Biodiesel Industry Good with New EPA Proposal

Cindy Zimmerman

The biodiesel industry is relatively pleased with the announcement today from EPA setting volume requirements for biofuels under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).

nBBNational Biodiesel Board (NBB) CEO Joe Jobe voiced “measured support” for the proposal while calling for improvements in the final rule.

“It is not perfect, but it will get the U.S. biodiesel industry growing again and put people back to work,” said Jobe. “However, more can be done, and we particularly look forward to working with the administration on strengthening biodiesel volumes for 2016 and 2017 during the comment period in the coming weeks.”

Biodiesel falls under the Biomass-based Diesel category of the RFS, which is a subset of the overall Advanced Biofuels category. The EPA proposal, which is slated to be finalized in November, would gradually raise biodiesel volumes by about 100 million gallons per year to a standard of 1.9 billion gallons in 2017. Because of biodiesel’s higher energy content, this would count as 2.95 billion ethanol equivalent gallons under the RFS. The overall Advanced Biofuel standard would rise to 3.4 billion ethanol equivalent gallons in 2016. NBB had requested more aggressive growth to a biodiesel standard of 2.7 billion gallons by 2017, along with additional growth in the overall Advanced Biofuel category.

Biodiesel, NBB, RFS

EPA Announces Volume Obligations Under RFS

Cindy Zimmerman

epa-150Beating the announced deadline of June 1, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today proposed the volume requirements under the RFS program for 2014, 2015, and 2016 for cellulosic biofuel, biomass-based diesel, advanced biofuel, and total renewable fuel. EPA is also proposing the volume requirement for biomass-based diesel for 2017.

EPA is proposing to set the renewable fuel standards for 2014 at the levels that were actually produced and used as transportation fuel, heating oil or jet fuel in the contiguous U.S. and Hawaii. For 2015 and 2016, EPA is proposing ambitious increases in both advanced biofuel and total renewable fuel in comparison to 2014 levels. This proposed rulemaking also provides an evaluation of the expected volumes of cellulosic biofuel for 2015 and 2016, and proposes annual increases in the required volume of biomass-based diesel for 2015, 2016, and 2017.

Announcing the proposal today was Janet McCabe, EPA Acting Assistant Administrator for the Office of Air and Radiation. EPA Announces RFS RVO proposal

McCabe took a number of questions from the media on the proposal. EPA RVO proposal media question and answer

Audio, Biodiesel, biofuels, EPA, Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFS

New White Paper Shows California’s E85 Success

John Davis

A new study shows how E85 has been a success in California. Published by Propel Fuels, the white paper titled, “E85: A California Success Story White Paper,” and associated website illustrate the state’s emergence as the national leader in the use of sustainable E85 Flex Fuel.

Key research findings include:

● California has the highest rate of E85 growth of any state in the nation. E85 use has expanded 600% in California since 2009, while gasoline demand has decreased.
● E85 use has significant positive impacts on air quality, greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions and petroleum reductions; providing air quality benefits in severe non-attainment areas by contributing 18-53% reduction in NOx as well as a 32% reduction in GHG emissions.
● E85 use has specifically benefited CalEPA designated Disadvantaged Communities.
● E85 is California’s value fuel, with 92% of users saying it is the same or better value than gasoline.
● California’s 1 million Flex Fuel vehicles can displace 600 million gallons of petroleum gasoline with E85.
● California’s retail E85 volume per location exceeds the national average by 300%.
● As a result of its policies, California is home to the lowest carbon ethanol in the country.

“Thanks to smart public policy and a strong value proposition for consumers, California’s E85 use has become a success story, and a road map for our nation for implementing low carbon fuels,” said Rob Elam, CEO of Propel Fuels. “This research conclusively demonstrates that E85 is a successful, sustainable, cost-effective fuel that consumers are choosing when they have retail access.”

California boasts 1 million Flex Fuel vehicles (FFV’s) that can use E85 interchangeably with conventional gasoline with no modification.

E85, Ethanol, Ethanol News

Renewables Hit Highest Levels Since 1930s

John Davis

Consumption of renewable energy sources hit the highest levels in 80 years. This report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) says renewables accounted for 9.8 percent of total domestic energy consumption in 2014, the highest renewable energy share since the 1930s, when wood was a much larger contributor to the domestic energy supply.

