A bipartisan group of 33 senators, including Minnesota’s Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Sen. Al Franken, have asked EPA administrator, Scott Pruitt, to increase the 2019 RVOs for biodiesel.

Mankato Free Press

October 11, 2017

By Trey Mewes

As federal officials back off of the Obama-era Clean Power Plan, U.S. Sen. Al Franken believes there's going to be more work to do to ensure farmers and rural communities benefit from renewable energy sources.

The Minnesota Democrat met with regional agriculture and energy experts Wednesday at Minnesota State University to discuss energy initiatives that will be included in the 2018 farm bill.

"This is added value to our agricultural products," Franken said. "Biofuels, in terms of ethanol and biodiesel, is extremely important to our economy."

Minnesota is one of the nation's leading renewable energy producers, and about 1 in 5 Minnesotans have agriculture-related jobs.

Franken, who serves on the Senate Energy Committee, is helping to write an energy component to the farm bill that could tweak a few energy programs to better fund renewable energy efforts. The bill would, among other things, link federal funding between fire hazard reduction and reducing undergrowth in forests by removing biomass.

One of those tweaks would remove a requirement that bio-based material work needs to produce energy, which experts say could open the door to more plastics, chemicals and other products made from bio-material.

Mike Youngerberg of the Minnesota Biodiesel Council points to a new kind of asphalt sealant made from biodiesel products that works better than current oil-based sealants.

Farmers could one day be able to grow 100 bushels of corn or soybeans for every lane mile, and renewable energy representatives are pushing state officials to use the biodiesel sealant on roads, bridges and parking lots across Minnesota.

"The city of Hutchinson, Minnesota, is saving material on their road maintenance budget just by preserving what they have," Youngerberg said.

Other projects that came up included converting wood chips into biofuel to heat turkey barns, and potential energy storage improvements with renewable fuels that would decrease costs for rural and low-income areas if implemented.

Some experts even advocated for more flexibility to pursue industrial hemp products — which is different than marijuana-based products, though the two have been linked in agricultural and manufacturing discussions in the past.

"We think as a specialty crop it would open some doors for us," said Dan Skogen, a former state senator who serves as the planning and government relations director for the Agricultural Utilization Research Institute.

Yet the energy and ag experts were mainly concerned with securing enough funding to continue renewable energy initiatives such as the Rural Energy for America Program grants and loans.

"There are a lot of great products that could come out of some of these," said Joe Smentek, director of public affairs for the Minnesota Soybean Growers Association. "But if they're not fully funded, if they're not funded adequately, they're worthless."

It appears the Trump administration is souring on renewable energy, however. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt announced this week the EPA would roll back greenhouse gas regulations established under former President Barack Obama. And President Donald Trump has publicly pushed for more coal and oil energy in the past.

Franken said after the meeting that despite the president and his administration's opposition to some renewable energy issues, Congress needed to push on as more renewable energy gets produced across the U.S.

"There's no question that ethanol is much more efficient than gasoline in terms of what we're putting in and what we're getting out," Franken said.

Read the original story: Farm Bill Energy Issues Essential for State, Franken Says

Ethanol Producer Magazine

October 10, 2017

By Growth Energy

Growth Energy announced that more than 1,000 fuel stations around the country are offering E15—a fuel with 15 percent ethanol—more than doubling the number of stations from the same time last year.

“This spectacular growth is a testament to the value E15 brings to fuel retailers and consumers,” said Emily Skor, CEO of Growth Energy. “Forward-thinking retailers have figured out that giving their customers more fuel choices is smart business and American drivers have figured out that E15 allows them to save money at the pump all while making a smarter choice for their engines and the environment.”

E15 is cleaner and cooler burning fuel that works well for cars model 2001 and newer and typically saves up to 10 cents per gallon. More and more retailers are responding to consumer demand for those fuel attributes by providing E15 as a choice at their pumps.

Leading retailers including Casey’s, Cenex, Family Express, Kum & Go, Kwik Trip, MAPCO, Minnoco, Murphy USA, Protec Fuel, QuikTrip, RaceTrac, Sheetz, and Thorntons all currently offer E15 at 1,039 locations across the U.S. Many of these are in major metropolitan areas including: Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio.

Read the original story: Growth Energy: More Than 1,000 US Fuel Stations Now Offering E15

The Minnesota Bio-Fuels Association (MBA) offers comments on limited aspects of the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) reconsideration of the final
determination of the mid-term evaluation of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for light
duty vehicles and GHG emission standards as set forth in the Federal Register, Vol. 82,
No. 160, August 21, 2017 (Hereinafter, “FR”), page 39551.

Biofuels are expected to represent over 90 percent of total renewable energy consumption in the transportation sector by 2022 despite the rising sales of electrical vehicles (EVs), the International Energy Agency (IEA) said in a report.

Ethanol Producer Magazine

October 5, 2017

On Oct. 5, a bipartisan group of 38 senators led by Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., sent a letter to EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, asking him to ensure the 2018 Renewable Fuel Standard blending requirements promote growth in the U.S. biofuels sector and the U.S. economy.  

