RFA Puts First Responders’ Safety First

John Davis

transcaer_logoThose folks who go into burning buildings and patch us up by the side of a road after a traffic accident are truly heroes in this country. Well, the folks at the people who help train those first responders how to handle going into hazardous materials (haz-mat) conditions are recognizing the people who advocate for biofuels… and try to help keep those brave men and women safe. For the third straight year, TRANSCAER, which provides that haz-mat training, has presented the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) with its “TRANSCAER National Achievement Award” for RFA’s dedication to educating first responders across the country.

Kristy Moore, RFA’s vice president of technical services, accepted the award on behalf of the RFA at the 27th Annual AAR/BOE Hazmat Seminar in Addison, Texas, stating, “The RFA always has and always will put safety front and center. Preparation is the key to effective emergency response. The RFA works hard to ensure these selfless men and women have the most up-to-date information to handle any hazmat scenario they encounter.”

The RFA recently released an updated version of “The Training Guide to Ethanol Emergency Response.” The training guide was first developed in 2006 to give first responders, safety personnel, and hazmat teams information on how to properly respond to an ethanol-related emergency. It has been distributed to more than 10,000 first responders and was converted into an Ethanol Safety Seminar. In 2010, RFA partnered with TRANSCAER® to conduct more than 100 Ethanol Safety Seminars in 21 states. Additional safety seminars will be announced in June.

To get your copy of “The Training Guide to Ethanol Emergency Response,” just email safety@ethanolrfa.org or visit www.ethanolresponse.com.

RFA, safety

Missouri to Allow E15 at the Gas Pumps

John Davis

E15 signMissouri is the latest state to allow retailers to sell a 15 percent blend of ethanol, E15. This article from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says a dozen other states allow, but don’t require, the higher blends.

Biofuel trade groups and state corn growing associations say E15 is just another blend of fuel that gas stations can offer price-conscious motorists. Despite auto industry groups warning of the fuel’s impact on engines, the Environmental Protection Agency has approved it for use in vehicle models 2001 and newer.

“It’s bringing in another low-cost fuel to consumers,” said Bradley Schad, director of market development with the Missouri Corn Growers Association. “It’s actually helping drive the economy here in Missouri because we produce ethanol in Missouri.”

Petroleum groups are still pushing back on the new option, trying to say that vehicle engines will be ruined by the higher blend, but with 12 other states already approving the higher blend, even with the small number of stations selling E15, wouldn’t we be hearing about all these cars stranded by the sides of roads? So far, I’m not hearing those kinds of stories.

E15, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Government

Renewable Energy Takes Hit in Farm Bill Funding

John Davis

USCapitolFunding for some rural renewable energy programs is taking a hit. Ethanol Producer Magazine reports the House Appropriations Committee cut the Biomass Crop Assistance Program (BCAP) down to just $15 million, down from last year’s levels of $25 million, and Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) for fiscal year 2015 is proposed to be funded at just $30 million, down for 2014’s $50 million in mandatory funding and $20 million in discretionary funding for FY 2015. Meanwhile, the Biorefinery, Renewable Chemical and Biobased Product Manufacturing Assistance program is cut to $22 million, a major drop from previous levels of $50 million in mandatory FY 2015 funding, with an additional $75 million in discretionary funding for FY 2015.

The Agriculture Energy Coalition (AgEC) has released a statement in response to the draft bill, vowing to fight the changes to the Farm Bill’s popular energy programs. “The renewable energy and energy efficiency programs in the Farm Bill help rural America create new biobased manufacturing opportunities and stable, well-paying jobs,” said Lloyd Ritter, codirect of the AgEC .”The Energy Title programs were reauthorized in the five-year Farm Bill adopted by Congress just months ago, in February 2014, and received mandatory funding to allow for program stability and business certainty. The modest investments made through that bill would pay major dividends for energy security, economic growth, and environmental gains across the United States.”

“Just today, however, the House Appropriations Committee sought to roll back the Farm Bill, by targeting the successful energy title programs for changes in mandatory spending and blocking the USDA’s ability to administer them,” Ritter continued. “The Agriculture Energy Coalition, which comprises a broad group of renewable energy, energy efficiency and agricultural groups, will continue to fight to ensure that these programs are implemented properly.”

You can read the full draft of the legislation here.

Biodiesel, biomass, Ethanol, Ethanol News, farm bill, Government, Legislation

Ethanol Groups Participate in China Trade Mission

Leah Guffey

RFANewlogoU.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Under Secretary for Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services Michael Scuse led a mission to promote U.S. agricultural exports in northeast China May 5-13. The mission is part of President Obama’s “Made in Rural America” export and investment initiative, designed to help rural businesses and leaders take advantage of new investment opportunities and access new customers and markets abroad.

growth-energy-logoTaking part in the mission to promote U.S. biofuels and co-product exports was Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) Director of Regulatory Affairs Kelly Davis and Jim Miller with Growth Energy.

