MN Bio-Fuels Appoints New Executive Director

Cindy Zimmerman

The Minnesota Bio-Fuels Association (MN Bio-Fuels) has appointed Brian Werner as its new executive director.

Prior to joining MN Bio-Fuels, Werner was the deputy legislative director / senior legislative assistant for renewable energy and agriculture for Sen. Amy Klobuchar.

During that time, he supported Klobuchar’s work to protect mandatory funding for Farm Bill energy title programs, maintain stability in the implementation of the Renewable Fuel Standard, provide economic relief for biofuel producers negatively affected by the coronavirus pandemic, and secure federal investment in biofuel infrastructure.

“After a decade and a half in our nation’s capital working on agriculture and biofuel policy, I am honored and beyond excited to be coming home to lead MN Bio-Fuels. It is clear that farm-based, homegrown biofuels are a key solution to many of the issues we face today – reducing carbon emissions, strengthening national security, promoting rural economic development, and lowering energy costs for consumers,” Werner said.

Biodiesel, biofuels, Ethanol, Ethanol News

Ethanol Report on The Set

Cindy Zimmerman

When Congress passed the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA) that authorized the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), annual volume requirements were specified through the year 2022 for renewable fuels. But that does not mean this year is the end of the RFS.

After this year, the law requires EPA to set RFS volumes for 2023 and beyond, in coordination with the Secretary of Energy and the Secretary of Agriculture, according to a specific set of factors in a rulemaking commonly referred to as “The Set.”

In this edition of the Ethanol Report, Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Geoff Cooper and National Corn Growers Association CEO Jon Doggett discuss what the set means for the ethanol industry and farmers.

Ethanol Report 9-27-22 (13:10)

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.

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Audio, biofuels, corn, EPA, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Ethanol Report, NCGA, Renewable Fuels Association, RFA

Renewable Fuels Industry Holds Briefing on Set Rule

Cindy Zimmerman

Fuels America held a webinar briefing with industry stakeholders Thursday about the future of the Renewable Fuel Standard.

Under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program in the Clean Air Act, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sets annual biofuel blending requirements in accordance with volumes determined by Congress through 2022. After 2022, in a rulemaking commonly referred to as “The Set,” the EPA is required to establish volume requirements for 2023 and beyond according to a specific set of factors in the law. Under a consent decree in the matter of Growth Energy v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA is required to propose volumes for 2023 no later than November 16, 2022 and finalize them no later than June 14, 2023.

The briefing included comments from Brooke Coleman, Advanced Biofuels Business Council; Emily Skor, Growth Energy; Jon Doggett, National Corn Growers Association; Geoff Cooper, Renewable Fuels Association; and Donnell Rehagen, Clean Fuels Alliance America.

Cooper said RFA believes a strong SET rule could do much to further carbon intensity reduction efforts. “The RFS is the only statutory program on the books today that requires fuel decarbonization,” said Cooper. “So we believe EPA really has an opportunity to double down on the authority to decarbonize fuels under the RFS.”

Rehagen concentrated more on the biomass-based diesel side of the industry – biodiesel, renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuels. “Beyond the carbon benefits, we are very proud of the fact that we are having some very positive benefits on human health as well,” he said. “Particulate matter is an increasingly significant factor in declining human health and our fuels bring a significant reduction in particulate matter.”

Listen to the briefing here:
Fuels America briefing 58:44

Audio, aviation biofuels, Biodiesel, biofuels, Clean Fuels Alliance, corn, Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA

DriveClean Initiative Launches

Cindy Zimmerman

A diverse coalition of organizations has launched DriveClean, a multi-sector initiative to work on bipartisan legislation creating a market-based, technology-neutral national Clean Fuel Standard (CFS) during the 118th Congress that convenes in January.

The coalition is made up of organizations representing agriculture, utilities, renewable fuel producers, environmentalists, technology firms, EV charging companies, and truck and bus manufacturers. Among those groups are the American Coalition for Ethanol; Alder Fuels; Christianson CPAs & Consultants; ClearFlame Engine Technologies; CleanFuture; Electrify America; e-Mission Control; Great Plains Institute; Low-Carbon Fuels Coalition; Fulcrum Bioenergy; POET; Propel; Rivian; Renewable Fuels Association (RFA), and World Energy – just to name a few.

“The biofuels industry applauds the efforts of the DriveClean initiative, which build on the many successes of the federal Renewable Fuels Standard while leveling the playing field for additional home-grown fuels and technology,” said Geoff Cooper, RFA President and CEO. “Our members are ready to help push Clean Fuel Standard legislation across the finish line and put the U.S. on an achievable path to meeting near- and long-term decarbonization goals.”