EIA 28may

Renewable energy use grew an average of 5% per year over 2001-2014 from its most recent low in 2001. The increase over the past 14 years was in part because of growing use of wind, solar, and biofuels. Wind energy grew from 70 trillion Btu in 2001 to more than 1,700 trillion Btu in 2014. During the same period, solar energy (solar thermal and photovoltaic) grew from 64 trillion Btu to 427 trillion Btu, and the use of biomass for the production of biofuels grew from 253 trillion Btu to 2,068 trillion Btu. Hydroelectricity was the largest source of renewable energy in 2014, but hydro consumption has decreased from higher levels in the mid-to-late 1990s. Wood remained the second-largest renewable energy source, with recent growth driven in part by demand for wood pellets.

In 2014, slightly more than half of all renewable energy was used to generate electricity. Within the electric power sector, renewable energy accounted for 13% of energy consumed, higher than its consumption share in any other sector.

The industrial sector used 24% of the nation’s renewable energy in 2014. Nearly all of that renewable energy was biomass, which included wood, waste, and biofuels used in manufacturing processes as well as in the production of heat and power. The production of biofuels results in energy losses and co-products, which are also included in industrial consumption of renewables.

EIA says more wood for home heating and more solar panel systems are the main contributors to increasing renewable energy consumption in residential buildings and, to a lesser extent, in commercial buildings.

Government, Renewable Energy

How Renewables Fit in Clean Power Plan

Joanna Schroeder

How will the electricity energy mix change with the implementation of the Clean Power Plan? This question was reviewed in the latest Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) Today in Energy. Using the Annual Energy Outlook 2015 (AEO2015) as the baseline, the main compliance strategy to lower emissions rates as the proposed rule comes into effect is to increase natural gas-fired generation to displace and ultimately surpass coal-fired generation. Later, as more wind and solar capacity are added, renewable generation also surpasses coal-fired generation.

Analysis of Impacts of Clean Power Plan - EIAThe analysis finds that changes in the fuel mix play out in different ways across the country, reflecting regional variation in the economics of increases in natural gas generation and renewable capacity. Key determinants include baseline combined-cycle utilization rates and the potential for renewable generation in areas without renewable portfolio standards.

EIA’s analysis also modeled the proposed rule using the High Oil and Gas Resource (HOGR) and High Economic Growth cases from AEO2015 as alternative baselines. The HOGR case reflects a scenario in which more abundant domestic natural gas resources and better technology enhance natural gas supplies, keeping projected annual average spot natural gas prices below $4.50 per million Btu through 2040.

EIA also looked at other cases including several sensitivity cases encompassing different interpretations or implementations of the proposed rule as well as a scenario in which further emissions reductions are required beyond 2030, all of which use the AEO2015 Reference case as their baseline. In addition a case was considered in which new nuclear units not already under construction were brought online.

Ultimately, in all cases renewable energy became a bigger player in the energy mix but whether it played a starring or supporting role was dependent on the level of traditional fuel sources that remained in use.

Clean Energy, Clean Power Plan, Electricity, Renewable Electricty Standard (RES), Renewable Energy, Solar, Wind

Report: LA Solar

Joanna Schroeder

According to the research report “Los Angeles Solar: Now and into the Future”, city utilities must overcome implementation challenges in order to continue the growth of solar energy. The report, commissioned by the Los Angeles Business Council Institute, finds that the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) has the opportunity to wean itself from polluting coal-fired power – currently 42 percent of its energy portfolio – and expand the amount of local solar to 1,500 megawatts annually.

Researchers from UCLA’s Luskin Center for Innovation and the USC Program for Environmental and Regional Equity (PERE), found that a program of this scale would also be an economic catalyst, creating thousands of new solar-related jobs and attracting significant long-term investment to Los Angeles. The report cites three strategies in which solar expansion can be achieved: net metering, Feed-in Tariff (FiT) program and the Community Solar Initiative. The FiT can play a lead role, according to the researchers. This program, launched in 2012, enables local commercial property owners to sell solar power generated from rooftops and parking lots back to LADWP at a competitive fixed rate.

roofop solar panels in LATo date, LADWP has authorized 100 MWof power under the FiT program; however, only 6.5 MW are operational, according to the UCLA/USC study. Another 8.2 MW of projects are under contract and awaiting construction, with another 56 MW in the contracting stage. The FiT evaluation concludes that LADWP needs to build its staff resources and continue streamlining the application and installation processes to speed the pace of approving local solar projects if it is to reach a self-imposed deadline to be coal-free by 2025.

