In the News
By David Shaffer
Feb 2, 2015
Some ethanol makers are cheering a new biotech corn engineered strictly to produce biofuel.
Six Midwestern ethanol plants now use the hybrid called Enogen, the first corn genetically enhanced for ethanol production. Seven other ethanol makers, including Chippewa Valley Ethanol Co. in Benson, Minn., are trying it out.
“Enogen technology is truly a unique advancement in our industry,” said Mick Miller, general manager of Denco II, a farmer-owned ethanol plant in Morris, Minn., that did a trial run with the ethanol-tailored corn.
Scientists for seed giant Syngenta altered the corn to produce — within the kernel — an enzyme needed to refine biofuel. Ethanol plants using Enogen say its embedded enzyme works better than enzymes purchased separately — producing more ethanol per bushel of corn and using less energy to do it.
Jack Bernens, who heads the marketing of Enogen out of Syngenta’s regional headquarters in Minnetonka, said ethanol plants using the hybrid see a 2 to 6 percent gain in ethanol yield per bushel.
“So the plant with no additional bricks and mortar can produce more ethanol,” Bernens said.
Most of the nation’s 200 ethanol plants haven’t tried Enogen, although Syngenta is ramping up production and marketing. If the biotech corn can further boost the industry’s efficiency, it would give corn ethanol a better carbon footprint. Yet that seeming benefit is unlikely to sway environmental critics who oppose expansive corn planting as unsustainable.
“It may very well improve corn ethanol production somewhat,” said Doug Gurian-Sherman, director of sustainable agriculture at the Washington, D.C., nonprofit Center for Food Safety. “I am skeptical that it is going to be a net, significant plus.”
Enzyme companies are not idly watching as corn begins sprouting enzymes. Industry leader Novozymes reported a 19 percent boost in biofuel-related sales last year, thanks partly to its yield-enhancing Avantec enzyme introduced in 2012 and used by a third of North American ethanol plants. The Danish company says it will launch new technology this year to further increase corn-ethanol yields.
Corn Strictly For Fuel
Farmers in Minnesota, Iowa and other states are growing the new enzyme-exuding corn hybrid.
The appeal is a guaranteed extra payment for each bushel. In return, farmers must follow special procedures designed to keep Enogen out of the food supply. But not all farmers need to grow Enogen to serve their local ethanol plants.
Only about 15 percent of corn fed into an ethanol plant needs to be Enogen for the enzyme embedded in the kernels to do its job — breaking down starch for fermentation. Ethanol plants using this biotech corn no longer need to purchase the enzyme, called alpha amylase, from biochemical companies.
Six ethanol plants in Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska and Ohio have signed deals with Syngenta for commercial use of the corn, including a Central City, Neb., plant owned by Omaha-based Green Plains, the nation’s fourth-largest ethanol producer. Syngenta said a deal is pending with a seventh plant.
“It does work more efficiently,” said Jeff Briggs, Green Plains’ chief operating officer, who added that Enogen will be tried at two other of the company’s plants.
At the Denco plant, 160 miles northwest of Minneapolis, Enogen corn did such a good job of increasing throughput that the plant’s existing equipment couldn’t handle it, Miller said. So a modest equipment upgrade is needed before trying Enogen again, he added.
Ethanol maker Lakeview Energy has successfully tried Enogen at ethanol plants in Ohio and Iowa. Chief Operating Officer Eamonn Byrne said a midsize ethanol plant ordinarily would spend $300,000 to $350,000 a year to buy alpha amylase from an enzyme company. Yet the purchased product isn’t as efficient as the enzyme bred into Enogen corn, he said.
When ethanol plants shift to Enogen, they are in effect paying farmers instead of a chemical company for the enzyme. It’s a form of buying local that appeals to Mike Missman, an Enogen farmer and seed dealer in Woden, Iowa.
“That is a positive for our community and our environment,” Missman said. “That, to me, is a no-brainer.”
Keeping It Out Of Food
Although federal regulators say Enogen isn’t a risk to the food supply, some critics aren’t convinced.
Syngenta acknowledges that the enzyme-laden corn, if mistakenly shipped to a food processor, could affect some foods’ texture and other properties. But the company insists there is no safety risk — and federal regulators agreed after completing reviews in 2011.
Flour mills and others in the food industry have worried that small amounts of Enogen could get mixed with corn sent to food processors. Their concern is not about food safety. But the enzyme in Enogen kernels breaks down starch, and foods like tortilla chips, for example, need starch for their texture.
“We expressed our concerns to the USDA,” said James McCarthy, CEO of the North American Millers’ Association. “Now it is sort of wait-and-see mode.”
To address such concerns, Syngenta set up an online tracking program to watch that ethanol-only corn is separately planted, harvested, stored and shipped from other corn. Farmers who grow the hybrid are obliged to follow rules to keep Enogen out of food corn.
The Center for Food Safety, a group that opposes genetically altered foods, says Enogen’s enzyme still could be a potential food allergen.
“This is an industrial product that is not intended to be in the food or feed supply,” said Gurian-Sherman, the group’s senior scientist.
Syngenta’s Bernens said the enzyme is found in human saliva, has passed tests for allergic reactions and was cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Agriculture Department.
Ethanol plants that use Enogen must sign contracts with Syngenta agreeing to pay farmers 40 cents per bushel more for the special corn, which can mean an extra $80 per acre. The payment also is an incentive to farmers to sell Enogen only to ethanol makers because no one else would pay that premium.
“They are really watching that you take care every step of the way,” said Kevin Lundberg, a farmer in Murdock, Minn., who grows Enogen and intends to plant 500 acres this year.
Syngenta doesn’t charge farmers extra for Enogen seed. Ethanol plants also pay nothing to Syngenta, but must pay the premium to farmers for Enogen corn. Syngenta is looking for market share. To get the extra 40 cents per bushel, Enogen farmers must plant other Syngenta seeds on additional acres.
Teeing up cellulosic ethanol?
The first ethanol plant to use Enogen, in 2013, was Quad County Corn Processors, a farmer-owned operation in Galva, Iowa.