“There are few tools that have proven more effective than Clean Fuel Standards for driving rapid decarbonization, as has been seen in states like California. They are performance-based, technology-agnostic, and fuel-neutral, the perfect combination for unlocking the private sector to invest, innovate and drive down carbon emissions,” said Dr. BJ Johnson, Co-Founder and CEO at ClearFlame Engine Technologies, who spoke at the recent 2022 American Coalition for Ethanol Conference.

Listen to his presentation at the ACE here:
ACE22 remarks BJ Johnson, ClearFlame Engine (14:00)

ACE, ACE Ethanol Conference, Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Renewable Fuels Association, RFA

USDA Lowers Corn Use Outlook

Cindy Zimmerman

USDA’s World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report for September calls for lower supplies, smaller feed and residual use, reduced exports and corn used for ethanol, and tighter ending stocks for the 2022-23 corn crop.

Projected beginning stocks for 2022/23 are 5 million bushels lower based on essentially offsetting export and corn used for ethanol changes for 2021/22. Corn production for 2022/23 is forecast at 13.9 billion bushels, down 415 million from last month on reductions to harvested area and yield. The national average yield is forecast at 172.5 bushels per acre, down 2.9 bushels. Harvested area for grain is forecast at 80.8 million acres, down 1.0 million. Total U.S. corn use is cut 250 million bushels to 14.3 billion. Feed and residual use is lowered 100 million bushels based on a smaller crop and higher expected prices. Exports are cut 100 million bushels to 2.3 billion while corn used for ethanol is lowered 50 million to 5.3 billion. With supply falling more than use, ending stocks are down 169 million bushels to 1.2 billion. The season-average corn price received by producers is raised 10 cents to $6.75 per bushel.

corn, Ethanol, Ethanol News, USDA

USDA Announces Climate Smart Commodities Project Funding

Cindy Zimmerman

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is investing up to $2.8 billion in 70 selected projects under the first wave of the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities funding opportunity, with more projects to be announced later this year. More than 450 proposals were submitted for the funding opportunity and the strength of the projects identified led USDA to increase its investment from the initial $1 billion to more than $3 billion.

Among the proposals approved this round that benefit the biofuels sector is $30 million for the GEVO Climate-Smart Farm-to-Flight Program. The project aims to create critical structural climate-smart market incentives for low carbon-intensity corn as well as to accelerate the production of sustainable aviation fuel, which includes an immediate market opportunity to sell climate-smart, low-climate-impact corn.

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack discussed the announcement with reporters Tuesday afternoon and made the official announcement Wednesday morning.
Vilsack Climate Smart Partnership press call 32:26

Vilsack Climate Smart Partnership announcement 12:50

Audio, aviation biofuels, biofuels, corn, Ethanol, Ethanol News, USDA

RFA CEO Joins White House Climate Law Celebration

Cindy Zimmerman

RFA CEO Geoff Cooper arrives at the White House Tuesday

Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) President and CEO Geoff Cooper attended an event at the White House Tuesday to celebrate passage of the Inflation Reduction Act which includes provisions to benefit the biofuels sector.

“There are lots of tax credit and grant provisions in there for renewable fuels and we are most excited about the sustainable aviation fuel tax credit,” said Cooper during a reporter roundtable Tuesday morning. “We see huge opportunity for ethanol in the SAF space in the future. There’s already significant investment being made in our industry to transform some existing first generation biorefineries into sustainable aviation fuel facilities.”

Cooper says other provisions in the legislation for the ethanol industry include the Clean Fuels Production Credit, which is a performance based, technology neutral credit. “We already have lots of ethanol in the marketplace today that is reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent,” he said.

Cooper commented on a number of other ethanol industry issues, including the potential of railway and port transportation strikes. “If we can’t move ethanol, plants have to shut down – it’s that simple.”

Listen to the entire roundtable here:
RFA Reporter Roundtable 40:36

Audio, biofuels, Carbon, carbon capture, E15, Ethanol, Renewable Fuels Association, RFA

Clean Fuels and EPA Pause Food Waste Records Litigation

Cindy Zimmerman

Clean Fuels Alliance America and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency have agreed to pause on a lawsuit challenging new recordkeeping requirements for biodiesel and renewable diesel producers who use separated food waste, such as used cooking oil, as a feedstock.

The parties agreed to put the case in abeyance through November 30, 2022, while Clean Fuels and its members continue working with the Environmental Protection Agency to develop practical compliance options for biodiesel and renewable diesel producers. “We appreciate EPA’s willingness to meet with our members, listen to the issues they faced in complying with the new recordkeeping requirements, and work cooperatively to help our members meet the requirements,” said Clean Fuels’ Vice President of Federal Affairs Kurt Kovarik.