During a press conference Tuesday to talk about the trade mission, Davis said it was her first trip to China and she was astounded by the number of cars on the roads and sees a great need for both biofuels and distillers grains for livestock feed in that country. Miller added that China provides an excellent market opportunity for the U.S. ethanol industry.

Also taking part in the trip and the press conference was Roger Johnson, president of the National Farmer’s Union. Ethanol Press Conference Opening Remarks

Agribusiness, Audio, biofuels, corn, Distillers Grains, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Exports, Government, Growth Energy, International, RFA, USDA

Hess Doubles North Dakota Gas Plant Capacity

John Davis

hessNatural gas and propane shortages of the past winter might become history with a major expansion of a North Dakota plant. Hess Corporation officials have commemorated the recently completed expansion of the Tioga Gas Plant, more than doubling the capacity of the facility.

The project is part of a more than $1.5 billion infrastructure investment made by Hess between 2012 and 2014 in North Dakota that has significantly increased production of propane, methane, butane and natural gasoline, and of ethane, a vital industrial product never before produced in the state. The expansion also brings a substantial improvement in efficiency and significantly reduces the amount of natural gas flared at Hess’s operations, from about 25 percent before the plant was shut down for the expansion project to 15 to 20 percent today.

“The Tioga Gas Plant was built in 1954, just three years after we drilled the very first oil well in the state of North Dakota,” said John Hess, Chief Executive Officer of Hess Corporation. “Today, as one of the largest oil and gas producers in the Bakken, we are committed to responsible long-term growth in North Dakota and proud to contribute to the state’s infrastructure.”

The plant is fully operational and is currently processing about 120 million standard cubic feet of gas per day (MMSCFD), with the expectation that through the combination of Hess and third-party gas it will soon process at least 250 MMSCFD with the potential to increase beyond 300 MMSCFD. Prior to expansion, the plant processed about 100 MMSCFD.

Hess officials were joined at the ceremony by a host of government officials, including North Dakota Governor Jack Dalrymple and Sen. John Hoeven.

Natural Gas, Propane

Kansans Skeptical Over State’s Hydropower Potential

John Davis

kansas-flag.gifThe federal government says there’s a lot of untapped hydropower in Kansas, in fact enough to power the entire state. But this article from the Topeka Capital-Journal says local residents of the fairly flat state are skeptical of the findings from the U.S. Department of Energy.

A study from Oak Ridge National Laboratory showed Kansas has about 2.4 gigawatts of potential hydropower that isn’t being used. A gigawatt is equal to 1 million kilowatts, a more familiar metric for residential electricity users…

David Barfield, chief engineer with the Kansas Department of Agriculture’s Division of Water Resources, said the report doesn’t go into detail about the technology that might allow new hydropower development in Kansas, but adding turbines to existing dams might be the best bet.

“I think that’s realistic and something that’s being examined,” he said.

The Kansas River doesn’t have much potential for additional hydropower, Barfield said. The Missouri River is more promising. The report also showed high potential for hydropower growth in the Arkansas River, but that doesn’t seem likely because the area is flat and the river often doesn’t flow above ground, he said.

“I’m not trying to downplay the value of looking at hydropower, but I’m puzzling over the numbers,” he said.

Kansas officials also point out the permitting issues of building new dams, especially on the Missouri River, where owners would need permits from two states. In addition, previous proposed projects have not been cost competitive.

Hydro

First Wind Hopes Turbine Project is Approved. Again

John Davis

firstwind1A New England wind energy company is hoping Maine utilities regulators approve, again, a partnership with a Canadian power company to build a multimillion-dollar wind energy project. This article from the Bangor (ME) Daily News says Boston-based First Wind is asking for approval of its partnership to build the wind farms near Oakfield, Hancock and Bingham with Nova Scotia-based power company Emera, an approval that a court sent back to the Maine Public Utilities Commission.

In petitioning the PUC for a new approval after the state’s high court struck down the commission’s first authorization of the partnership, First Wind and Emera say the revised deal advances the state’s renewable energy development goals and that specific regulations governing the deal provide enough protection from opponents’ concerns of favoritism. They also argued that there is still room within the Maine Supreme Judicial Court opinion for the $360 million partnership to move ahead.

Those arguments have reversed earlier opposition by the PUC’s public advocate, whose job is to represent ratepayers in regulatory cases.