In a coincidence that became an opportunity, the plant separately developed technology to extract ethanol from otherwise untappable parts of corn kernels like the shell. The process, trademarked Cellerate and generically known as corn fiber extraction, requires extra equipment and special yeasts to ferment sugar from fibrous parts of plants.
Quad County Corn Processors Chief Executive Delayne Johnson said Cellerate is producing 6 percent more ethanol at his plant. That is expected to climb another 5 percent after certain yeasts win regulatory approval and can be used, he said. Federal regulators have certified the extra output as low-carbon biofuel, similar to cellulosic ethanol from corn cobs.
Johnson said using Enogen and Cellerate technologies together allows both to work better. “The two combine quite well and become more efficient,” he said. So the small Iowa co-op and the giant seed company signed a deal last year.
Now Syngenta is marketing Cellerate in tandem with Enogen. So far, no other ethanol plants are using the corn fiber technology, but it has generated industry buzz. Curious ethanol executives are making pilgrimages to Galva, which is 50 miles east of Sioux City, Iowa.
“We anticipate many tours,” Johnson said.
Read the original story here : Ethanol Industry Gets Its Own Biotech Corn
Feb 2, 2015
By Tom Doran
Chicago has a history of being proactive in moving toward environment-friendly fuel offerings and the city council will consider another step in that direction this year.
The council’s Committee on Finance passed an ordinance last month that would require filling stations within the city to provide an E15 blend fuel option. It is anticipated the ordinance will go to the full council this spring.
The effort began last March when Alderman Ed Burke reached out to the industry and worked with Growth Energy and its CEO, Tom Buis.
Finance committee members adopted an ordinance that requires all stations that sell more than 850,000 gallons annually to provide E15 as an option at the station.
Twenty-three of the council’s 50 members have signed on as sponsors of the ordinance.
“It’s not requiring customers to purchase it but it is requiring the retail station to make it available for the customer,” said Rodney Weinzierl, Illinois Corn Growers Association executive director.
“There are about 200 to 240 stations in the city of Chicago that would qualify. If stations have underground tanks that are not compatible they’re exempt from the ordinance.”
Farmers' Support
ICGA President Kenny Hartman and Vice President Jeff Jarboe attended hearings on the issue and submitted witness slips to testify. They were joined in submitting testimony by past ICGA Presidents Len Corzine and Garry Niemeyer. Other farmers also attended and submitted witness slips.
ICGA and other supporters delivered a petition with 7,673 signatures to the committee in support of the ordinance.
More than 20 representatives from the oil industry were on hand to testify against the plan.
As Weinzierl anticipated, the full council did not take up the issue at its Jan. 21 meeting “because it is now caught up in the mayoral election that is in February.
Media Battle
The proposal has drawn the media’s attention where supporters and opponents are wrestling for print space and air time.
“There has been over $1 million committed from the ethanol side of the industry just in dealing with the media and what’s going to be happening over the next few months,” Weinzierl said at the recent Illinois Farm Bureau-hosted agricultural legislative roundtable.
“It’s quite a big battle. It’s really shifted from the D.C. area into Chicago.”
In preparing for the possibility the ordinance is approved, the ethanol industry has committed $10 million to pay for retailers’ retrofit costs. The funding is available through the Prime the Pump program that pools industry resources to expand E15 and higher blends by offering grants to interested retailers.
“The Illinois Corn Marketing Board has committed $1 million also if stations want to move up and put in either E85 pumps or higher blend pumps and we have another program with the largest pump manufacturer that will cost share additional costs if stations want to do that,” Weinzierl said.
“So, there are a lot of resources going into this effort.
Chicago was the first city to ban leaded gas (1984) and also the first city in the nation to ban the methyl tertiary butyl ether additive (2000).
“So, this is not out of realm of the city moving forward in trying to do something,” he said.”
“Depending how that goes, there may be a runoff and that will pretty much determine the timeline on when that’s going to happen with this ordinance.
The mayoral election is Feb. 24 and the next city council meeting is March 18.
Read the original story here : Windy City Weighs Ethanol Ordinance
Jan 29, 2015
In a paper written for World Resources Institute, Tim Searchinger and Ralph Heimlich re-hashed their already disproven theories of “food vs. fuel” and “Indirect Land Use Change,” and repeated the years-old claim that bioenergy benefits from a “carbon accounting error.” Their original papers, published in 2008 & 2009, have been roundly rejected and criticized by the scientific community and disproven by the empirical data. Bob Dinneen, the Renewable Fuels Association’s president and CEO, released the following statement on the new Searchinger paper:
“Providing a cursory update of a failed theory is not science and does nothing to enlighten the debate about biofuels. For the better part of a decade, lawyer-activist Tim Searchinger has been promoting the flawed notion that increased biofuel use places unnecessary constraints on finite agricultural land resources. But, the "land use change" and "food vs. fuel" arguments are as wrong today as they were seven years ago when Searchinger first gained notoriety with his doomsday predictions. As passionate as he is in promoting his agenda, the truth cannot escape the fact that real-world data conclusively show reduced deforestation, reduced global hunger, and deceleration of cropland expansion during the biofuels era. In fact, Iowa State University’s Center for Agricultural and Rural Development put this issue to bed last November, finding that ‘…the primary land use change response of the world’s farmers in the last 10 years has been to use available land resources more efficiently rather than to expand the amount of land brought into production.’”