On August 11, 2022, the Court of Appeals granted Clean Fuels’ motion to sever the dispute from the RFS Power Coalition case, a consolidated group of challenges to EPA’s final 2020 Renewable Fuel Standard rule. Clean Fuels sought this action because EPA had failed to revise the new separated food waste requirements in the rewritten 2020 RFS rule and because Clean Fuels’ members demonstrated harm from the new requirements. When the Court granted Clean Fuels’ motion for severance, it put the case on a track for quicker resolution. EPA and Clean Fuels members have been working to develop alternative methods for biodiesel and renewable diesel producers to meet the new recordkeeping requirements.

Biodiesel, biofuels, Clean Fuels Alliance, EPA, renewable diesel

RFA Rebuts Reuters Ethanol Plant Emissions Article

Cindy Zimmerman

The Renewable Fuels Association responded to a Reuters article published Thursday entitled “How U.S. regulators allow ethanol plants to pollute more than oil refineries.”

The article states that “ethanol plants produce more than double the climate-damaging pollution, per gallon of fuel production capacity, than the nation’s oil refineries, according to a Reuters analysis of federal data” because the majority of U.S. biorefineries are exempt from an EPA requirement that plants use certain emissions-control processes.

RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper sent the reporter the following statement when contacted for comment regarding the article. “To truly understand the climate impacts of transportation fuels, you have to look at the emissions associated with every step in the production process. Narrowly focusing on just one piece of the carbon lifecycle is inappropriate, misleading, and misses the forest for the trees. When all of the energy inputs and emissions related to producing corn ethanol are properly considered from beginning to end, it is clear that the fuel has a lifecycle carbon intensity that is 40-50% lower than gasoline. The science is clear that ethanol offers a significant and immediate carbon savings compared to petroleum.”

RFA added, “If one took the same analytical approach to electricity that the reporter is taking with ethanol and petroleum refining, the emissions related to electricity generation across most of the United States would be 14 to 35 times worse than the estimate for ethanol (per gasoline-gallon equivalent) and 27 to 66 times worse than the estimate for refined petroleum products (the low end is natural gas; high end is coal).”

Cooper concluded, “The fact is, ethanol and other biofuels offer significant carbon emissions reductions today, and there is a clear and workable pathway toward net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 or sooner.”

corn, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Renewable Fuels Association, RFA

U.S. Exports of Ethanol and DDGS Up in July

Cindy Zimmerman

In the latest trade monitor update from the Renewable Fuels Association, U.S. exports of both ethanol and the co-product dried distillers grains (DDGS) were up in July.

Exports of ethanol increased six percent in July to 107.2 million gallons (mg), marking the tenth consecutive month that exports were over 100 mg.

Canada imported 41.6 mg, up 1%, to maintain its status as our largest customer. Sales to Singapore quadrupled to 12.3 mg (its largest imports of U.S. ethanol since Jan. 2018), while exports to the Netherlands increased 7% to 11.4 mg. However, shipments to South Korea declined by a third to an 8-month low of 9.3 mg. Other substantial importers of U.S. ethanol included Peru (5.6 mg, +73%), Mexico (5.3 mg, +10%), and the United Kingdom (4.5 mg, -63%). China and Brazil again were not key market players in July. Total U.S. ethanol exports for the first seven months of 2022 were 932.9 mg, up 30% from the same period in 2021 and remaining on a record pace.

DDGS exports in July were up five percent to a six month high of 1.06 million metric tons.

Mexico returned as our largest market, up 40% to 221,587 mt, representing 21% of July shipments. Turkey imported 111,813 mt, up 2% and its largest volume of U.S. DDGS in a year. Vietnam cut its imports by half to 103,068 mt on the heels of sharply higher sales in June, and exports to Indonesia slipped 1% to 93,161 mt. These four countries represented half of our export market in July. Other larger markets included Canada (87,431 mt, -11%), South Korea (86,071, +6%), Japan (59,187 mt, +118%), Israel (54,776 mt, +90% to a record high), and Ireland (45,388 mt, +36%). The remaining U.S. DDGS shipments were dispersed among another 20 countries. Year-to-date exports totaled 6.73 million mt, which is 4% greater than the same period in 2021.

Increasing markets for U.S. DDGS exports will be in focus next month at the Export Exchange, which allows overseas attendees the opportunity to build relationships with U.S. suppliers. This will be the first time the biennial event, which is co-sponsored by RFA, has been held since 2018. The conference in Minneapolis October 12-14 is expected to attract more than 350 attendees, including 150 from 50 countries participating.

RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper talked about ethanol industry exports and the Export Exchange during this interview from the Farm Progress Show last week.
FPS22 Interview with RFA CEO Geoff Cooper (8:46)

Audio, Distillers Grains, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Exports, RFA