REG Energy Services, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Renewable Energy Group, Inc., has secured a $30 million line of credit from Iowa-based Bankers Trust. The line is a one-year credit facility, with an accordion option to expand to $40 million, subject to customary conditions. Chad Stone, REG CFO noted, “This credit line gives REG Energy Services additional capital to expand our blended fuel offerings and add to our already expansive distribution network.- The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has updated its annual survey of US non-starch ethanol and renewable hydrocarbon biofuels producers. The 2015 Survey of Non-Starch Ethanol and Renewable Hydrocarbon Biofuels Producers provides an inventory of the domestic advanced biofuels production industry as of the end of calendar year 2015, documenting important changes (e.g., biorefinery development, production capacity, feedstock use, and technology pathways) that have occurred since the publication of the original 2013 survey.
- Stratas Advisors’ has released its Global Biofuels Outlook, a regional and country-level forecast through 2035 of policy, prices, supply and demand. This forecast has a globally-balanced assessment from Stratas Advisors’ petroleum and alternative fuels services. The report shows global ethanol usage expanding the gasoline pool by nearly 9 percent and biodiesel usage expanding the diesel pool to 3 percent by 2035.
- The Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management took an important step toward the goal of developing sustainable offshore wind power off the coast of New York, by designating an official “Wind Energy Area” eleven nautical miles off Long Beach on Long Island’s South Shore. The news came one day after the administration withdrew its plan for offshore oil and gas drilling off the southeast Atlantic coast.
Lowes Removes ‘Ditch Ethanol’ Signs
The Renewable Fuels Association wrote a letter to Lowe’s CEO requesting that the “Ditch Ethanol” signs that were popping up on the Midwest be removed. Shortly after the letter was received, Lowes contacted RFA and said they were in the process of removing all the signs and they should all be gone within several days. The signs inaccurately warned consumers not to use ethanol in small engines.
“Thank you to Lowe’s for listening to RFA’s member companies and the nearly 400,000 workers and farmers across the country whose employment is dependent upon the success of renewable fuels,” said RFA President and CEO Bob Dinneen. “It is refreshing to see a large national corporation move so quickly to correct an obvious mistake. Lowe’s should be commended for the leadership they have demonstrated to address this situation conclusively and swiftly. We will continue to combat any and all misinformation about ethanol, to ensure consumers have access to the lowest cost, cleanest octane source in the world.”
Chicago Thornton’s Locations Now Selling E15
Thornton’s will be selling E15 at 43 Chicago-area locations by the end of this month. The fuel retailer has branded the ethanol blend Unleaded15.
“Unleaded 15 offers a great value to our Chicago guests, and supports our desire to provide the best possible fuel options,” said Jeff Gallic, Vice President of Fuel Supply. “Thorntons has offered E85 for years and given the market demand for higher ethanol blends, we feel Unleaded15 is the next logical step for our fuel portfolio.”
The industry responded to the news today with Bob Dinneen, president and CEO of the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) stating, “We are pleased to see E15’s footprint growing throughout the country. Chicago consumers can now benefit from using a lower carbon, higher octane fuel blend that is approved for nearly 80% of today’s automotive fleet. This is also the first significant rollout of E15 in a reformulated gasoline market, designated by EPA in nearly 20 cities to help reduce smog levels with cleaner gasoline. That designation means E15 can be sold year-round in Chicago without being hampered by burdensome EPA gasoline volatility restrictions when the nation switches from winter to summer gasoline regulations.”
Growth Energy Co-Chair Tom Buis added, “On behalf of Growth Energy and its members, I would like to commend Thorntons for their decision to offer consumers Unleaded15, providing them with the opportunity to choose a homegrown, renewable fuel at the pump. By adding this E15 offering to their fuel portfolio, Thorntons has demonstrated their commitment to consumer choice, and a cleaner burning, homegrown high-performance fuel. Now Chicagoans will have the chance to do so as well by choosing to fill up with Unleaded15.”
#Propane Power on a Roll
Propane power is on a roll these days, going far beyond it’s traditional uses of home heating and grain drying, moving into areas such as fleet vehicles and school buses. To learn more about propane’s market expansion, Cindy Zimmerman spoke with Becky Hornblower, GROWMARK’s propane marketing and technical services manager. GROWMARK is one of the country’s largest retailers of propane.
According to Hornblower, GROWMARK markets propane in 16 states and operates more than 300 company-owned transports, which she said really helps with their supply network. This resulted in the sale of more than 200 million gallons of propane sold in fiscal year 2015, and this year looks even stronger.