Read the original story here : A Cursory Update Of A Failed Theory
Read the RFA's response by its senior vice president, Geoff Cooper here : Debunking Searchinger's Doomsday Theories ... Again
In a paper written for World Resources Institute, Tim Searchinger and Ralph Heimlich re-hashed their already disproven theories of “food vs. fuel” and “Indirect Land Use Change,” and repeated the years-old claim that bioenergy benefits from a “carbon accounting error.” Their original papers, published in 2008 & 2009, have been roundly rejected and criticized by the scientific community and disproven by the empirical data. Bob Dinneen, the Renewable Fuels Association’s president and CEO, released the following statement on the new Searchinger paper:
“Providing a cursory update of a failed theory is not science and does nothing to enlighten the debate about biofuels. For the better part of a decade, lawyer-activist Tim Searchinger has been promoting the flawed notion that increased biofuel use places unnecessary constraints on finite agricultural land resources. But, the "land use change" and "food vs. fuel" arguments are as wrong today as they were seven years ago when Searchinger first gained notoriety with his doomsday predictions. As passionate as he is in promoting his agenda, the truth cannot escape the fact that real-world data conclusively show reduced deforestation, reduced global hunger, and deceleration of cropland expansion during the biofuels era. In fact, Iowa State University’s Center for Agricultural and Rural Development put this issue to bed last November, finding that ‘…the primary land use change response of the world’s farmers in the last 10 years has been to use available land resources more efficiently rather than to expand the amount of land brought into production.’”
More information can be found here as RFA’s Senior Vice President Geoff Cooper takes an in-depth look at Searchinger’s claims and systematically disproves them with hard data and findings from the scientific community.
- See more at: http://www.ethanolrfa.org/news/entry/a-cursory-update-of-a-failed-theory/#sthash.WPfGho9s.dpufBy Daniel Looker
Jan 27, 2015
Corn ethanol had dodged the latest bullet in Congress, but attempts to weaken or repeal the Renewable Fuel Standard are likely to be attached to must-pass legislation in Congress all year.
That’s the consensus of lobbyists and ethanol advocates who spoke Tuesday at the Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit near Des Moines, Iowa, Tuesday.
The most recent attack was an amendment in the Senate to the stalled Keystone XL Pipeline bill. An amendment proposed by Senators Pat Toomey (R-PA) and Diane Feinstein (D-CA) to strip corn ethanol from the Renewal Fuel Standard didn’t come up for a vote. On Monday, Democrats managed to delay the bill by blocking Senate leaders’ attempts to wind down debate.
“I think for right now, there’s not going to be an immediate vote on this thing, but we do have to work this,” retired General Wesley Clark said of the Toomey-Feinstein effort. Clark, co-chair of the ethanol lobbying group, Growth Energy, visited with Agriculture.com shortly before delivering his keynote speech to members of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association.
Another ethanol industry leader, Renewable Fuels Association president Bob Dinneen (who wasn’t at the Iowa meeting Tuesday) told Agriculture.com recently that he didn’t expect the Toomey-Feinstein amendment to get a vote.
“I think [Senate Majority Leader Mitch] McConnell and the Republican leadership understand this is an issue that divides the caucus,” Dinneen said. Both parties have supporters and opponents of ethanol, which could make changing the RFS a challenge for opponents in the oil industry.
Yet farm group lobbyists who who spoke at the meeting Tuesday were hardly complacent about the RFS.
“For sure we will see a vote this year in the Senate on some kind of RFS reform,” predicted Amanda De Jong, senior policy adviser at the Iowa Corn Growers Association.
A bill or amendment to completely repeal the RFS would be easier to defeat than one that would weaken the RFS with some kind of reform, said De Jong, who has worked as a special assistant at USDA and as an agricultural adviser to Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA).
“I think we’ll be able to protect that from passing in the Senate,” she said.
Others predicted an ongoing battle because amendments to kill or weaken the RFS could be attached to one of several bills Congress will need to pass this year, said Catharine Ransom of the Glover Park Group and one-time staffer for former Senator Max Baucus (D-MT).
Ransom said that not only ethanol plant owners will need to contact members of Congress. So will farmers and others in agricultural industries.
Ransom said people ask her, “Well, I’ve talked to these people for the last five years. Do I need to do it again?”
“The answer is, yes.” Ransom said.
Besides urging Congress to continue its support for the RFS, ethanol leaders Tuesday urged Iowa members of the industry to attend next year’s presidential caucuses to support candidates who back the RFS.
Monte Shaw, executive director of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association, urged everyone at the meeting to join a new bipartisan group, America’s Renewable Future. That organization will work to inform presidential candidates who visit the state about the importance of renewable fuels to the economy of Iowa and the nation.
Wesley Clark left no doubt that he sees renewable fuels as the key to reviving the U.S. economy.
Clark graduated first in his class at West Point and rose to the rank of four-star general as NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander, Europe.
Tuesday he outlined five challenges that this nation faces that are likely to be as difficult as the Cold War: terrorism, cybersecurity, an unstable global financial system, the rising military and economic power of China, and a changing climate.
“Those five challenges all have something in common. They’re all long-term,” Clark said.
“They require leadership,” he said, adding that right now the nation is badly divided politically.
“I think the way we come together is to rebuild the American economy,” said Clark, who ran for president as a Democrat in 2003.
Clark cited several ways to rebuild the economy, including educating more scientists and engineers. But that will take years.
“The quickest fix for the economy, believe it or not, is energy,” he said.
In 2008, America’s imports of oil contributed about $500 billion to the nation’s trade deficit, he said. This year, with falling oil prices, it will be about $100 billion.
“If we could keep that money in America’s economy, that would accelerate economic growth,” he said.
Clark is on the board of BNK Petroleum, an energy company focused mainly on shale gas in North America and Europe.
“We’re not going to be energy independent relying on oil alone,” Clark said.
Biofuels are sustainable, but shale oil wells are short-lived, he said. Production from typical wells using fracking technology declines between 70% and 90% in a year, he said. As oil companies slow down drilling in North Dakota and other oil states, 12 months from now, U.S. shale oil production “should be less, a lot less,” he said.
Another big oil producer, Russia, lags in technology and capital investment.
Clark didn’t predict how long the current low prices would last.
“The only sure thing anyone can say about the price of oil is that any prediction is going to be wrong,” he said.
Some are predicting $20-a-barrel crude.
“I think it’s possible but unlikely,” Clark said.
Clark said that part of the fall in crude oil prices “was fed by financial speculation.” Buyers of crude oil futures have been shorting the market, he suggested.
Even though demand for oil has fallen, one of the world’s biggest importers, China, is still growing at a rate of 7.5%, Clark added.