The Industrial Energy Consumer Group, which opposes the joint venture along with Houlton Water Co., criticized that reversal in a legal brief filed Friday with the PUC, arguing the deal would create an incentive for favoritism between Emera Maine and the sister company that would own a stake in wind power resources.

First Wind says it feels confident the $360 million project with Emera will move ahead.

Wind

Group Looks to Expand Ethanol By-Product’s Market

John Davis

usgrainscouncil1A group representing grain producers’ interests is looking to expand the market for a popular ethanol by-product. The U.S. Grains Council says it is looking to the south, Middle East and Southeast Asia to expand on American distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS), already chalking up 9.7 million metric tons – valued at $2.9 billion – exported in 2013 to more than 45 countries.

While Mexico is the third-largest market for U.S. DDGS, its southern region remains an underserved livestock sector with growth potential for U.S. exports. According to a 2012 Council assessment, the potential exists to more than double current exports by providing technical and practical education to local cattlemen. To further this effort the Council has conducted a feeding trial in the area.

Elsewhere, the Council in August 2011 successfully achieved the inclusion of DDGS and other U.S. commodities on the Saudi Arabian import subsidy list. Inclusion on this list is essential in eliciting interest from Saudi importers of these products…

And in Southeast Asia, imports of U.S. DDGS have increased again this year, growing from 252,548 tons in January to March 2013 to 352,674 tons in the same period this year, an increase of almost 140 percent.

The council is using educational seminars and feeding trails to help educate end-users around the world.

corn, Distillers Grains, Ethanol, Ethanol News

Minnesota is First to Mandate B10 Biodiesel

John Davis

mnstatelegis1The land of 10,000 lakes becomes the first for another 10… a 10 percent biodiesel mandate. The move from a B5 to B10 blending requirement for summer months starting this July 1st was welcomed by the growers of the most popular feedstock, soybeans.

“I’m very pleased that common sense is still alive and well and that our legislators voted for what was good for Minnesota,” says George Goblish, president of the Minnesota Soybean Growers Association (MSGA) and a farmer from Vesta, Minn. “The decision to continue moving forward is good for air quality in Minnesota, energy diversity and its good for the economy.”

The escalation to B10 was part of a bill passed in 2008 which called for the move to happen in 2013. Because of inadequate blending infrastructure in on area of the state and a regulatory concern, the move was pushed back to 2014. Legislation brought forward during the Minnesota legislative session that ended May 16, attempted to derail the bill but was unsuccessful. B10 will be available at the pump from April through September. Supplies will revert to a B5 blend the rest of the year.

“This sends a very important message that Minnesota remains a leader, because the state’s B2 mandate back in 2002 really jumpstarted the biodiesel industry nationwide,” says Ed Hegland, an Appleton, Minn. farmer and member of the National Biodiesel Board’s governing board. “Proving that a state can now go to B10 is a significant step in the right direction for renewable fuels.”

The move is expected to create an additional 20 million gallons of biodiesel demand each year, in addition to the current 40 million gallons used annually. It will help make the blue skies even cleaner, as the current B5 requirement is credited with reducing particulate and greenhouse gas emissions the equivalent of taking 35,000 vehicles off the road and removing an estimated 644 million pounds of carbon dioxide from the air annually.

Biodiesel, Government, Legislation, Soybeans

Asia Key for Ethanol Producer Aemetis’ Profits

John Davis

aemetislogo1A California-based ethanol producer is reporting a big turnaround in profits, thanks to its business in Asia. Aemetis, Inc., the largest U.S.-owned biofuels producer in Asia, reports a $7.7 million net profit for the first quarter of this year… quite an improvement from a nearly $10 Million net loss from the same quarter a year ago.

“We’re very pleased with our record financial and operational performance in the first quarter,” said Eric McAfee, Chairman and CEO of Aemetis, Inc. “These results build upon the very strong results we posted in Q4 of 2013, and with available capacity and attractive international markets for our India products, the company is well positioned for additional growth in the remainder of 2014,” added McAfee.

Financial Results for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2014
Revenues were a record $60.7 million for the first quarter of 2014, compared to $19.4 million for the first quarter of 2013. Gross profit was a record $15.6 million for the first quarter of 2014, compared to a gross profit of $0.2 million in the first quarter of 2013. The increases in revenues and gross profit were primarily attributable to a full quarter of operations during the period from January 1, 2014 through March 31, 2014 as compared to the period from January 15, 2013 through March 31, 2013 when the Keyes plant was idle.

Aemetis also set a record with its adjusted EBITDA for the first quarter of 2014 at $14.2 million.

biofuels, Ethanol, Ethanol News, International