Clean Cities Coalitions Promoting Propane Autogas

Joanna Schroeder April 8, 2016

Clean Cities Coalitions around the U.S. have been promoting the use of propane autogas to lower tailpipe emissions. Just around the corner, the Alliance AutoGas converted F-150 will set out on its 5,500 mile 12-city “Alliance AutoGas Coast-to-Coast Clean Air Ride”. The tour kicks off in Kansas City on May 2, 2016 and will be hauling a propane autogas 2013 Exmark Lazer Z Ultra Cut 60 mower. powered by a 25.5 horsepower Kawasaki FX801 V-Twin gasoline engine, converted to propane by Alliance Small Engines.

The F-150 conversion to propane autogas recently broke a conversion record. The Alliance AutoGas Engineered Fuel System features a single plug wiring connector and a 21-gallon underbody autogas tank. The wiring is “plug and play,” and everything is bracketed and designed to be installed without any drilling or fabrication. By deploying these features, Alliance Autogas reports labor times and conversion costs are significantly reduced.

Once leaving Kansas City, the tour will travel to Seattle, WA, and complete its journey in Jacksonville, FL, on May 18, 2016. There will be an additional “homecoming” event scheduled on May 23 in Asheville, NC. Several Clean Cities Coalitions are planning events and activities during the refueling stops of the trip. The goal of the F-150’s trip, according to Alliance Autogas, is to underscore the importance and impact of reducing CO2 emissions through the use of propane autogas.

“We want people to see first-hand, how simple and easy it is to convert a vehicle, how well it runs, and a how it gives the fleet manager a well-documented return,” noted Ed Hoffman, president of Blossman Services, Inc., a propane gas dealer.

Stuart Weidie, president and CEO or Blossman Gas and president of Alliance AutoGas added, “The cross country trip in Alliance Autogas’ Ford F150 will be a great opportunity to demonstrate why propane Autogas is the world’s #1 alternative fuel. We hope to educate citizens across the country about the extended range of autogas vehicles as well as the benefits of real costs savings and emissions reductions.”

Fleet, Propane

EU/Argentina Biodiesel Anti-Dumping Case Resolved

Joanna Schroeder April 7, 2016

There has been a resolution in the European Union’s (EU) Anti-Dumping Measures on Biodiesel from Argentina. A World Trade Organization dispute panel has ruled in favor of Argentina on several of its complaints against the EU. Back in 2013, EU sanctioned anti-dumping duties on imports from biodiesel from Argentina, which served to all but shut down biodiesel trade. The charge against Argentina was that the country was selling the biodiesel at prices below the cost of production.

Argentina countered that EU’s actions were protectionist, and EU countered back that domestic tax breaks allowed Argentina producers to sell their biodiesel at below market value putting European biodiesel producers at an unfair disadvantage. The panel sided with Argentina citing that the EU acted inconsistently with the Anti-Dumping Agreement by failing to calculate the cost of production of biodiesel on the basis of the records kept by the producers under investigation. In other words, how much it cost each individual Argentine biodiesel producer to produce the biodiesel.

The panel also upheld Argentina’s claim that the EU imposed anti‑dumping duties in excess of the margin of dumping that should have been established. However, other claims made by Argentina were dismissed and ruled in favor of the EU including the profit margin analysis used by the EU. The panel ruled, “The profit margin used by EU authorities was the result of a reasoned analysis that was rationally directed at approximating what the Argentine producers’ profit margin for the like product would have been if the like product had been sold in the ordinary course of trade in the domestic market of the exporting country.”

“NBB has for years maintained that Argentina’s distorted biodiesel market and export tax schemes lead to high volumes of below-market biodiesel imports from Argentina, including to the United States,” said Anne Steckel, VP of federal affairs for the National Biodiesel Board (NBB). The WTO has largely affirmed the EU’s determination that such market distortion resulted in dumped and injurious imports from Argentina. NBB remains concerned about the impact of Argentinian imports in the US and will continue to assess options for addressing these imports.”

Biodiesel, International

E15 Fuels More Than 150 Million Miles

Joanna Schroeder April 7, 2016

According to Growth Energy, a major E15 milestone has been reached – drivers have driven more than 150 million miles using E15. The data came from gasoline retailers who work with Growth Energy who also said there have been no negative effects. Several retailers who offer E15 include Sheetz, Kum & Go, MAPCO, Minnoco, Murphy USA and Protec.