At some point, global production will be more in line with rising demand, and prices will go back up.
"The one thing you can be sure of is that the world demand for oil will increase," he said.
Ethanol and renewable fuels can make the U.S. economy stronger in that environment, he said, if ethanol and biofuels are allowed access to the market.
“And it starts right here,” Clark said to a round of applause.
Read the original story here : Ethanol Will Face RFS Threat
Jan 27, 2015
By Erin Voegele
Protec Fuel has announced two convenience stores in the Atlanta metro area are now offering E15, including a Mountain Express-Quick Stop Food Store in Marietta, Georgia, and the Mountain Express-Food Mart in Greensboro, Georgia. The stations will also sell E85 and B20. According to Protec Fuel, eight more stations near the metro area are set to offer the fuel soon.
The new E15 locations are part of Protec Fuel’s recently announced E15 rollout. In September, the company announced plans to open 28 stations offering E15 and E85 in the South and Southeast regions of the country. Protec has already opened three E15 locations in Florida. In December, the company announced that fuel stations in Sarasota, Florida, and Lake Wales, Florida, had begun to offer the ethanol blend. Earlier this month, a third Florida E15 location opened in North Miami.
According to the Renewable Fuels Association, E15 is now available at fuel stations in 16 states. In addition to the new locations in Georgia and Florida, the ethanol blend is also available in Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Tennessee, Alabama, North Carolina, Michigan, Ohio, Illinois and Arkansas.
We are thrilled to see E15 continue to expand on America’s eastern seaboard,” said Bob Dinneen, president and CEO of the RFA. “E15’s expansion continues — reaching 16 states today — despite the misinformation being spread by Big Oil and its friends. It’s clear that gas stations in many states are embracing the true facts about E15 and ignoring Big Oil’s smoke and mirrors. We expect additional stations in more states to follow Georgia’s example and offer drivers low-cost, environmentally-friendly E15. Today is a great day for Georgia consumers.”
Growth Energy has also spoken out to congratulate Protec Fuel and Mountain Express on the new E15 locations. “Protec’s continual march to find new locations to offer E15 is to be commended and shows they are a leader in providing sustainable, homegrown fuel options to their consumers,” said Tom Buis, CEO of Growth Energy. “Clearly there is a strong demand for E15, as we continue to see new retailers offer it. One thing is clear – when consumers are given the choice, they will choose the higher performing, less expensive fuel that is better for their engines and our environment – one that creates jobs in America and reduces our dangerous dependence on foreign oil.”
Read the original story here : Protec Fuel : 2 Stations Now Offering E15 In Georgia
College of Science and Engineering
Jan 26, 2015
Using one of the largest supercomputers in the world, researchers led by a team from the University of Minnesota have identified material that could improve ethanol production.
In a statement from the university's College of Science and Engineering, it said it's researchers have found an all-silica zeolite that could change the ethanol / water separation process from a multi-step distillation process to a single-step adsorptive process. The team included researchers from Rice University.
Zeolites are materials used by biofuel and petrochemical refiners that act as sieves to sort, filter and trap chemical compunds, as well as catalyze chemical reactions necessary to produce and upgrade chemical feedstock from renewable and petroleum-based sources.
The all-silica zeolite used by researchers at the University of Minnesota was tested and synthesized in chemical engineering and materials science professor, Michael Tsapatis' lab.
Synthesizing zeolites in a lab can be a long and complicated process that can take months. However, researchers of the University of Minnesota and Rice University developed a complex computational screening process using a supercomputer from the Argonne National Laboratory that looked at thousands of zeolites in the virtual world and identified their performance for specific applications.
Read more here : U of M Researchers Find Materials To Improve Ethanol Production
Jan 22, 2015
By Timothy Cama
Iowa is launching a campaign aimed at making the federal ethanol mandate a central issue in the 2016 presidential campaign.
Iowa hosts the first party nominating contests of the election cycle and counts the ethanol mandate as one of its top policy priorities, since corn, which goes into making most ethanol, is grown throughout the state.
The officials and business interests behind the campaign dubbed America’s Renewable Future want to use Iowa’s presidential caucus in January 2016 to press candidates to “take a stand” on the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) and make it central to the race.
“Americans of both political parties know that a robust RFS creates jobs in America, reduces our dependency on foreign oil and offers more consumer choice,” Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad (R) said in a statement.
“The last time there was a wide open race for the presidential nomination in both parties was 2007, just as the RFS was beginning to take effect,” he said. “Since then, Iowa has built 17 new bio-refineries, doubled ethanol production, tripled biodiesel production, and launched commercial scale production of cellulosic ethanol with three brand new facilities.”
The supporters of the multimillion-dollar campaign say it is primarily an educational one, aimed at making sure that presidential candidates and the American public understand how important ethanol is to Iowa.
The group will also work to tell voters how various candidates feel about the renewable fuel policy.
The campaign comes at a critical time for ethanol. Opposition to the federal ethanol blending mandate is growing, among a group that includes the oil industry, some environmentalists, motorists and food interests.
Meanwhile, the Environmental Protection Agency is more than a year late in setting the ethanol blending level for 2014 and has only said that the mandate will come sometime this year.
Eric Branstad, the governor’s son and a former GOP operative, will run the campaign along with Derek Eadon, who worked for President Obama’s reelection campaign.
It will be co-chaired by former Lieutenant Gov. Patty Judge (D) and former state Rep. Annette Sweeney (R).
Read the original story here : Iowa Wants Ethanol Front And Center In 2016
Jan 22, 2015
By Dounglas A. Durante
There is an old saying that the only things that are certain in life are death and taxes. However, we must add to that list the certainty that each Congress Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) will continue her inexplicable crusade against corn ethanol by introducing legislation, amendments, riders, and other measures to tear down one of the great American success stories in an otherwise miserable legacy of energy policy. The current iteration is an amendment to the Keystone Pipeline legislation.
