, Ethanol, Video

BioEnergy Bytes

Joanna Schroeder

  • BioEnergyBytesDF1A new paper from CAST looks at how to prevent invasive species from taking over marginal lands converted to grow crops for bioenergy. The paper shows that the risk of invasion can most effectively be prevented through a life-cycle approach that adopts appropriate scientific and policy tools at each step in the production process: from crop selection to field production, during feedstock transport and storage, and during decommissioning.
  • Clariant, in cooperation with Werner & Mertz, the producer of Frosch® cleaning products in Germany, has launched a project which extends the application of bio-ethanol based on agricultural residues such as straw to cleaning agents. Since the beginning of the year Werner & Mertz is using sunliquid cellulosic ethanol for its Frosch Bio-Spirit Multisurface-Cleaner.
  • Duckweed USA is investing $4 million in a biodiesel facility that will produce fuel from duckweed grown at the wastewater treatment plant in Sparta, Georgia. Equipment is set to arrive on site in the next 45 days with production to begin this summer.
  • A joint venture project between Chempolis Ltd and Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL) has received approval from NRL’s board.  The parties will jointly build a biorefinery using Chempolis formicobio technology in North East India (Assam) for producing bioethanol from bamboo with co-production of furfural and acetic acid from locally available bamboo.
Bioenergy Bytes

Growth Energy Holds 7th Leadership Conference

Cindy Zimmerman

growth-throttleEthanol industry organization Growth Energy is holding its seventh annual Executive Leadership Conference in Orlando this week.

After a weekend at the Daytona 500 to highlight American Ethanol, the meeting kicked off Monday morning with the Chairman’s Report from Jeff Broin, co-chair of Growth Energy’s Board of Directors. Broin noted that the industry had a record year producing a product that represents a growing share of the gasoline market.

growth-broin1“This is a long-term game, and we will not give up,” said Broin. “Our industry is poised to succeed, because we are doing the right thing for our nation and generations to come. We will continue to go full throttle to produce a biofuel that reduces toxic air emissions while improving performance for future vehicles.”

The growth of E15 in the marketplace was a big focus of the meeting on Monday, after revving up with the NASCAR Daytona weekend. “We’ve seen tremendous increases in consumer acceptance among NASCAR fans … Once they see that it’s a higher performance fuel, a higher octane fuel, people use it,” said Broin during an interview at the meeting. “NASCAR’s been very successful at showing ethanol is a great fuel.”

The American Ethanol partnership between NASCAR, Growth Energy, New Holland, and the National Corn Growers Association is now in its sixth year and will hit the 10 million mile mark this year running on running on 15% ethanol blended Sunoco Green E15.

Listen to Broin’s interview here: Interview with Jeff Broin, Growth Energy co-chair

American Ethanol, Audio, E15, Ethanol, Growth Energy

DOC Partners With NEC to Increase Ethanol Exports

Joanna Schroeder

Despite low crude oil prices, 2015 was still a robust export year for the ethanol industry according to Kenneth Hyatt, deputy under secretary for International Trade with the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC). The DOC partnered with the Renewable Fuels Association, the host of the 21st Annual National Ethanol Conference (#RFANEC) where delegates from several countries were on hand to discuss export opportunities.

nec16-hyattHyatt said his organization has four key areas of focus in which they can assist the ethanol industry: promotion of U.S. exports; aid in opening global markets; assist investors in increasing direct foreign investment; and enforce U.S. trade laws and international trade agreements. However, the focus of his presentation was on exports.

“I would think about us as doing anything that would help you figure out whether to export, figure out to where to export. If you want to find a buyer in one of those countries, to help find a buyer in those countries. If it’s to help find a distributor in a country, we help find that distributor. It can also be if you have a problem in a country,” remarked Hyatt.

Hyatt also gave an overview on the top destinations of the export markets (Canada, Brazil and Phillipines), and also discussed the updates on the horizon of its Renewable Fuels Top Markets Report 2016. It covers both ethanol and biomass woodpellets and includes case studies, contact information and ranks them on strength of prospects.