“I have been using E15 for the last three years at Minnoco and have noticed no mileage loss, better engine performance and great savings at the pump,” said Mark Foudray, an E15 consumer from Shakopee, Minnesota.

Steve Anderson, an AAA approved and ASE certified service consultant and owner/operator of Marshall Cretin Minnoco from St. Paul, Minnesota, said of E15, “We have a loyal following for the E15 product. Approaching 1,000,000 gallons pumped we have nothing but positive results. E15 has higher octane and burns cleaner —the interior of the engines are cleaner and the tailpipe makes more air, and less pollution. E15 has been widely tested and is safe for all vehicles model year 2001 and newer. We see over 50 percent of our customers purchasing E15 on a daily basis. The statistics don’t lie. It is a great product and we are pleased to offer it as a choice to our fueling customers.”

Joel Hennen, a third generation owner/operator of Hennen’s Auto Service from Shakopee, Minnesota who also sells E15 said, “I have been selling E15 to our customers since the fall of 2013. Since I introduced it, there has not been one complaint due to mileage loss or engine performance. I hear only positive comments with drivability and the lower cost at the pump. Today’s cars are designed to utilize the higher octane to improve performance through different computer management systems. I see higher-level blends of ethanol, like E15, being the next fuel of future.”

biofuels, E15, Ethanol, Growth Energy

IRFA Testifies at Senate Ag Subcommittee Hearing

Joanna Schroeder April 7, 2016

Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) Executive Director Monte Shaw recently testified before the Senate Agriculture Subcommittee on Rural Development and Energy. The hearing focused on USDA Rural Development Programs and their economic impact across the country. Shaw said during his testimony that properly supporting renewable fuels programs are vital to the well-being of rural America.

“I think it can be fairly stated that no other effort to improve rural economies made the impact that renewable fuels did,” Shaw testified. “Then, in late 2013, the Obama Administration proposed Renewable Fuel Standard levels far below statutory levels. The economic fallout was predictable and painful. The last two years have seen a dramatic downturn in the health of rural America. Corn prices plummeted, land values fell, farm income plunged, and agribusinesses laid off workers by the thousands.”

Shaw highlighted several Energy Title programs under the Farm Bill, including the Bioenergy Program for Advanced Biofuels, the Renewable Energy for America Program and others, that have provided strong returns on investment. “However, the effectiveness of these programs is reduced by a lack of consistent and timely funding.”

Shaw also asked the Senate leaders to support other programs outside the Farm Bill that can boost rural economies. “The Renewable Fuel Standard, the USDA’s Biofuels Infrastructure Partnership, and equalizing vapor pressure treatment for E10 and E15 are all additional programs you can support that are vital to the well-being of rural America.”

biofuels, Iowa RFA, RFS, USDA

Air Canada Joins Biojet Initiative

Joanna Schroeder April 7, 2016

Air Canada is joining in Canada’s Biojet Supply Chain Initiative (CBSCI), a three year project with multiple partners to assimilate 400,000 litres of sustainable aviation into the shared fuel system. This is not the first entree of Air Canada in terms of biojet fuel. The airline has flown several biojet flights but the aviation fuel was segregated and loaded separately into an aircraft via tanker truck. However the CBSCI initiative will build a framework that will allow the biojet fuel to be blended into aviation fuel used at the airport.

“We are pleased to support this important initiative by facilitating the logistics involved in the introduction of biojet to an airport’s shared fuel system,” said Teresa Ehman, Director – Environmental Affairs at Air Canada. “In doing our part towards responsible growth and environmental sustainability, Air Canada has invested billions of dollars in fleet renewal to reduce our fuel consumption and meet our current emission reduction goals.”

Ehman added, “Biojet holds the potential to be an important part of our strategy for achieving our longer-term industry goals of carbon neutral growth from 2020 and a 50 per cent reduction in emissions by 2050, relative to 2005 levels. The CBSCI project will contribute significantly to advancing a biojet supply chain in this country.”