What is so troubling about the Senator's vendetta is the complete and blatant misinformation used to support the attack. It is curious, and troubling, that in the face of absolute and unimpeachable facts, she continues. In her latest effort to attack ethanol she has enlisted Pennsylvania Sen. Pat Toomey (R) who cites the same misinformation. And make no mistake, this is an attack on ethanol. The notion that corn ethanol could be eliminated from the RFS and this would magically open the door for non-corn feedstocks is preposterous and beyond naive.
But again, lets look at the facts and motives. To begin with, there is no such thing as a "corn ethanol mandate." In fact there is no ethanol mandate of any kind. The Renewable Fuel Standard, which Feinstein voted for in 2008, requires a certain amount of renewable fuels be used. Compliance is met by using a range of fuels from a range of feedstocks, and the list is growing. Biogas from landfills and even electricity from biomass can be used. Ethanol, from corn or otherwise, is an eligible fuel and is used by refiners at their choice and discretion. Ethanol is a critical component of reformulated gasoline and has been largely responsible for eliminating carbon monoxide violations, with all areas of the country now in attainment after using ethanol to oxygenate gasoline. It is used as a clean octane additive to replace toxic compounds including carcinogens like benzene used by the petroleum industry. No one is required to use ethanol but it is chosen because it is a cost effective gasoline additive, period. So any legislation to "remove the corn ethanol mandate" could in theory be passed because there is no such thing.
Joining Feinstein in this effort is Toomey who, sadly, seems to have the same briefing book of misinformation. He cites ethanol driving up gasoline prices when it is and has been less expensive and makes up more than 10 percent of the nations fuel supply. He then states it increases food costs which has been so refuted we do not have the space here to even begin to argue that. Suffice it to say corn is less expensive now than it was before the RFS so it defies any degree of spin to say the program has driven up prices of grain or food. He then states it harms engines-- again, a Pinocchio-like canard. Every automaker in the world honors the use of 10 percent ethanol blends and nearly 80 percent of the cars on the road today are approved for 15 percent blends. Small engines and even marine engines are approved for ethanol . Finally, he states it harms the environment when EPA has clearly stated ethanol is at minimum 20 percent less than gasoline in terms of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Recent research we have conducted shows that is selling corn ethanol short and the true carbon reductions should put it in an advanced category. It reduces particulates, toxics, sulfur, and a range of harmful emissions. So of the four reasons the Senator cites for his opposition, none are based in fact. None.
As for Feinstein, to say the intent of the RFS was to support the development of cellulosic biofuels, that is certainly true. But the road to those fuels is paved by the corn ethanol industry and to advance those fuels at the expense of what has been an unqualified success is just plain wrong. If these Senators want to help cellulosic ethanol, there are a number of things they can do besides attacking corn ethanol. How about introducing legislation to provide meaningful, effective incentives to automakers to make all cars flex fuel, capable of operating on any blend of ethanol so we have somewhere to put the fuel? Or legislation to clarify the intent of the Clean Air act with respect to reducing toxic aromatic compounds in gasoline, creating a market for clean ethanol as an octane additive.
It is discouraging to the entire biofuels industry to see good people operating with bad information. With 13 new senators and 58 new members of the House, don't they deserve to get facts? At what point do opponents of corn ethanol stop pretending they did not know that every argument raised by the oil companies -- who are only trying to protect their market monopoly - - are without merit. There is no credible argument to support these anti-ethanol positions and every reason to stay the course.
Durante is executive director of the Clean Fuels Development Coalition
Read the original story here : The Ongoing Attack On Ethanol
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Global Renewable Fuels Alliance
Jan 20, 2015
TORONTO, Canada – Today, the Global Renewable Fuels Alliance (GRFA) applauded FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) Director-General Jose Graziano da Silva for his support of biofuels as a key part of the global agriculture complex at the Global Forum for Food and Agriculture that took place January 15 – 17 in Berlin.
The Global Forum for Food and Agriculture is an annual international conference that focuses on central questions concerning the future of the global agri-food industry. This year’s theme was “The Growing Demand for Food, Raw Materials and Energy: Opportunities for Agriculture, Challenges for Food Security?”
Throughout his remarks, the Director-General praised biofuels for their social, agricultural and environmental benefits and the necessity for agriculture to accommodate both food and fuel.
“We applaud the FAO Director-General for the stating what over 62 countries with biofuel friendly policies have known for years – that biofuels deliver much needed rural jobs, significantly curb green house gas emissions, reduce our reliance on crude oil, and encourage energy diversity, “ stated Bliss Baker, spokesperson for the GRFA.
According to the GRFA, global biofuels production is making a significant contribution to the global economy, having contributed $277.3 billion and supported nearly 1.4 million jobs in all sectors of the global economy in 2010. By 2020 the global biofuel industry is forecasted to grow to support over 2.2 million jobs in all sectors of the global economy.
Additionally, according to F.O. Licht, global ethanol production was forecasted to reach 90.38 billion litres in 2014 and its use worldwide would reduce GHG emissions by over 106 million tonnes globally, equal to removing 21 million cars – the equivalent of all the cars registered in Malaysia – off the road annually
The Director-General also stressed the need to shift to sustainable agriculture systems, achieving greater efficiencies in their use of natural resources, in particular water, energy and land, to allow room for both food and fuel.
Read the original story here : Biofuels Should Be Part Of The Mix : FAO Director-General
Jan 20, 2015
By Andrew Noel
Novozymes A/S, the world’s largest maker of enzymes used in biofuel to washing powder, said the market for second-generation ethanol plants that run on agricultural waste can withstand the current fall in oil prices.
If the price of oil sank to about $40 a barrel over the long term, demand for so-called 2G technology would be effected, according to Chief Executive Officer Peder Nielsen. Demand for biofuel enzymes increased 10 percent in the fourth quarter, bolstering profit in the period.
Novozymes, which opened a 2G ethanol plant in Italy in October 2013, is betting that depressed prices for oil, a key cost component in corn farming, will rub off on the cost of the crop, helping to improve its competitiveness. Added to that, is the environmental awareness that will be raised with the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris this year, Nielsen said.
“If oil were to stay at $40 forever, then I would argue that the value of the option we are offering would get smaller,” Nielsen said in a phone interview. “I think it will climb back up to $80 a barrel. Oil is the main input for corn. It’s not a given that corn gets expensive.”