Listen to Kenneth Hyatt’s presentation here: Kenneth Hyatt's Presentation

Kenneth Hyatt’s PowerPoint presentation

2016 National Ethanol Conference Photo Album

Audio, biofuels, biomass, Ethanol, Exports, National Ethanol Conference, RFA

BioEnergy Bytes

Joanna Schroeder

  • BioEnergyBytesDF1Alliance BioEnergy Plus, Inc. has announced its CTS pilot plant located at the Company’s subsidiary Ek Laboratories, is now running the complete conversion process from raw feedstock through fermentation of cellulosic sugars. This full conversion process also includes the separation of the valuable pure lignin and the recycling of catalyst and unreacted cellulose back to the front of the process.
  • Amyris, Inc. has announced that it closed a $20 million private placement of unsecured promissory notes to existing investors. In connection with this financing, the company also issued warrants for 2.9 million shares of common stock. The private placement was led by a long-term investor affiliated with one of Amyris’s board members, John Doerr, of the venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, and included participation by Biolding Investment S.A. and Naxyris S.A., which are also associated with members of the company’s board of directors.
  • The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is encouraging Pennsylvanian business and community leaders to be better caretakers of the environment by offering incentives for the purchase and use of alternative fuels and alternative fuel vehicles. DEP’s Alternative Fuels Incentive Grant (AFIG) Program offers funding for innovative, advanced fuel and vehicle technology projects for cleaner alternative transportation within the commonwealth.
Bioenergy Bytes

#Ethanol Export Trends from #RFANEC

Cindy Zimmerman

nec16-hubbardExpansion of ethanol exports is critical to allow U.S. industry to grow in face of domestic infrastructure challenges, which is why exports were such a big focus at the 21st National Ethanol Conference last week.

“We are firmly committed to help grow and expand export markets for our members and for the industry,” said Renewable Fuels Association General Counsel Ed Hubbard, who moderated two panels at the NEC discussing export trends and opportunities. RFA was selected to partner with the Department of Commerce’s International Buyer Program at the conference which focused on five main target markets – Brazil, China, Philippines, India, Mexico. “The markets were part of the top markets report prepared by the Department of Commerce, which was the result of careful analysis on export markets to look at where the opportunities for our industry lie,” Hubbard added.

nec16-exports-panelThe first panel on exports featured Ricardo Dornelles with the Ministry of Mines and Energy of Brazil; Stephan Zepeda of Grupo Báltico in Mexico; and Amit Sachdev, Consultant in South Asia, U.S. Grains Council.

Links to presentations from each are found below:
Ricardo Dornelles presentation
Stephen Zepeda presentation
Amit Sachdev presentation

Listen to the panel here: Ethanol Exports Panel 1

The second panel on exports featured Max Thomasson, CHS Inc. Director for Global Trading; U.S. Grains Council Chief Economist Mike Dwyer; Eco-Energy International Director Alexandre Zebulun Ades; and Scott Richman, Senior Vice President at Informa Economics.

Listen to that panel here and presentations via links below: Listen to the panel here: Ethanol Exports Panel 2

Scott Richman presentation
Alexandre Ades presentation

2016 National Ethanol Conference Photo Album

Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Exports, National Ethanol Conference, RFA

Growth Energy Holds Executive Leadership Conference

Chuck Zimmerman

Growth EnergyGrowth Energy is holding its annual Executive Leadership Conference this week in Orlando, FL. Most of the members got the opportunity to attend the Daytona 500 race this past weekend. Now it’s time for business.

The emcee for the event is Kim Coon, former Miss Sprint Cup and announcer for Motor Racing Network. On the stage this morning will be Jeff Broin, Chairman for Growth Energy and Tom Buis, CEO. Keynote speakers include Chuck Todd, MSNBC and Brent Dewar, NASCAR. There are several panel discussions and a membership forum before the conference concludes on Tuesday.

I will be speaking with Jeff Broin and Tom Buis to get their outlook on the industry and for the future of Growth Energy. More to come.

Ethanol, Growth Energy