Clean Fuels Conference Outlines Opportunities Ahead

Cindy Zimmerman

The annual Clean Fuels Conference hosted by Clean Fuels Alliance America last week in San Diego was a great success with nearly 750 leaders from the biodiesel and renewable diesel value chain meeting to learn more about the state of the industry today and the outlook for the near-and long-term.

The clean fuels industry is coming off a year of historic production, reaching an estimated 5 billion gallons in 2024 and new soy crush capacity is coming online to fuel even more progress in 2025, Clean Fuels CEO Donnell Rehagen said in opening remarks.

“The soybean crush industry has invested over $6 billion in the largest expansion of soybean crush in over 50 years,” Rehagen said. “They have seen our industry grow and they believe, like we do, that growing demand for clean liquid renewable fuels is now the new norm. They see our fuels have now reached a relevance worth investing in.”

Policies at the state and federal levels provide a mixed bag, with opportunities for continued growth along with new challenges. At the federal level, there remains uncertainty in the Renewable Fuel Standard as the Environmental Protection Agency missed its November deadline to set volumes for this year.

“This makes it all the more critical that we advocate for significant growth in those volumes and push this administration to finalize them soon, so we don’t find ourselves this time next year without RVO levels for 2026,” Rehagen said.

Rehagen says they are excited about the growth of the Clean Fuels Alliance in the rail industry. “We just this last year in 2024 saw all six Class I railroads become members of Clean Fuels Alliance America and as users of our fuels, that’s a little bit unique in our membership,” said Rehagen. “This is a brand new emerging market that three years ago was using zero of our fuels and that’s a four billion gallon diesel industry right there.”

Listen to the Donnell’s wrap up interview below:
Clean Fuels interview Donnell Rehagen (5:19)

Check out all the audio and photos from the conference in the Clean Fuels Conference Virtual Newsroom.

advanced biofuels, Audio, aviation biofuels, Biodiesel, Clean Fuels Alliance

Clean Fuels Foundation Update

Cindy Zimmerman

Clean Fuels Foundation Auction

The 2025 Clean Fuels Alliance Foundation annual auction was a tremendous success, raising over $29,000. This year, the auction featured a record number of 74 items donated by Clean Fuels Alliance of America members and Foundation supporters. “Funds raised from the auction will play a vital role in supporting our educational activities for the upcoming year,” said Tom Verry, Executive Director of the Clean Fuels Foundation.

Verry says a critical mission of the Foundation is education. “We have a great partnership with folks like Iowa Renewable Fuel Association and they have a tour every summer where they visit farms and biodiesel plants,” said Verry. “Then we do, we do three tours around the country, West Coast, East Coast, and in the middle where we also show them where the fuel is made, distributed and used.”

The Clean Fuels Alliance Foundation Board of Directors also recently welcomed a new Director. Ezra Finkin is the Director for Corporate Affairs and Development with Chevron Renewable Energy Group, a business unit of Chevron producing biodiesel and renewable diesel fuel.

In addition to Finkin, biodiesel industry leaders currently serving on the Foundation’s Board are:
Mark Caspers, Chairman (Nebraska Soybean Board)
Dave Walton, Vice Chairman (Iowa Soybean Association)
Chris Hill, Treasurer (American Soybean Association)
Colin Huwyler, Secretary (CEO, Optimus Technologies)
Michael Dolch, Director (AGP)
Rob Shaffer, Director (American Soybean Association)

Learn more about the Foundation in this interview with Verry from last week’s Clean Fuels Conference.

Clean Fuels interview - Tom Verry, Clean Fuels Foundation (2:56)

Audio, Biodiesel, Clean Fuels Alliance, Education

Biofuels Groups Pleased with Zeldin Confirmation

Cindy Zimmerman

The U.S. Senate Wednesday confirmed the nomination of Lee Zeldin to become administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency and biofuels groups are happy with the decision.

Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Geoff Cooper said they are looking forward to working with Administrator Zeldin. “As noted during his Senate confirmation hearing, Mr. Zeldin understands that ethanol and other renewable fuels will play an important role in accomplishing the President’s energy and environmental objectives. We are confident he will support timely and transparent implementation of the Renewable Fuel Standard, take steps to facilitate expansion of lower-cost fuel blends like E15, and revisit extreme regulations that force automakers to produce costly electric vehicles that are heavily dependent on foreign raw materials.”

Cooper talked about working with Zeldin and other members of the new administration in the latest Ethanol Report podcast.

American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) CEO Brian Jennings said, “We congratulate Lee Zeldin on his confirmation to lead EPA and look forward to working with him to keep the Renewable Fuel Standard on track, including safeguarding against the misuse of Small Refinery Exemptions and promptly moving forward on biofuel blending obligations for 2026 and beyond. Other priorities we will be raising with Administrator Zeldin include providing consumers with choices to use higher blends of ethanol in flexible fuel vehicles, supporting efforts to ensure nationwide year-round availability of E15, and applying the most recent GREET model to determine the lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions for corn ethanol.”