Novozymes expects the volume of first-generation ethanol that uses crops, rather than crop-waste, to remain at steady levels in 2015. The Bagsvaerd, Denmark-based company had envisaged supplying 15 second-generation ethanol plants by 2017 when it inaugurated the plant in Crescentino, Italy. That may now take until 2020, Nielsen said.
Read the original story here : Novozymes Chief Says 2G Ethanol Market Can Endure Oil Price Drop
Jan 16, 2015
By Holly Jessen
The ethanol industry is reacting to efforts in the U.S. Senate to add an amendment to the Keystone pipeline bill to alter the renewable fuel standard (RFS).
Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and Pat Toomey, R-Pa., have attached an amendment that would eliminate corn ethanol from the RFS to the Keystone bill that is currently before the Senate.
Bob Dinneen, president and CEO of the Renewable Fuels Association, released the following statement:
“The Feinstein/Toomey amendment is founded upon a false premise. The sponsors claim the so-called corn ethanol mandate drives up the price of corn, food, and gas. The fact of the matter is that corn is less expensive today than when the RFS was passed in 2007. There is simply no truth to the notion that ethanol has driven up the price of food. In fact, the UN concluded that food prices are driven more by the price of energy than the cost of commodities. To that point, ethanol has been less expensive than gas for the better part of the past four years and has helped reduce consumer pain at the pump.
“This amendment is an unnecessary solution to an imaginary problem. If approved, it would set our nation’s energy, economic, and climate agenda back decades.”
A statement from Tom Buis CEO of Growth Energy, said:
“This legislation is incredibly shortsighted. Nearly identical legislation has been introduced in the past and has always failed to gain any traction since a majority of Senators understand the importance of homegrown American renewable fuels. This amendment would eviscerate the RFS - the most successful energy policy enacted in the last 40 years. It will continue to keep us addicted to foreign oil and more than anything, it seems like this legislation is appeasing the wishes of Big Oil and Big Food.
“Additionally, this legislation is based on false, misleading information. To blame ethanol for an increase in the price of food may make for good rhetoric, but it is completely devoid of any facts to back it up. Corn ethanol is not the cause of high prices; it is the price of oil. Even the World Bank outlined how crude oil prices are responsible for over 50 percent of the increase in food prices since 2004. Countess studies have shown that oil prices, Wall Street speculators and the high costs of manufacturing, packaging and transportation are the true culprits driving up food prices. Furthermore, 2014 yielded a record corn crop and the price of corn dropped precipitously throughout the harvest, even as food costs increased.
“The authors of this legislation fail to understand the actual process of how ethanol is produced," Buis said. "Only the starch is removed, while all of the valuable components – the fiber, oil and protein is returned to the food chain in the form of a high protein animal feed.
The statement went on to point to ethanol's environmental benefits and called it a "concession to the demands of Big Oil and Big Food."
Read the original story here : RFS Amendment Would Set U.S. Energy Agenda Back Decades
Jan 13, 2015
By Erin Voegele
The U.S. Energy Information Administration has released the January issue of its Short-Term Energy Outlook, which includes its first short-term prediction of 2016 ethanol production levels.
Within the STEO, the EIA reported ethanol production in December reached a record of 979,000 barrels per day, exceeding the previous record of 968,000 barrels per day set in November. Ethanol production averaged approximately 935,000 barrels per day last year, and is expected to average 936,000 barrels per day this year. In 2016, the EIA predicts ethanol production will increase to 937,000 barrels per day.
According to the EIA, biodiesel production averaged 81,000 barrels per day last year and is forecast to average 84,000 barrels per day this year and in 2016.
EIA data indicates weekly regulator gasoline retail prices averaged $2.14 per gallon on Jan. 12, the lowest since May 4, 2009. The EIA predicts gasoline prices will average $2.16 per gallon during the first quarter of this year, and average $2.33 per gallon in 2015. Gasoline prices averaged $3.36 per gallon last year. In 2016, gasoline prices are expected to increase, averaging $2.72 per gallon.
The EIA’s most recent weekly ethanol production data indicates production averaged 949,000 barrels per day the week ending Jan. 2, down from 972,000 barrels per day the week ending Dec. 26. The U.S. set a new weekly production record during the week ending Dec. 19, when production averaged 992,000 barrels per day.
The U.S. exported nearly 1.89 million barrels of ethanol in October, and increase from the 1.35 million barrels exported in September. The U.S. also imported 30,000 barrels of ethanol in October, up from 7,000 barrels in September.
Read the original story here : EIA Predicts Increased Ethanol Production In 2015 and 2016
Jan 12, 2015
By Holly Jessen
A Minnesota ethanol producer is having success with its efforts to provide E85 directly to gas retailers, bringing lower-priced E85 to Minnesota drivers. In fact, on Jan. 12, the Cenex gas station in Alexandria, Minnesota, was selling E85 for only 85 cents a gallon, exactly $1 cheaper than E10, as part of an E85 price agreement with DENCO II, an ethanol plant in Morris, Minnesota.
The 24 MMgy plant first installed a blending skid in 2011. “It’s definitely the right thing to do for the industry and for the consumers in the local market,” said Carson Berger, commodities risk manager of the ethanol plant.” We have the fuel right here.”
The company grew its direct sales program from a very small percent of production to about 10 percent. And it's still growing. “Over past year we have more than doubled our E85 sales and we have plans to double it again,” he said, adding that it has provided the company with added marketing flexibility.
In all, DENCO II supplies E85 directly to 45 gas stations. The company sends out its prices in a daily email, direct to station owners and sells E85 on a daily or contract basis, he said. Other Minnesota ethanol plants that provide E85 direct to retailers include Chippewa Valley Ethanol Co., Bushmills Ethanol Inc. and a Poet LLC plant.
