Clean Fuels’ Fenwick on ASTM International Board

Cindy Zimmerman

Clean Fuels Alliance America technical director Scott Fenwick began a three-year term on the ASTM International board of directors earlier this month. The 25-member board, which consists of leaders from companies, associations, universities, government bodies and other organizations around the world, integrates consensus standards to positively impact public health and safety.

Fenwick previously served as chairman of the ASTM International committee on petroleum products, liquid fuels and lubricants. He also serves as a member of gasoline and middle distillates working groups at the Canadian General Standards Board, and he is the U.S. Technical Advisory Group head of delegation for two petroleum groups in the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).

Fenwick spent nearly 25 years in the fuel inspection industry before joining Clean Fuels Alliance America in 2013 where he is responsible for coordinating the original engine manufacturer (OEM) and fuel quality programs.

Biodiesel, Clean Fuels Alliance, Energy

RFA Comments on SAF Tax Credit

Cindy Zimmerman

In comments to the Department of Treasury, the Renewable Fuels Association said the use of science-based, consistent and transparent lifecycle analysis methods will be crucially important in implementing the sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) tax credit under the Inflation Reduction Act.

“SAF production presents a major new market opportunity for ethanol producers, as the lifecycle carbon footprint of ethanol continues to shrink and the economics of ethanol-to-jet fuel processes continue to improve,” wrote RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper. “The ethanol industry sees tremendous promise and potential in the emerging market for sustainable aviation fuels. The ethanol industry has the scale and capacity to deliver the volume of feedstock to meet SAF volume targets for the decades to come.”

However, Cooper pointed out that fair and consistent lifecycle analysis (LCA) modeling must be used for all potential SAF feedstocks and production pathways. “Rules which effectively pick one technology or feedstock over another or use incomplete or outdated science could serve as a barrier to entry and keep production volumes from reaching targets,” he wrote. Cooper noted that RFA member companies have unanimously committed to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 or sooner.

Click to read RFA’s comments.

aviation biofuels, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Renewable Fuels Association, RFA, SAF

Iowa RFA Sounds Alarm on New CO2 Pipeline Legislation

Cindy Zimmerman

New legislation was introduced in the Iowa House this week to limit eminent domain for CO2 pipelines could impact the future of ethanol production in the state, according to the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association.

IRFA Executive Director Monte Shaw says the legislation would create a “de facto ban” on new projects that allow Iowa ethanol producers to install carbon capture technology. “The difference between the rhetoric and reality on this bill is truly staggering,” said Shaw. “We hear about property rights, but this bill wouldn’t impact the next Dakota Access oil pipeline or Rock Island Clean Line Transmission project. We hear about safety, but this bill doesn’t apply to pipelines that carry explosive or flammable liquids while CO2 is neither. Instead, this bill singles out for destruction the single most important technology we have to keep liquid fuels like ethanol competitive with electric vehicles in the rapidly growing low carbon transportation markets. It is no surprise that anti-agriculture groups like the Sierra Club support preventing carbon capture and sequestration from going forward.”

“The bill is a veritable cornucopia of unreasonable regulations narrowly targeted at CCS technology,” continued Shaw. “For example, section three of the bill would allow just two people to effectively veto an interstate CCS project even if that project had 100 percent voluntary easements. It would only take two county supervisors to enact an ordinance, like a setback requirement that is physically impossible to meet, and then the Iowa Utilities Board (IUB) would be prevented from issuing a final permit.”

IRFA does not object to the provisions in the bill that clarify and expand landowner rights that apply to all projects that come before the IUB.

“IRFA continues to urge all Iowans to unite to find a fair and equitable path forward for carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) projects – fair and equitable to landowners, CCS projects and communities,” stated Shaw. “Further, any changes to the IUB permitting process should apply to all applicants, not just CO2 pipelines.”

Carbon, carbon capture, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Iowa RFA

2022 Minnesota E15 Sales Exceed 100 Million Gallons

Cindy Zimmerman

The Minnesota Bio-Fuels Association reports that annual sales of E15 fuel in Minnesota topped 100 million gallons last year for the first time ever.

According to data from the Minnesota Department of Commerce, 105.47 million gallons of E15 were sold in 2022, 21 percent more than the previous record of 87.11 million gallons sold in 2021.

“The record E15 sales last year reported by the Minnesota Department of Commerce demonstrate that when consumers go to the pump they want a cheaper, more environmentally friendly option. E15 provides that option and we need our state and federal policymakers to double down on biofuel infrastructure investments and summertime regulatory relief so that its benefits are available to consumers year-round and at every gas station in the state,” said Brian Werner, executive director at the Minnesota Bio-Fuels Association.

Meanwhile, E85 sales in Minnesota in 2022 totaled 15.38 million gallons, based on data from the Minnesota Department of Revenue, a 28 percent increase from the volume of E85 sold in the state in 2021.

E15, E85, Ethanol, Ethanol News

Pearson Fuels Opens 300th E85 Retail Site

Cindy Zimmerman

California-based Pearson Fuels, the country’s largest E85 distributor, has opened its 300th retail E85 site.

