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ED Column Web

Earlier this month the Minnesota Bio-Fuels Association, along with the American Coalition for Ethanol, the Renewable Fuels Association and 29 other stakeholders, lent its name to the white paper, “A Clean Fuels Policy for the Midwest.” For more than nine months we participated in stakeholder discussions that developed the white paper, which lays the foundation for a clean fuels policy that could expand ethanol usage in Minnesota’s transportation sector. 

Simply put, a clean fuels program is a performance-based incentive program that supports the usage of fuels with a lower lifecycle carbon intensity (CI) such as ethanol. Moreover, this program is designed to contribute to existing goals at the state level such as the Minnesota Petroleum Replacement Promotion Law, which calls for ethanol to comprise 30 percent of all transportation fuel in Minnesota by 2025.

While we are unlikely to meet that target in the next five years, a Minnesota Clean Fuels Policy could set us on the right path to achieving that goal and more. This is because when there is an economic value on carbon, the right incentives are placed for more ethanol usage in Minnesota’s transportation sector.

Here’s how the policy would work:  a governing body is established and a price is set for a ton of carbon (greenhouse gas emissions). As farmers and ethanol producers continue to improve their respective CI scores, so does ethanol’s CI score improve. The standards set through the policy and ethanol’s low CI then provides the necessary incentive for the petroleum industry to use more ethanol.

The policy could also lead to the usage of mid-level blends of ethanol as well as the introduction of new vehicles such as a plug-in flex fuel hybrid because auto manufacturers would also be provided an incentive.

And just like it would for the Minnesota Petroleum Replacement Promotion Law, a Minnesota Clean Fuels Policy would contribute to achieving the Walz Administration’s greenhouse gas emissions goal in the transportation sector.

Last year, the Minnesota Department of Transportation released a report that said a push for higher blends of ethanol and the necessary storage and dispensing infrastructure is a critical component in decarbonizing the state’s transportation sector.

The need for rapid GHG reductions underscores the need for more ethanol in the global transportation system. Over here in Minnesota, ethanol’s GHG savings are widely known but there hasn’t been an official policy that recognizes ethanol’s improving CI scores as a result of sustainable farming practices and increased efficiencies at ethanol plants.

Furthermore, a properly crafted Clean Fuels Policy for Minnesota holds the potential to further transform production efficiencies from the farm to ethanol plants to end-users and in turn, replace significant volumes of carbon-intensive petroleum.  If we get this right, the beneficiaries will be farmers (and by extension rural communities), ethanol producers and present and future generations of Minnesotans.

Covid 19 Message CC

The Covid-19 pandemic has upended much of life as we knew it a few weeks ago. First, and foremost, we extend our best wishes to all of you as you work to protect the safety and health of your teams and family members. And to the ethanol producers that have stepped up to the current challenge by managing multiple priorities while making renewable transportation fuel, animal feed and ingredients for sanitizers, we thank you.

In an effort to slow the spread of Covid-19, Gov. Tim Walz has issued a shelter-in-place order in Minnesota for two weeks. During this period, there will be a big decline in the sale of transportation fuel which in turn will adversely impact Minnesota’s ethanol industry. 

We will continue to engage with members of Minnesota’s Congressional Delegation, the Minnesota Department of Agriculture and state lawmakers by providing updates on the present and anticipated challenges facing our ethanol industry and offering some suggestions for ways to keep our ethanol industry viable. 

One suggestion is a funding package to keep ethanol plants open. Rural Minnesota needs the jobs created and provided by ethanol plants and retaining those jobs is our top priority. We are also looking at various funding mechanisms to cover some of the costs associated with the procurement of corn. 

Finally, on the advocacy front, we have been working with a variety of state agencies and the Governor's office to find certain regulatory flexibility in response to the need for sanitizers and other valuable ethanol co-products.

We are also working with E15 fuel retailers in the state to shift an even greater share of their existing and foreseeable consumer demand to E15. We have also launched advertising campaigns encouraging consumers in the Twin Cities who have to travel during this period to support Minnesota’s local economy by fueling up with E15. 

To all of our friends and supporters, we wish you the very best during this challenging time and extend our sincerest gratitude to all front line healthcare workers. 

ED Column Web

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Minnesota’s ethanol industry, like the rest of the nation, has and continues to face an unprecedented crisis. Some plants have reduced production by as much as 50 percent while others have temporarily idled production. This, in turn, has adversely affected the countless number of industries that work closely with Minnesota’s ethanol industry. 

Over here at the Minnesota Bio-Fuels Association, we have been working closely with our state government and congressional delegation to find ways to keep our industry afloat and position it toward an upward trajectory when this crisis ends.