Thirteen stations are part of DENCO II’s price promotion, which started April 2013 and will continue at least through March, Berger told Ethanol Producer Magazine. Like the Cenex station in Alexandria selling E85 for 85 cents, the gas stations sell DENCO II E85 for $1 less than E10. As of Jan. 9, three gas stations in Morris, where the plant is located, were selling E85 for 95 cents and E10 for $1.95. Other west central Minnesota gas stations that are part of the price promotion include Glenwood, Hancock and Wheaton.
As a blender, DENCO II separates and sells renewable identification numbers (RINs), which allows the company to sell E85 for less to retailers, enabling retailers to sell E85 for less to consumers. According to the Jan. 12 Atlas Markets daily price email, RINs are currently priced between 71 to 75 cents for 2013 and 2014 D6 RINs. Because DENCO collects 100,000 or more RINs in a month, it can more easily wade into the RINs market than a gas retailer could, Berger said, adding that, “it’s difficult to sell RINs in smaller lots.”
The direct sales program isn’t as simple as just installing a blending skid at the plant, notifying area gas stations about E85 prices from the plant and hoping for success, Berger said. The company has put a lot of work in, developing relationships with retailers and getting them on board with E85. Retailers who are used to selling regular gas need education about new fuel blends and help with marketing. DENCO II works with Growth Energy to supply the stations with the information and material they need to market E85 and other ethanol blends properly.
Selling E85 to gas retailers hasn’t only been successful for the ethanol plants. “We’ve seen stations increase their sales volume by 700 percent,” he said, adding that with the current low E85 prices, retailers are seeing ripple effects. “The consumer has more dollars in their pocket and retailers have found that some of the savings on the fuel side will come into the store and be spent on retail goods, like candy bars and pop,” he said.
Read the original story here : Ethanol Plant Brings 85 cent E85 To Minnesota
Jan 8, 2015
Gevo Inc, the world's only commercial producer of renewable isobutanol, today reported an update on the progress of the Side-by-Side operational mode (SBS) of its plant in Luverne, MN.
In June 2014, Gevo commenced the co-production of isobutanol and ethanol at Luverne, with one fermenter dedicated to isobutanol production and three fermenters dedicated to ethanol production. Gevo had articulated a goal of reaching isobutanol production levels of 50-100 thousand gallons per month by the end of 2014. In the month of December, Gevo produced over 50 thousand gallons of isobutanol, meeting the Company's stated goal.
Other key highlights since the last plant update provided in Gevo's third quarter earnings release include:
Implementation of a second-generation yeast isobutanol biocatalyst at Luverne that significantly improves plant operability.
Increased the isobutanol fermentation rate by approximately 20% versus the best performing batch using the first-generation yeast.
Can produce in operating conditions that enable further mitigation of potential infections, as well as the improved management of the iDGs animal feed co-product.
This second-generation yeast platform, which is a product of a new yeast modification capability developed by Gevo, speeds up the development and implementation of new traits in Gevo's yeast through high-speed combinatorial techniques.
NAPA Myers Auto Parts began selling off-road fuel developed by Gulf Racing Fuels containing blends of up to 16% of Gevo's renewable isobutanol in North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, and Minnesota for use in boats, ATVs, motorcycles and snowmobiles.
"We are very pleased to have achieved our milestone of producing over 50 thousand gallons of isobutanol in a month, while continuing the co-production of ethanol. Since announcing in March 2014 that we would be switching Luverne over to SBS, we have consistently met our operational targets. I would like to thank the entire Gevo team for all of their hard work in continuing to prove out isobutanol production at a commercial scale. We are also extremely excited to have implemented our new yeast biocatalyst at Luverne. We believe that this yeast platform will enable even greater progress of our commercial isobutanol production," said Dr. Patrick Gruber, Gevo's CEO.
"The anticipated benefits of switching Luverne to SBS have borne out. Producing alcohol in all four fermenters improves the operating environment for the optimization of our isobutanol production by creating a continuous and stable mash flow and a more consistent recycle of water through the plant. SBS has also dramatically improved the cash flow profile of the plant. In fact, we estimate that the plant operated at roughly an EBITDA breakeven level in November. Overall, we believe that we have made tremendous progress in proving out our isobutanol technology for potential licensees," Gruber added.
"We are also very encouraged by the enthusiasm of the market to adopt Gulf Racing Fuels' gasoline blends with Gevo's renewable isobutanol for marine and off-road applications. These are ideal markets to demonstrate isobutanol's beneficial properties and set the stage for entry into the larger on-road market," he said.
Read more about Gevo here
Jan 6, 2015
By Robert White
Every week I hear from consumers with questions on ethanol and what it does to their fuel. Most don’t understand that the composition of gasoline, along with the refining process, has changed dramatically over the past two decades. They automatically assume that anything negative has to be caused by ethanol. Nearly all of them will admit that nothing has happened to them, but they have been told a story, or seen an advertisement that made them nervous. Many companies have jumped on this fear and the anti-ethanol movement. When Big Oil spends millions to denounce ethanol, it creates an opportunity to sell products to consumers they don’t truly need.
This year at Sturgis I found an “octane enhancer” bottle near our fueling position. RFA was again giving away free 93 octane E10 (10% ethanol) to riders. Our summer intern that was filling the tank said someone was through and was concerned the ethanol didn’t have enough octane, and added this product before he left. My curiosity got the best of me, and I had to know what the secret ingredient was for this product. The AMSOIL Dominator Octane Boost wasn’t trying to hide it; ingredients were listed on the back. The product is 60–100% #2 diesel. You can read the MSDS Sheet here. Let’s think about this for a second. This gentleman was trying ethanol-blended fuel, supposedly for the first time, and due to his fear, AMSOIL had convinced him to add #2 diesel to his motorcycle’s fuel tank? We didn’t see the man again, but I did wonder what he would blame if he had issues... the ethanol, the gasoline or the diesel?