The CBSCI project, the first of its kind in Canada, is aimed at creating a sustainable Canadian supply chain of biojet using renewable feedstocks. Canada has abundant agricultural and forestry biomass resources, with globally recognized sustainable production and harvesting practices. The biojet fuel used in this project will be sourced from commercially available, certifiably sustainable Canadian oleochemical feedstocks using the Hydroprocessed Esters and a Fatty Acids (HEFA) conversion process. The biojet fuel will be blended with petroleum jet fuel to meet all technical quality specifications before being introduced into a shared fuel tank at a Canadian airport, yet to be determined. The CBSCI project will also identify and help solve supply logistic barriers that arise when aviation biofuels are introduced at major Canadian airports.

aviation biofuels, biojet fuel, biomass

EIA Hosting Ethanol & Biodiesel Rail Webinar

Joanna Schroeder April 6, 2016

In conjunction with the release of the first monthly report that tracks ethanol and biodiesel movement via rail, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) is hosting a webinar, “Learn about ethanol and biodiesel movements by rail added to EIA’s Petroleum Supply Monthly report,” on April 7, 2016 from 11:00 am to 12:00 pm EDT.

The webinar will review data for January 2016 included in the March Petroleum Supply Monthly as well as will discuss the historical data on monthly rail movements of ethanol and biodiesel back to January 2014.

The webinar is presented by Mindi Farber-DeAnda, Supervisor of EIA’s Biofuels & Emerging Technologies Team; and Arup Mallik, Member of EIA’s Biofuels & Emerging Technologies Team. Click here to register.

Biodiesel, biofuels, Education, Ethanol

Push Poll Push Back

Joanna Schroeder April 6, 2016

The American Petroleum Institute has unveiled yet another anti-biofuel poll. The latest released during a media call today was conducted by Harris Poll. According to the poll, 77 percent of registered voters are concerned that breaching the so-called ethanol blend wall would drive up the cost of gasoline for consumers and reduce the nation’s fuel supply (85 percent Republicans, 75 percent of Democrats and 71 percent of independents).

“Across the political spectrum, voters are concerned about the significant damage the RFS mandate and higher ethanol blends could cause to automobiles, motorcycles and almost every type of gasoline powered engine,” said API Downstream Group Director Frank Macchiarola during the media call. “Regardless of their party affiliation, voters are concerned with mandates that try to force too much ethanol into our fuel supply.

Listen to the API media call here: API Media Call on Anti-Ethanol Push Poll

In response to the news, Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen said, “It’s no surprise that API, an organization which has made its top priority to get rid of the RFS, is trotting out a phony faux poll to support its antediluvian narrative about biofuels. This push poll, which uses opinionated statements to elicit a negative response to biofuels, is not reflective of reality. For example, the renewable fuel standard (RFS) has not raised food prices 25 percent, as API claims, but instead food prices have risen by an average of just 2.7 percent per year since 2005, the year RFS was adopted. In fact, only 17 cents of every dollar spent on food pays for the raw farm ingredients in the food item. The other 83 cents pay for processing, transportation, labor, packaging, advertising and other costs.

“If you want to know what the American public really thinks, with direct questions and no spin, look no further than a Morning Consult poll conducted April 1–3, on behalf of RFA, in which nearly six in 10 registered voters (57 percent) support the RFS. Conversely, only 19 percent oppose the RFS. Additionally, 64 percent of those polled have a favorable opinion of biofuels and two-thirds (66 percent) have a favorable opinion of corn-based ethanol. This data is consistent with the findings from the approximately 18,000 registered voters we have polled over the past year.

“With these growing levels of support for biofuels, it’s no wonder that API President Jack Gerard told Politico’s Morning Energy last month that the organization was pivoting its strategy toward reforming, rather than repealing, the RFS. API can’t continue to support repeal because Americans want more fuel choice, not less,” Dinneen concluded.

The Morning Consult poll included results from 2,004 registered voters, with a margin of error of +/-2 percent. To view a copy of the poll results, click here.

Audio, biofuels, Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA, RFS

U.S. Industry Starting Brazilian Corn #Ethanol Plant

Cindy Zimmerman April 6, 2016

Iowa-based Summit Agricultural Group recently broke ground on the first large-scale corn ethanol production facility in Brazil.

The $115 million plant is an international collaboration between Iowa-based Summit Agricultural group and Brazilian agribusiness Fiagril which will utilize process technologies from ICM, Inc. of Colwich, Kansas. The facility is being built near Lucas do Rio Verde in Mato Grosso, a preeminent agricultural state in west central Brazil and the country’s largest producer of corn and soybeans.