The letter stresses that when congress adopted the RFS in 2005, its goal was to drive innovation and investments that would bring biofuels to American consumers. “The biofuel industry supports hundreds of thousands of jobs throughout the country, reduces the environmental impact of our transportation and energy sectors, and cuts our reliance on foreign oil,” said the senators in the letter. “The stability of our policy has led to billions of dollars of investment in the biofuel sector. America’s production capacity has expanded more than threefold since 2005 with fuels such as biodiesel, cellulosic ethanol, recycled-waste, algal, and other advanced biofuels.”

“We need to build on this progress,” the senators continued.

The senators argue the proposed renewable volume requirements (RVOs) for 2018 represent a step back when it comes to advanced biofuels, and would result in less renewable fuels being blended than in 2017. “The rule unjustifiably flatlines biomass-based diesel, reduces advanced biofuels, and reduces the cellulosic biofuel blending target by about 25 percent,” said the senators. “The agency arrives at these lower targets by utilizing a new methodology more reliant on historical data than projected volumes. The RFS must by law be administered in a forward-looking manner. The final rule should address these shortfalls.”

The letter also addresses the notice of data availability (NODA) published by the EPA on Sept. 26 that aims to lower the blending targets by the number of gallons of biofuels imported, but still permits those imported gallons to generate compliance credits. In addition, the letter also criticizes reports that the EPA is considering allowing exported gallons of biofuel to generate compliance credits. “Taken together, these actions would reduce renewable fuel blending in the U.S. and create uncertainty for producers,” the senators said.

“If done right, this rule is an opportunity to continue our nation’s path to be not only the world leader in first generation ethanol production, but also in cellulosic ethanol and advanced biofuel production by spurring investment and manufacturing here in the United States rather than overseas,” the senators continued. “We urge you to continue to implement the RFS as intended by Congress and release a strong final rule that would give consumers more choices at the pump, strengthen our economy and make our country more secure.”

In addition to Klobuchar and Grassley, the letter is signed by Sens. Richard Durbin, D-Ill.; John Thune, R-S.D.; Al Franken, D-Minn.; Joni Ernst, R-Iowa; Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I; John Hoeven, R-N.D.; Heidi Heitkamp, D.-N.D.; Deb Fischer, R-Neb.; Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich.; Roy Blunt, R-Mo.; Claire McCaskill, D-Mo.; Pat Roberts, R-Kan.; Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii; Jerry Moran, R-Kan.; Gary Peters, D-Mich.; Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis.; Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill.; Ron Wyden, D-Ore.; Patty Murray, D-Wash.; Jack Reed, D-R.I.; Margaret Hassan, D, N.H.; Jeanne Shaheen, D.- N.H.; Joe Donnelly, D-Ind.; Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio; Maria Cantwell, D-Wash.; Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii; Martin Heinrich, D-N.M.; Bill Nelson, D-Fla.; Jeffrey Merkley, D-Ore.; Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev.; Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn.; Edward Markey, D-Mass.; Jon Tester, D-Mont.; Patrick Leahy, D-Vt.; Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass.; and Michael Bennet, D-Colo.

Read the original article: Senators Urge Pruitt to Issue Strong 2018 RFS RVOs

Feedstuffs

October 2, 2017

Individual markets in Africa vary greatly, but the continent as a whole offers significant potential demand for U.S. ethanol exports.

Brian Healy, U.S. Grains Council (USGC) manager of ethanol export market development, recently traveled to Kenya to evaluate and develop opportunities for U.S. ethanol in the continent and speak at a regional ethanol and sugar conference. There, he was able to engage with senior agricultural, energy and environmental ministry officials to learn more about ethanol production, use and trade across the region.

Healy explained that Kenya is a significant importer of finished gasoline, driven by an expanding middle class, high levels of development and access to capital. In addition, the country already has pro-ethanol policies in place, providing the foundation for ethanol use.

“Kenya, which has had an ethanol mandate since 2010, is currently not blending ethanol into their fuel due to infrastructure constraints related to refining and blending as well as limited expansion in feedstock production,” Healy said. “However, opportunities for U.S. ethanol do exist in this and other African markets.”

USGC is working to identify new market opportunities for U.S. ethanol in Africa, including promoting the development of pro-ethanol policies throughout the region and providing production and market information on the value of U.S. ethanol.

While many African countries have opportunities to expand their own domestic feedstock production, U.S. ethanol is already making its way into these markets via the Persian Gulf, where greater refining capacity exists. According to a study commissioned by the council, U.S. ethanol exports to the United Arab Emirates are being blended into gasoline and shipped to East African markets.

The use of ethanol supports these countries in achieving goals related to reducing environmental pollution and improving air quality for human health, in addition to providing economic value as an octane enhancer. These important components form the foundation of USGC’s global ethanol market development engagements and programs.

To communicate these benefits, the council focuses on building relationships in the fuel and ethanol sectors by working with local industry to share with regulators lessons learned from the U.S. adoption of ethanol, particularly related to reducing air pollution and diversifying fuel supplies. These efforts also help establish the U.S. as a reliable and affordable source of ethanol.

“We are broadening our outreach by identifying and analyzing potential new markets and developing strategies tailored to the culture and conditions of each market,” Healy said. “At the same time, we are committed to our established markets in this truly global engagement.

Read the original article: USGC Works to Expand Ethanol Use in Africa

Quad City Times

October 4, 2017

By James Q. Lynch