Recently, I spotted someone promoting a new product on Twitter. This product, BG Ethanol Fuel System Drier, claims that it “defends engines against the water that accumulates in ethanol-blended fuel.” The supplier advertising on Twitter claimed it “goes in ethanol & absorbs moisture to prevent freezing.” When I pointed out the fact that is what ethanol does for gasoline, they quickly responded with an “awesome, thanks” and blocked me from seeing their future Tweets. But, my curiosity got the best of me again, and I went hunting for more information on this product. I easily found the MSDS Sheet and found that this product is 60–100% alcohol. So, again, the consumers that are concerned with the amount of ethanol (alcohol) in their fuel are being marketed by BG to add more alcohol? That this product will cure a problem that doesn’t exist, that ethanol has already remedied? Just to further my point, in just 5 minutes of research, I collected this list of products that contain over 60% alcohol that claim to fix an ethanol issue:
Evinrude 2-4 Fuel Conditioner
Formula X2
K100 Fuel Treatment
Consumers are faced with a barrage of information dailty, but one thing is consistent. They should all do their own research. I understand that convincing people to read an MSDS sheet is not ever going to be easy, but the label is a good start. RFA will continue its efforts to add more transparency to the marketing of the additive manufacturers. The best advice to give to consumers is for them to read their owner's manuals and follow the advice of the company that provides the warranty, and built the product. Not someone trying to sell you some snake oil.
Read the original story here : Read The Label!
Every week I hear from consumers with questions on ethanol and what it does to their fuel. Most don’t understand that the composition of gasoline, along with the refining process, has changed dramatically over the past two decades. They automatically assume that anything negative has to be caused by ethanol. Nearly all of them will admit that nothing has happened to them, but they have been told a story, or seen an advertisement that made them nervous. Many companies have jumped on this fear and the anti-ethanol movement. When Big Oil spends millions to denounce ethanol, it creates an opportunity to sell products to consumers they don’t truly need.
This year at Sturgis I found an “octane enhancer” bottle near our fueling position. RFA was again giving away free 93 octane E10 (10% ethanol) to riders. Our summer intern that was filling the tank said someone was through and was concerned the ethanol didn’t have enough octane, and added this product before he left. My curiosity got the best of me, and I had to know what the secret ingredient was for this product. The AMSOIL Dominator Octane Boost wasn’t trying to hide it; ingredients were listed on the back. The product is 60–100% #2 diesel. You can read the MSDS Sheet here. Let’s think about this for a second. This gentleman was trying ethanol-blended fuel, supposedly for the first time, and due to his fear, AMSOIL had convinced him to add #2 diesel to his motorcycle’s fuel tank? We didn’t see the man again, but I did wonder what he would blame if he had issues... the ethanol, the gasoline or the diesel?
Recently, I spotted someone promoting a new product on Twitter. This product, BG Ethanol Fuel System Drier, claims that it “defends engines against the water that accumulates in ethanol-blended fuel.” The supplier advertising on Twitter claimed it “goes in ethanol & absorbs moisture to prevent freezing.” When I pointed out the fact that is what ethanol does for gasoline, they quickly responded with an “awesome, thanks” and blocked me from seeing their future Tweets. But, my curiosity got the best of me again, and I went hunting for more information on this product. I easily found the MSDS Sheet and found that this product is 60–100% alcohol. So, again, the consumers that are concerned with the amount of ethanol (alcohol) in their fuel are being marketed by BG to add more alcohol? That this product will cure a problem that doesn’t exist, that ethanol has already remedied? Just to further my point, in just 5 minutes of research, I collected this list of products that contain over 60% alcohol that claim to fix an ethanol issue:
- See more at: http://www.ethanolrfa.org/exchange/entry/read-the-label/#sthash.tbYCsc3U.dpufDec 29, 2014
By Sussane Retka Schill
The U.S. ethanol industry is closing out 2014 with a bang, as the ethanol industry has set weekly production records in four of the last five weeks. The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported another week of record-breaking production at 992,000 barrels per day (bbl/d) for the week ending Dec. 19.
U.S. ethanol producers have steadily been ramping up production in recent weeks. According to the EIA, production for the week ending Dec. 12 was 990,000 bbl/d, for the week ending Dec. 5, 988,000 bbl/d, and for the week ending Nov. 21, 982,000 bbl/d. Those production figures top the prior record set earlier this year on the week ending June 13 with its average of 972,000 bbl/d.
“The most recent weekly data indicates the industry was operating at an annualized rate of more than 15.2 billion gallons per year,” said Geoff Cooper, senior vice president of the Renewable Fuels Association. “2014 will be a record year for annual output, with approximately 14.31 billion gallons of production--that eclipses the previous record of 13.93 billion gallons in 2011.”
Ethanol stocks were holding steady in the last couple of weeks. The EIA reported stocks on hand for the week ending Dec. 19 at 17.6 million barrels, down slightly from the previous week’s ending stocks of 17.7 million barrels. The Dec. 19 ending stocks were up 15.7 percent from the number for the same week last year, which was 15.7 million barrels (the lowest stocks since 2009), and down 13.3 percent from the stocks in the same week two years ago, which numbered 20.3 million barrels. The all-out production levels of 2011 led to price-depressing ethanol stocks in 2012, the peak set in March 2012 at 22.58 million barrels.
Current stocks are not yet climbing, Cooper said, because “unprecedented ethanol consumption, particularly from the export market, is keeping ethanol stocks in check and ensuring a good supply-demand balance is maintained in the marketplace. Stocks are about 5 percent lower than they were in September, yet production is up about 9 percent since then. Domestic blending demand has picked up in recent weeks too, as ethanol input by U.S. refiners and blenders hit a 10-week high last week.”
In the Dec. 9 Short-Term Energy Outlook, EIA said ethanol production in November reached a monthly average record of 963,000 bbl/d, exceeding the previous record of 959,000 bbl/d set in December 2011. By the end of November, EIA expected ethanol production to average 931,000 bbl/d in 2014 and 948,000 bbl/d in 2015. With the first three weeks of December setting new records, those numbers are likely to ratchet up a bit more.
“The recent production levels should definitely put to rest any notion that the industry can’t produce enough ethanol to meet statutory RFS requirements for 2015 and beyond of 15 billion gallons,” Cooper added.
Read the original story here : US Ethanol Production Runs Full Bore, Sets Record As 2014 Ends