The use of E85 has dramatically increased across California recently and Pearson Fuels expects the state will set its 16th record in 17 years when the official 2022 volume data is released by the California Air Resources Board. E85 in California is typically priced at least 70% of the price of regular unleaded gasoline.

“In the current state of the economy, E85 is a no-brainer,” said Pearson Fuels Managing Partner Doug Vind. “Part of our 2022 growth came from last year’s severe gasoline price spikes which saw E85 priced nearly $3 per gallon cheaper than regular unleaded gasoline. In 2022 alone, we estimate FFV owners using E85 saved upwards of $200 million at the pump. E85 is both a buffer and a bridge to California’s aggressive clean fuel policies. Electrification of California’s vehicle fleet will take many years to successfully implement. In the meantime, there are over a million FFVs on California roads capable of using E85 today.”

More than 200 additional E85 sites are contracted to open over the next few years with Pearson Fuels. The Nebraska Corn Board, Missouri Corn and the Kansas Corn Commission have contributed grant funding, which allows the company to accelerate the growth of E85 across California.

E85, Ethanol, Ethanol News

RFA Testifies at Low Carbon, Clean Fuels Hearing

Cindy Zimmerman

The Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee held a hearing Wednesday on “The Future of Low Carbon Transportation Fuels and Considerations for a National Clean Fuels Program.”

Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Geoff Cooper testified at the hearing, stressing that implementing a national clean fuel program that incorporates a market-based, technology-neutral approach will be critical to decarbonizing the U.S. transportation sector.

“While policies such as the Renewable Fuel Standard, the Inflation Reduction Act, and light-duty vehicle fuel economy and tailpipe standards will play a vital role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions from transportation, other complementary solutions will also be required to truly decarbonize the sector by mid-century,” said RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper. “If properly structured, a national Clean Fuel Program (sometimes called a Low Carbon Fuel Standard or Clean Fuel Standard) offers the best potential to rapidly accelerate the decarbonization of the transportation sector, while simultaneously enhancing energy security, creating jobs, and reducing tailpipe emissions of pollutants linked to poor air quality and human health challenges.”

Cooper noted that RFA member companies have committed to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 or sooner and a workable pathway has been developed toward that goal. However, he says such a goal requires policies that align with it, including:

-fairness and consistency in how the carbon footprint of different fuels and vehicles is measured;
-removal of unnecessary regulatory barriers that are blocking the use of fuel blends that contain higher levels of ethanol, such as 15 percent ethanol blends (E15);
-continued investment in storage and distribution infrastructure for higher ethanol blends like E15 and flex fuels like E85;
-implementation of strong Renewable Fuel Standard volume requirements in 2023 and beyond;
-equitable incentives for the production of flex-fuel vehicles that can operate on fuels containing up to 85 percent ethanol; and
-a well-structured nationwide clean fuels policy.

Read Cooper’s written testimony and listen to his remarks below.
RFA CEO Geoff Cooper, Senate EPW hearing (4:28)

Audio, biofuels, Carbon, carbon capture, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Low Carbon Fuel Standard, Renewable Fuels Association, RFA

Report Shows Carbon Sequestration Vital to Iowa Ethanol

Cindy Zimmerman

The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) released a new study this week that found without viable access to carbon capture and sequestration (CCS), Iowa could see 75 percent of its ethanol production migrate to states that facilitate sequestration.

The study, conducted by Decision Innovation Solutions (DIS), determined that current market and policy dynamics would results in Iowa ethanol production becoming noncompetitive with catastrophic results for Iowa ethanol producers, Iowa farmers and the Iowa economy.

The study found that without carbon sequestration, ethanol production will move out of state and by the end of the decade Iowa ethanol production could drop as much as 3.5 billion gallons per year, which would lead many plants to shut down. That would cause Iowa farmers to lose local markets for over 1 billion bushels of corn annually, depressing local corn prices and Iowa would realize an eventual decline in revenues from ethanol plants of more than $10 billion per year.

Read the study

Listen to a press conference with IRFA president Al Giese, Quad County Corn Processors; IRFA Executive Director Monte Shaw, and study author David Miller, Consulting Chief Economist, Decision Innovation Solutions (DIS).
Iowa RFA Study release (23:48)

Audio, Carbon, carbon capture, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Iowa RFA

Yield10 Bioscience Offers 2023 Camelina Production Contracts

Cindy Zimmerman

a href=”http://agwired.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/y-10.png”>Yield10 Bioscience has announced its 2023 enrollment program for contract production of Camelina in targeted areas of the United States and Canada. Contracts are being offered for both spring and winter varieties of Camelina to farmers in Western Canada (Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba), and Northern U.S. states of Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Idaho and Minnesota.

In 2023, Yield10 plans to contract with growers for planting high-performing, spring and winter Camelina varieties as part of an initiative to establish pre-commercial production and offtake relationships in the biofuels market. These grower contracts currently do not require up-front costs for seed and provide a guaranteed minimum revenue per acre. Among the benefits of the program is that it allows for the product to be moved off the farm quickly following harvest. Yield10 plans to expand the planting acreage going forward by providing growers improved varieties, including introducing herbicide tolerant Camelina to enable better weed control and higher yields over time. Yield10 is currently field-testing herbicide tolerant Camelina varieties for seed scale up, regulatory approval, and commercial development for the biofuel market.