Spearheaded by the Los Angeles Business Council Institute and the CLEAN LA Solar Coalition, the FiT program provides an opportunity for the LADWP to access the abundant solar energy available on more than 10,000 acres of rooftops in Los Angeles. More than 40 percent of the projects in the FiT’s first three 20 MW tranches are located in “solar equity hotspots” – neighborhoods with abundant rooftops and great need for economic investment and jobs. The hotspot areas exist in the San Fernando Valley, East Los Angeles, and areas west of Downtown, including Hollywood. In many cases, solar training programs that target less advantaged workers, such as participants in Homeboy Industries’ Solar Panel Training and Installation program, are located in or near the hotspot areas.

“Los Angeles has a unique confluence of characteristics providing a firm foundation for a successful solar FiT program: abundant sunshine, a trained workforce and tremendous economic need,” said Dr. Manuel Pastor, Director of the USC Program for Environmental and Regional Equity. “Growing the FiT will bring economic opportunity to some of our city’s most underserved and environmentally-challenged neighborhoods. There’s no question that the FiT can advance solar-related equity goals where they’re needed most.”Read More

Clean Energy, Electricity, Renewable Energy, Solar

Wind Industry Presses Washington for Action

Joanna Schroeder

Republican and Democrat governors are pressing U.S. Senate and House leadership in an effort spur action on tax incentives used to grow the country’s wind energy industry. Washington Democrat Gov. Jay Inslee and Iowa Republican Gov. Terry Branstad, Chairman and Vice Chairman respectively of the Governors’ Wind Energy Coalition, co-signed a letter insisting federal policymakers “support timely extensions” of the Production Tax Credit (PTC) and Investment Tax Credit (ITC). The PTC is the primary federal incentive building more new U.S. wind farms while the ITC is the primary incentive attracting private investment developing the nation’s offshore wind energy resources.

“This bipartisan letter is a reminder that the nation’s governors are on the front line of the nation’s Governors Wind Energy Coalition logoenergy future and have a vital role in planning states’ future,” said American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) CEO Tom Kiernan. “They see first-hand how investing in the wind resources in their states benefit local economies and create opportunities for job growth. To them the decision to extend these incentives is more of an economic one than a political one. We look forward to working with all the governors to maximize the benefits of wind power to their states.”

According to AWEA 23,000 jobs were added in 2014 and there are currently $23 billion worth of new wind projects under development. But, cites Kiernan, that momentum is increasingly placed at risk as Congress delays action on passing policy capable of creating long-term market certainty.

“These tax credits have made possible the robust growth of the American wind industry and thousands of renewable energy jobs in recent years, with substantial economic returns to our states and the nation,” the governors’ letter reads. “But these gains are at risk today because ongoing federal policy uncertainty continues to hamper the further development of the nation’s wind industry.” Read More

Clean Energy, Electricity, politics, Wind

BioEnergy Bytes

Joanna Schroeder

  • BioEnergyBytesDF1Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) is the topic of discussion at the next EcoEngineers quarterly Business Breakfast on Friday, June 12, 2015 from 7:30 am to 9:30 am at the Renaissance Savery Hotel in Des Moines, Iowa. Stephanie Weisenbach of Iowa Clean Cities Coalition will lead a panel of experts who will discuss the evolution in the use of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) vehicles in Iowa. The panel will include: Terress Farnham with Zebulon Innovations in Ankeny; Steve Larsen with Ruan Transportation in Des Moines; Kyle Weuve, WW Transport in West Burlington and Scott Meerdink, Meerdink Trucking, Inc in Orange City.
  • Banco Santander, S.A., Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and the Public Sector Pension Investment Board have announced the formal launch of Cubico Sustainable Investments, a London-headquartered firm established to manage and invest in renewable energy and water infrastructure assets globally.
  • Solar Power, Inc. has announced its wholly owned subsidiary, SPI China (HK) Limited, has completed the acquisition of 80% of the outstanding capital stock of Solar Juice Pty Ltd, the leading solar PV wholesale distribution business in Australia. The acquisition was previously announced on March 31, 2015.
  • Duke Energy Florida has received approval to build, own and operate a 5 MW solar facility that will serve the Reedy Creek Improvement District near Orlando. The facility will occupy approximately 20 acres near World Drive and Epcot Center Drive at Walt Disney World Resort. Construction is expected to begin mid-summer with the facility to be in service by year end. The facility’s 48,000 solar panels will be arranged in the shape of a Disney-inspired design.
Bioenergy Bytes