ACE, EPA, Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA

Ethanol Report on Working with New Administration

Cindy Zimmerman

President Donald Trump has been very busy since his inauguration issuing executive orders, making changes, and freezing funding, but how will his actions impact the ethanol industry?

In this edition of the Ethanol Report podcast, Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Geoff Cooper comments on some of the actions President Trump has taken and where ethanol’s priorities stand in both the new administration and the new Congress.

Ethanol Report 1-29-25 24:25

The Ethanol Report is a podcast about the latest news and information in the ethanol industry that has been sponsored by the Renewable Fuels Association since 2008.

Choose an option to subscribe

E15, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Ethanol Report, Renewable Fuels Association, RFA

Popular Vehicle Showcase in the Spotlight

Cindy Zimmerman

It was a beautiful sunset in San Diego last week for the Clean Fuels Vehicle Technology Showcase as major OEMs and fleets previewed the latest diesel technology in their lineup for 2025.

OEM Market Development Manager for Clean Fuels Alliance America Jennifer Weaver once again hosted the popular panel spotlighting some of the latest technology. This year, the line-up featured Caterpillar, International Motors, Peterbilt, Optimus Technologies, and PepsiCo on the main stage.

Joel Feucht, VP & General Manager for Large Power Systems, Caterpillar Inc.
Clean Fuels remarks - Joel Feucht, Caterpillar (6:50)

David Hillman, Integrated Technology Sales | Commercial Operations, International Motors
Clean Fuels remarks - David Hillman, International Motors (6:12)

Jake Schlemper, District Sales Manager, Peterbilt Motors
Clean Fuels remarks - Jake Schlemper, Peterbilt Motors (3:33)

Colin Huwyler, CEO, Optimus Technologies
Clean Fuels remarks - Colin Huwyler, Optimus Technologies (5:12)

David Allen, Vice President & Chief Sustainability Officer, PepsiCo Foods North America
Clean Fuels remarks - David Allen, PepsiCo (5:11)

2025 Clean Fuels Conference Photo Album

Audio, Biodiesel, Clean Fuels Alliance, renewable diesel

Ag Secretary Nominee Faces Questions on Biofuels Support

Cindy Zimmerman

President Donald Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Agriculture faced questions about her support of biofuels during her Senate confirmation hearing on Thursday.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) challenged Rollins’ previous support of policy against biofuels when she was CEO of the Texas Public Policy Foundation from 2003-2018. “To be clear, coming from Texas, I was a massive defender of fossil fuels in the energy independence narrative,” Rollins admitted. But noting President Trump’s support of biofuels and the conversations she has had with other senators, Rollins promised, “I will be a secretary for all of agriculture.”

Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) also questioned Rollins’ about USDA’s role in setting renewable fuels policy and determining rules for the 45z Clean Fuels Production Tax Credit. “I look forward to working with my friend Lee Zeldin at EPA and on 45Z with my friend Scott Bessent at Treasury,” she said. “You will find that the cabinet, if confirmed, we all know each other and are really looking forward to working together on these cross-agency issues.”

Rollins hearing - Sen. Klobuchar (4:15)

Rollins hearing - Sen. Ernst (8:10)

American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) CEO Brian Jennings thanked Sens. Klobuchar and Ernst, as well as Sens. Tina Smith (D-MN), Roger Marshall (R-KS), and Jerry Moran (R-KS), for raising important biofuel questions during the nomination hearing. “ACE looks forward to working with Rollins to ‘defend and elevate all sources of fuel,’ including biofuels, and continue making progress on our USDA RCPP projects designed to unlock new market opportunities for farmers and renewable fuel producers,” said Jennings. “We’re also encouraged she expressed that she’ll work with her counterparts at EPA and the Treasury Department on cross-agency issues, like year-round access to E15 nationwide, the Renewable Fuel Standard, and the 45Z Clean Fuel Production Tax Credit.”

ACE is hosting its 14th annual DC Fly-In & Government Affairs Summit coming up March 27-28 where members will be on Capitol Hill speaking with representatives of Congress and the new administration.

Audio, Biodiesel, biofuels, Ethanol, Ethanol News, USDA

Clean Fuels Chair Confident Moving Forward

Cindy Zimmerman

Kent Engelbrecht serves as director of North American Biodiesel Trade Policy for ADM, one of the world’s leading biodiesel producers, oilseed crushers, and suppliers of soy and canola feedstocks for the renewable liquid fuels industry.

Engelbrecht is also Chairman of the Clean Fuels America Alliance, and he is Chairman of the California Advanced Biofuels Alliance (CABA), as well as Advanced Biofuels Canada (ABFC). He was chair of the National Biodiesel Board in 2017 before it became Clean Fuels at a time that was very similar to today.

“It was another difficult time in the industry,” he said in remarks at the Clean Fuels Conference in San Diego Wednesday. “In many ways, it was similar to what we’re facing now. We’ve got headwinds generated by issues that aren’t entirely within our control. Back then we had issues with tax credits, RFS, and we weren’t really sure what to expect with the new president for the next 4 years. Sound familiar?”