One major area of growth for the company is the autogas market and Hornblower noted that their members have been really proactive in growing this market. She explained autogas is the term used when propane is used in a motor-fueled vehicle such as a pickup truck, car, bus, fleet delivery vehicle and the like.
Their network is growing and they have specific accounts and networks in Iowa, Wisconsin and Illinois for school systems that are operating their school buses using propane autogas. They also have municipality accounts, transit and commercial lawn company accounts to name a few.
“This market presents not only a strong opportunity for our position in the industry, especially as you look at growth year round versus cyclical cycles with residential and ag demand,” said Hornblower. She added that end users are really seeing the benefits of the cleaner burning aspects of propane. For example propane is easier on the engines saving maintenance costs and prolonging engine life. She said that there are tax credits and incentives for propane conversion and use and propane is safer than gasoline.
What about savings in action? She said one school district reported savings of more than $300,000 over 10 years with their propane autogas bus fleet.
Learn more about propane in this week’s ZimmCast: Interview with Becky Hornblower, GROWMARK
RFA: Ditch the ‘Ditch Ethanol’ Sign Lowes
The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) is calling out Lowes for its “ditch ethanol” signage at stores. In a letter to Lowes CEO Robert Niblock, RFA CEO and President Bob Dinneen urged the removal of a sign appearing at several Midwest locations that inaccurately warn consumers not to use ethanol blends in small engines. Dinneen writes that the “Ditch the Ethanol” sign contains numerous statements that “are simply incorrect and are contrary to the very guidance found in the owner’s manuals on the shelves of your own stores.”
“We find the sign very troubling and are concerned with the massive amount of misinformation posted to ostensibly educate consumers,” said Dinneen. “We urge Lowe’s to remove the misleading sign, or else we may be forced to pursue legal efforts to prevent the further dissemination of false information to consumers.”
In the letter, RFA rebutted each statement made on the sign, including:
Ethanol burns hotter and wears out your small engine faster.
- Every small engine that you offer at Lowe’s was designed and engineered to run on ethanol blends up to 10% ethanol. If you read any small engine owner’s manual found at Lowe’s, you will see this fact, and that all warranties cover the use of ethanol blends up to 10% ethanol. If this sign was intended for higher blends of ethanol, it should be clarified, and also should be noted that any blend of ethanol in small engine applications would be illegal. This would include E15 and E85. All blends above 10% are clearly labeled at the pump to ensure consumers know that they are not purchasing E10 (or 10% ethanol).
- Ethanol blended gasoline does not wear out your engine faster, or the manufacturers could not offer warranty to cover today’s fuel. I have personally used E10 in all of my small engines for more than two decades, and have yet to have an issue. This statement makes it seem like Lowe’s has some unique insight and data on engine wear that the own manufacturers that make the engines do not. I highly doubt that is accurate.
Most pump gas contains 10% or more ethanol.
- It is true that most pump gas contains ethanol, but 10% ethanol or less, otherwise known as E10 (or fuel approved for all small engine use). Roughly 96% of all unleaded sold today contains 10% ethanol.
- There are only ~180 stations that sell E15 and ~3,400 stations that sell E85, both of which are not approved for small engines. But, these two higher blends are definitely not commonplace in the 140,000 retail fuel stations.”
“I am asking respectfully that Lowe’s work with us to remove this misleading signage at your stores immediately,” Dinneen concluded.
Renewable Chemicals Tax Credit Passes in Iowa
The Iowa Senate has approved a new five-year production tax credit for renewable chemicals. The goal of the incentive is to drive innovation in the sector within the state. Renewable chemicals will be defined in Iowa’s tax code as having at least 50 percent biobased content and not being used as food, feed or fuel. The value of the tax credit is limited to $105 million over five years. Identical legislation was approved yesterday by Iowa’s House Ways and Means Committee.
Joe Hrdlicka, executive director of the Iowa Biotechnology Association (IowaBio), said of the news, “Iowa is securing a leadership position in building a biobased economy, creating new economic opportunities for farmers and manufacturers, and generating well-paying jobs. We thank Gov. Terry Branstad and Director of the Iowa Economic Development Authority Debi Durham for championing this policy.”
Brent E
rickson, Executive Vice President of BIO’s Industrial & Environmental Section, added, “Renewable chemicals help protect the environment and create new jobs. Iowa’s new tax credit will encourage biotechnology and renewable chemical companies to make investments and deploy innovative homegrown technology in Iowa. BIO will continue to work with the Iowa legislature, other states and the federal government to level the playing field in economic development incentives for renewable chemical and biobased manufacturing technologies.”