Ethanol Industry Pleased with NREL Study

John Davis

The ethanol industry is pleased with a new study released this week by the National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) showing existing service station equipment is compatible with E15, a 15 percent blend of the green fuel. The study also looked at vapor control equipment and found “an extensive list of E15 and E15+ compatible equipment available.”

lamberty“Rumors of E15’s impossibility and high equipment cost have been greatly exaggerated,” said American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) Senior Vice President Ron Lamberty. “NREL’s analysis confirms what we have been telling station owners since E15 was approved – most underground storage tanks (USTs), piping, and other fueling equipment are already compatible with E15.”

Lamberty said the ethanol industry has been criticized and called “dangerous” and “dishonest’ for suggesting marketers could simply put E15 in tanks they previously used for premium or midgrade gasoline. “Even after highlighting real-world fuel marketers selling E15 from existing equipment, the myth of high priced E15 infrastructure remains,” said Lamberty. “This study effectively busts that myth.”

Lamberty went on to say that “in stations where Big Oil couldn’t contractually ban E15, they had to scare the owners out of offering the less-expensive, higher-octane fuel.”

dinneen-capitolBob Dinneen, president and CEO of the Renewable Fuels Association, also commented on the study:

“This comprehensive analysis is both timely and relevant to the current debate about the so-called ‘blend wall’ that some would like to use to limit the growth opportunities for ethanol under the RFS. Clearly, the constraints to the increased use of E15 have more to do with the recalcitrance of refiners and marketers than they do any real infrastructure barriers. Today’s comprehensive study should once and for all belie the misplaced conclusion that infrastructure and ethanol demand limitations should justify a reduction in the RFS as it found most equipment at a retail fuel station today, including underground storage tanks, are compatible with E15. This study demonstrates that most retailers will not be required to break concrete and spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to offer E15.”

The study was funded by the Blend Your Own Ethanol campaign, a joint effort of ACE and RFA to provide information for fuel retailers considering ethanol blends beyond E10. A full copy of the report can be found at BYOethanol.com, and interested parties can also register on the BYO website for an NREL webinar on the report which will be offered June 11, 2015 at 1:00 PM CDT.

ACE, E15, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Government, RFA

Ethanol Gears Up for Friday’s RVOs Announcement

John Davis

epa-150Ethanol advocates are gearing up for Friday’s announcement by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of the levels of renewable fuel to be mixed into the nation’s conventional fuel supplies. The Renewable Volume Obligations (RVOs) are mandated in the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), but the EPA has been tinkering with the amounts, which could put the biofuels industry in jeopardy.

Fuels America continued its campaign leading up to the proposed rules with a full page ad in the New York Times today and a week-long sponsorship of Politico’s Morning Energy. The ads both present the choice before the EPA: rural economies and American innovation, or oil industry profits.

America’s Renewable Future (ARF) also announced that Iowa’s entire federal delegation – including Sens. Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst, Reps. Dave Loebsack, Steve King, David Young, and Rod Blum – is joining ARF in urging the EPA to set strong Renewable Fuel Standard volume requirements consistent with Congress’s intent when the law was passed.

“Farmers and biofuels producers have done their part. The EPA needs to do its part,” Grassley said. “The levels ought to reflect the reality of what can be accomplished in an unbiased way. That’s what the law requires, and that’s what consumers who want fuel choices deserve.”

Brent Erickson, the executive vice president of BIO, published this blog on Medium about the EPA’s choice and how the agency should follow the law:

Back when Congress was considering the RFS, oil companies fought tooth and nail against a part of the bill that I call the “Consumer Choice Provision” (CCP). This provision directs the EPA to set annual [RVO] levels based on the renewable fuel industry’s ability to produce and supply biofuels. The oil lobby instead wanted a law that would have allowed the EPA to set RVO levels below those in the statute if the oil industry simply refused to invest in renewable fuel infrastructure…

Instead, Congress designed the RFS to increase America’s energy security, lessen our dependence on foreign oil (which often comes from hostile regions), extend its commitment to America’s rural communities and green energy investors and innovators, and encourage infrastructure development. The RFS now supports more than 852,000 jobs across America. And thanks to the promise of the RFS, green energy investors have brought three commercial scale cellulosic ethanol facilities online, producing the world’s cleanest motor fuels from agricultural residue.

BIO, EPA, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Government