Engelbrecht says it created a situation where the industry had to go beyond soybeans and build a coalition of complimentary feedstocks and technologies.

“And we’ve created our path forward. We’ve established renewable diesel as an important part of the country’s energy supply and laid the groundwork for sustainable aviation fuel. Dozens of states across the country have added new clean fuel incentives,” said Engelbrecht. “I look forward to working together as we write this next chapter together.”

Listen to Engelbrecht’s remarks and interview:
Clean Fuels remarks - Kent Engelbrecht, ADM (14:04)

Clean Fuels interview - Kent Engelbrecht, ADM (2:37)

2025 Clean Fuels Conference Photo Album

Audio, aviation biofuels, Biodiesel, Clean Fuels Alliance, renewable diesel, SAF

Groups Oppose Plan to Lower Cellulosic RVOs

Cindy Zimmerman

Biofuels organizations have submitted comments opposed to a proposed rule announced by EPA last month to partially waive the 2024 cellulosic biofuel volume requirement and revise the associated percentage standard under the Renewable Fuel Standard program due to a shortfall in cellulosic biofuel production.

The Renewable Fuels Association comments that “retrospectively lowering RVOs destabilizes the RIN market, discourages investment, and is contrary to the market-forcing purpose of the RFS program.”
Reopening RVOs long after they have been finalized chills investment and growth in cellulosic biofuel production and causes a loss of confidence in EPA’s standards. However, we understand the challenge EPA is facing with regard to setting cellulosic biofuel standards in a manner that is simultaneously consistent with the agency’s statutory authorities, court decisions, and the Congressional intent of the RFS program. It is critical that any decision to utilize the agency’s waiver authority to partially waive the 2024 cellulosic biofuel RVO clearly meets the statutory requirements for such waivers. Unfortunately, we do not believe that EPA’s proposal to use its general waiver authority has fully satisfied these requirements.

Clean Fuels Alliance America, which is meeting this week in San Diego, also submitted comments opposing the rule.
“Clean Fuels asks EPA to pause the rulemaking process until the agency can provide a full accounting of available cellulosic RINs for 2024 and consider whether pending small refinery exemptions or other mechanisms provide relief to refiners. Additionally, Clean Fuels encourages EPA to address the significant underestimation of biomass-based diesel and advanced biofuel volumes for 2024 and 2025.”

Kurt Kovarik, Clean Fuels Vice President of Federal Affairs, added, “EPA’s low volumes are holding back the potential of the clean fuels industry to meet the energy security, environmental, and economic goals of the RFS.”

Yesterday was the last day of the comment period for the rule.

advanced biofuels, biofuels, Cellulosic, Clean Fuels Alliance, RFA

Farm to Fly Act Reintroduced in Senate

Cindy Zimmerman

Midwest senators have reintroduced the Farm to Fly Act that would help accelerate the production and development of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF)

U.S. Senators Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) reintroduced the legislation that would utilize current USDA programs to support the development of SAF, clarify federal definitions for SAF and enable greater collaboration between USDA and the private sector. In September, Sens. Moran, Duckworth, Klobuchar and John Boozman (R-Ark.) launched the Sustainable Aviation Caucus to promote the longevity of the aviation and renewable fuels industries.

The Farm to Fly Act would:
Clarify eligibility for SAF within current USDA Bio-Energy Programs, expanding markets for American agricultural crops through aviation bioenergy;
Provide for greater collaboration for aviation biofuels throughout USDA agency mission areas, increasing private sector partnerships; and
Affirm a common definition of SAF for USDA purposes, as widely supported by industry to enable U.S. crops to most effectively contribute to aviation renewable fuels.

Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Geoff Cooper says the legislation would create more clarity and stability around the development of SAF made from U.S. crops. “This bill would be critical in helping position SAF for takeoff by ensuring the best available science and modeling tools are used to calculate the carbon benefits of homegrown renewable fuels.”

“The Farm to Fly Act is a meaningful step forward in harnessing the full potential of American agriculture to advance sustainable aviation fuel,” said Alison Graab, Executive Director of the SAF Coalition. “By helping to expand markets for U.S. farmers, this legislation not only strengthens our nation’s energy dominance but also uplifts rural communities across the country.”

aviation biofuels, Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA, SAF

Clean Fuels is California Dreamin’

Cindy Zimmerman

The current and future role of biodiesel and renewable diesel in California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard was the topic for the first panel discussion of the 2025 Clean Fuels Conference – California Dreamin’: Clean Fuels’ Time to Shine.

Carlos Gutierrez, California Advanced Biofuels Alliance (CABA), moderated the conversation with Harry Simpson, CEO of Crimson Renewable Energy Holdings, the largest producer of biodiesel in California; Floyd Vergara, retired Director of State Governmental Affairs for Clean Fuels Alliance America; and Richard Battersby, Assistant Director Public Works Agency City of Oakland, CA.

Listen here:
Clean Fuels California Dreamin' panel (37:23)

2025 Clean Fuels Conference Photo Album

Clean Fuels Conference Blog

Audio, Biodiesel, Clean Fuels Alliance, renewable diesel