Summit CEO Bruce Rastetter speaks at groundbreaking

“This is a significant day for renewable fuels, Brazil and Summit Agricultural Group,” said Summit CEO Bruce Rastetter at the March 29 groundbreaking. “Through Summit’s expertise in sustainable agriculture, investment and renewable energy, we will further realize the enormous corn growing potential of a region that is poised to become a global leader in corn ethanol production.”

Rastetter says the plant will provide value to Brazil by helping to offset the country’s increasing demand for domestic ethanol, which can’t be met by the existing sugarcane ethanol production. In addition, the new corn ethanol production facility will introduce the use of distillers grains for livestock feed to the region.

The plant is expected to be complete by mid-2017.

Brazil, Ethanol, Ethanol News

Latest #Ethanol Trade Statistics

Cindy Zimmerman April 6, 2016

The latest ethanol and distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS) export numbers show Brazil is importing more U.S. ethanol as exports of DDGS continue to decline.

According to Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) analyst Ann Lewis, exports of U.S. ethanol totaled 67.0 million gallons in February, down 23% from January’s 14-month high. “Brazil overtook recent leaders Canada and China as the top destination for U.S. product in February,” Lewis reports. Brazil imported over 22 million gallons of U.S. ethanol in February while exports to Canada were 14.5 mg, up 6% over January volumes and exports to China totaled 8.9 mg, down from 29.4 mg in January. On the import side, only marginal volumes of foreign-produced fuel ethanol have entered the United States so far this year.

Exports of DDGS continued to fall in February, to 785,383 metric tons with China remaining the top destination. Exports of U.S. DDGS to Mexico were down 26%. Other top customers were Vietnam, Thailand, Canada, and South Korea.

Distillers Grains, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Exports, RFA

NCGA: Small Engine Industry Must Change

Joanna Schroeder April 6, 2016

Small engines and the use of ethanol has been in the news lately with spring approaching. This week, National Corn Growers Association CEO Chris Novak published the following editorial.

The Small Engine Industry Needs to Change with the Times
By National Corn Growers Association CEO Chris Novak

The Outdoor Power Equipment Institute (OPEI), which represents the small engine industry, just released their annual survey results concerning consumer knowledge of small engine fuel options. Based upon the results of the survey, corn farmers and small engine manufacturers can agree that consumers need and deserve more information about today’s fuel options. We know from our own consumer research that consumers are hungry for information about the positive effects of ethanol blended fuels.

Further, we agree with the OPEI on two other points: 1. The OPEI acknowledges that E10 is safe for use in small engines like motorcycles, lawn mowers, trimmers, boats and snowmobiles; and 2. The OPEI notes that federal law prohibits the use of higher ethanol fuel blends in outdoor power equipment. Beyond these points of agreement, however, lays a significantly different view of the future.

Our farmers believe that consumers having a choice of fuels is a good thing. Whether you choose renewable ethanol because you want cleaner air or because you like purchasing an American grown fuel or because higher blends of ethanol are frequently priced lower than gasoline-the bottom line is that you should have the choice if you want to kick your oil addiction. The OPEI’s press release suggests that you, as a consumer, can’t handle this choice-that you lack the ability to know the differences between regular gasoline and higher ethanol blends like E-15 or E-85. We trust consumers to make the right choice of fuel – whether it is for their cars or small engine.

Today, our farmers are working with the auto industry to examine how higher blends of ethanol, ranging from E-15 to E-25, can boost gasoline octane. Higher gasoline octane can improve engine performance and help the auto industry achieve higher Corporate Average Fuel Economy mileage targets. Likewise, it is time for the nation’s small engine manufacturers to stop fighting renewable fuels and, instead, begin working to ensure tomorrow’s small engines can run on tomorrow’s renewable fuels.

Rather than fighting choice and change, our nation’s small engine manufacturers should work to develop engines that can run safely on higher blends of renewable fuels. Perhaps then, instead of bemoaning the lack of consumer knowledge and issuing dire warnings-the OPEI can offer consumers something real: the opportunity to make a clean and renewable choice.

biofuels, Ethanol, NCGA, Opinion

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