Celebrate Biodiesel Day Today
Today is National Biodiesel Day and the celebration of Rudolf Diesel, the inventor of the diesel engine. Many will remember that similar to the first “gas” engine running on ethanol, the first “diesel” engine ran on peanut oil. In fact, National Biodiesel Board (NBB) notes that when he created his engine, he envisioned a time when vegetable oils would one day be as important as petroleum among transportation fuels. Because of his foresight, and his contribution of the compression ignition engine, Biodiesel Day is celebrated on the anniversary of Diesel’s birthday.
“I can’t imagine what Rudolf Diesel would think if he saw how his vision has come to fruition in today’s commercial biodiesel industry, a more than 2 billion gallon US market,” said NBB chairman Ron Marr. “It is here, now, cutting carbon emissions, supporting domestic green energy jobs, and benefiting consumers from coast to coast.”
To celebrate Biodiesel Day, here are nine facts about biodiesel that will rev you up! But first, a super cool video about biodiesel.
EPA, CFTC to Share RFS& RIN Data, Analysis
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission along with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding that allows the agencies to share data and analysis on the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). As part of the deal, the agencies will cooperate and coordinate on topics relevant to the RFS and the market for Renewable Identification Numbers (RINS).
More specifically, the MOU states, with the partnership the Commission can, “advise EPA on techniques that could be employed to minimize fraud, market abuses or other violations, and to conduct appropriate oversight in RIN and renewable fuels markets to aid EPA in successfully fulfilling the EPA’s statutory functions…” Sharing of the information will “…increase the CFTC’s understanding of the operation of and participants in those markets.” CFTC is an independent federal agency that regulates U.S. futures and options markets.
In response to the news, the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA), RFA President and CEO Bob Dinneen stated, “We are encouraged to see that EPA is coordinating and cooperating with CFTC to identify methods for improving the transparency and efficiency of the RIN market. For several years, RFA, members of Congress, and other stakeholders with an interest in the success of the RFS have been requesting that EPA coordinate with CFTC to take steps to prevent manipulation and increase transparency in the RIN market. Through this agreement, we believe CFTC will provide valuable expertise and insight that will improve the functionality and clarity of the RIN system for all market participants and the public.”
Absolute Energy Celebrates 10 Years
The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) has congratulated Iowa ethanol producer Absolute Energy for celebrating its 10th anniversary.
The company was formed in early 2006 and began construction of its St. Ansgar, Iowa, ethanol plant in June 2006. Production began February 2008 with an initial production capacity of 100 million gallons per year, but grew over time to its current capacity of 125 million gallons per year. The ethanol plant also markets dried distillers grains and corn oil.
“We are thrilled to celebrate this milestone with member company Absolute Energy,” said RFA President and CEO Bob Dinneen. “U.S. ethanol is the lowest cost, highest octane source in the world and we are proud of their contribution to this industry. We look forward to celebrating more occasions with Absolute Energy.”
Propane Conversion in a Snap
During the Indianapolis Work Truck Show earlier this week, Alliance AutoGas conversion techs Stephen Holland and Stacey Snyder installed the Alliance fuel engineered conversion system on a Bi-Fuel 2016 3.5 Liter Ford F-150 V6 in a little more than an hour an a half, setting a record.
Stephen Holland, Blossman Services Inc. Equipment Application Engineer and Stacey Snyder, Blossman Services Equipment Conversion Tech
The propane fuel system features a single plug wiring connector with a 21-gallon underbody autogas tank with all wiring at proper specs. Everything is bracketed anddesigned to be installed without any drilling or fabrication. Alliance AutoGas says by deploying these features, labor times and conversion costs are significantly reduced.
Ed Hoffman, President of Blossman Services Inc., the equipment distributor for Alliance AutoGas said of the new feat and new propane autogas technology, “The live, record-setting conversion of the F-150 at the Work Truck Show proved that Alliance’s EPA and NFPA 58 compliant system can indeed be installed in far less than half the time of other products in the market without any permanent vehicle modifications. We are also confident in saying that that fleets can experience a positive ROI with a partial asset life when reduced conversion costs are coupled with low, stable fuel prices as well as our warranty that doubles the industry standard.”
Stuart Weidie, President of Alliance AutoGas, who spoke at the Live Conversion event, added, “We are proud that our innovative and elegant fuel system design was installed in far less time than we ever anticipated. Alliances’ state of the art technology coupled with a positive environmental impact, is a winner in all regards. It is a definitive message that our system will take the lead on reducing costs, and any barriers associated with fleet conversions going forward throughout North America.”
In early May of this year, the converted F-150 will embark on the Alliance AutoGas Clean Air Coast-to-Coast Ride, a 5,300 mile trip beginning in Kansas City, KS, and ending in Asheville, NC, on May 20.