More information is available on Yield10’s Camelina Opportunities for Growers, please contact Darren Greenfield or Davis McCarthy at growers@yield10bio.com.

biofuels, Farming, feedstocks

NCGA Analyses Ethanol Demand and Corn Stocks

Cindy Zimmerman

National Corn Growers Association economist Krista Swanson analyzed the most recent data from USDA and the Energy Information Administration (EIA) regarding ethanol demand and corn supplies.

Swanson notes that projected corn ethanol use for the 2022/23 marketing year declined by 25 million bushels from last month, according to the February UDSA World Agriculture Supply & Demand Estimates report. “As the only change on the supply or demand side of the corn balance sheet, it resulted in a corresponding increase of 25 million bushels in projected corn ending stocks for the current marketing year.”

Despite a return to the post-COVID normal in 2022, fuel ethanol produced using corn trailed the years leading up to the 2020 COVID disruptions. “After dropping to 13.9 billion gallons in 2020 and recovering to 15.0 billion gallons in 2021, production in 2022 was 15.4 billion gallons. This is 88% of the 17.4 billion gallon per year total of U.S. ethanol production capacity.”

The February EIA Short-Term Energy Outlook projects a 2023 fuel ethanol production of 15.2 billion gallons, a 1% decline from 2022. Though not a significant reduction from 2022, the sector is falling about 5% short of the pre-COVID production levels.

Among the factors that impact ethanol production are motor gas consumption and ethanol blend rate. Motor gas consumption fell to 123.4 billion gallons in 2020, a 13.7% decline from the 2017 to 2019 annual average of 142.9 billion gallons. Statistics from the U.S. Department of Transportation show that vehicle traffic volume for 2022 was back to pre-COVID levels, indicating that miles driven is not a factor in lower ethanol use.

The ethanol blend rate, the amount of ethanol blended relative to the amount of motor gasoline consumed, has moved incrementally higher annually but still would round to 10% for the past decade. This is not surprising given nearly all gas sold in the U.S. contains 10% ethanol. Higher blends such as E15, marketed as UNL88 and E85, are available in various markets across the U.S. Expansion of and availability of higher ethanol blends is needed to break through this 10% blend wall.

Swanson concludes that the “capacity for greater corn ethanol production is already available, and the U.S. could be using more of it.”

corn, Ethanol, Ethanol News, NCGA

Biofuels Groups Submit Final RFS Proposal Comments

Cindy Zimmerman

Biofuels stakeholder organizations have submitted final comments on the proposed Renewable Fuel Standards for 2023, 2024, and 2025 to the Environmental Protection Agency prior to the deadline on February 10.

The Renewable Fuels Association said the proposed renewable volume obligations for 2023-2025 will bolster the Renewable Fuel Standard and provide for sustainable growth in low-carbon renewable liquid fuels. “Moving forward, expanding the use of low-carbon renewable fuels like ethanol is the most immediate and effective strategy for meeting the Administration’s carbon reduction goals,” wrote RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper, who noted that under the RFS, renewable fuels like ethanol have already resulted in the avoidance of more than 1.2 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector. “Once finalized, the 2023-2025 RVOs will further enhance the energy security, carbon reduction, and economic benefits that have already been realized under the RFS program.”

American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) CEO Brian Jennings highlighted areas of support in the proposal, while detailing how to adjust the rule to maximize this significant new phase of the RFS to ensure the overall goal of the program is left intact — to increase the percentage of renewable fuels consumed in the U.S. Among ACE’s objections to the proposal are concerns it may retroactively waive blending levels established by this rulemaking and breaking precedent by giving Tesla and other vehicle manufacturers the ability to generate eRINs when all other RINs are generated by the producer of the renewable fuel.

In its formal comments, Clean Fuels Alliance America urged EPA to either raise RFS multiyear volumes or only finalize 2023 volumes. The group – which represents biodiesel, renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel – wants EPA to significantly increase the volumes for biomass-based diesel and other advanced biofuels over the next three years, based on the factors that EPA is required to consider, such as the commercial development of these fuels, the positive impact on the economy, the benefits for consumers, and the significant environmental benefits.

Comments from the Advanced Biofuels Association also urge the agency to increase the Renewable Fuels Standard Program’s proposed Renewable Volume Obligations (RVOs) for 2023 – 2025 to accurately reflect the volumes of advanced, biomass-based diesel, and cellulosic pools available in the market.

“The EPA’s multiyear RFS proposal ignores the proven production capacity of advanced low-carbon liquid transportation fuels, essentially undermining Congress’ intent for the program by flatlining renewable fuel obligations and stretching the law to categorize electricity as a ‘fuel’,” said Michael McAdams, president of the Advanced Biofuels Association.

ACE, advanced biofuels, aviation biofuels, Biodiesel, biofuels, Carbon, Clean Fuels Alliance, EPA, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Renewable Fuels Association, RFA, RFS