Earlier this month, as demand for sanitizing agents skyrocketed, the FDA relaxed its rules concerning the use of industrial alcohol from ethanol plants for sanitizer. Back here in Minnesota, we worked closely with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, the Departments of Agriculture and Public Safety - Alcohol and Gambling Division and the Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) to provide our ethanol producers with the necessary guidelines to produce 190 proof and 200 proof ethanol for hand sanitizer or surface sanitizer. Since then, several ethanol producers in Minnesota have diversified their operations to produce ethanol for in-demand sanitizer products. 

Other opportunities for diversification for the ethanol industry include meeting the growing demand for CO2 from beverage makers and the livestock industry. We have engaged several engineering firms to explore some options for the rapid deployment of systems to capture CO2 during the ethanol production process. We hope we’ll be able to share some developments in this area with you in the very near future.

Still, it is important to note that these diversification opportunities are not nearly enough to replace the gallons of ethanol that have been lost from this crisis. As such, we have been working with our congressional delegation, the Walz Administration and state lawmakers for some aid that could keep our ethanol industry afloat. 

One of our proposals includes cash payments for bushels of corn that were processed by an ethanol plant over a certain date range based on tracked and recorded data. These cash payments would help ethanol plants remain financially viable for a few months so that they will be ready to resume full production when this crisis begins to dissipate. Additionally, we have been working with DEED to provide our ethanol producers with up-to-date information about the federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and other loan options that are part of the CARES Act to help them retain their teams.

For the medium and long-term viability of the ethanol industry, we have long advocated to our congressional delegation on the need for funding for fuel infrastructure that can dispense E15 and other higher blends of ethanol. We are pleased to note that on April 28, Minnesota’s Rep. Angie Craig introduced the bipartisan Clean Fuels Deployment Act of 2020 which authorizes $500 million over five years to help retailers offer higher blends of ethanol. This initiative will help increase the availability and use of E15 and other blends and provide rural Minnesota with some much needed economic relief while reducing harmful greenhouse gas emissions.

In the coming days and weeks, we hope we will be able to share with you more positive developments for our industry. There is a light at the end of the COVID-19 tunnel and it is aimed at a new and positive upward trajectory for our renewable fuels industry.

ED Column Web

When the US Senate returns from its one-week Memorial Day break, it will begin discussions for a fifth coronavirus relief bill.

With unemployment at record highs and the economy contracting at unseen rates, there is little time for discussions. Relief is needed now and this time around, the Senate should follow the lead of its colleagues in the House and include the ethanol industry in any aid package.

More than 130 ethanol plants across the nation have partially or fully shutdown operations as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic which has led to a plunge in fuel demand. In Minnesota, the traffic volume in the Twin Cities metro area was 67.1 percent below a baseline for 2016-2019. 

Since then, as the state economy has slowly reopened, the traffic volume has increased. But as of May 20, it was still 15.5 percent lower than the baseline. As such, the ethanol industry in Minnesota is still in serious distress, putting in jeopardy the 18,000 jobs it supports. 

The Senate does not need to look too hard to find a way to help the ethanol industry. 

Two of its members, Sen. Chuck Grassley and Sen. Amy Klobuchar, introduced the Renewable Fuel Feedstock Reimbursement Act last week. 

Advocates for the ethanol industry like MN Biofuels have in the past month suggested to both Sen. Klobuchar and Sen. Tina Smith that cash payments for bushels of corn processed by an ethanol plant during a specific timeframe would help keep them financially viable for a few months. 

This bill does that. 

Under the act, the USDA will use the Commodity Credit Corporation to reimburse ethanol producers 75 percent of the price of feedstock purchases made from Jan 1, 2020 to March 31, 2020. 

The Senate could also take a page out of the HEROES Act that was recently passed by Congress. 

The HEROES Act includes the Renewable Fuel Reimbursement Program which would require the USDA to make payments to renewable fuel or advanced biofuel producers that experienced unexpected market losses due to the pandemic. 

The program will pay ethanol producers 45 cents per gallon of ethanol produced from Jan 1, 2020 to May 1, 2020. Minnesota’s Rep. Collin Peterson and Rep. Angie Craig were both instrumental in including aid for the ethanol industry in the HEROES Act. 

The ethanol industry, and to a larger extent the agriculture industry, cannot wait for the Senate to drag its feet during the deliberations for the upcoming relief package. 

Both the Renewable Fuel Feedstock Reimbursement Act and the Renewable Fuel Reimbursement Program would significantly help the ethanol industry. Either one would provide the industry with a much-needed shot in the arm. 

Members of the Senate who like talking about homegrown industries and American jobs should act fast to save America’s ethanol industry. 

Unlike those senators, the industry doesn’t have the luxury of taking a one-week Memorial Day break.

ED Column Web

The worst may be over for the ethanol industry as production in Minnesota and other parts of the country begin to approach pre-pandemic numbers. But it would be a mistake for anyone to believe the industry is back on a sound footing.

When traffic volumes plunged in April and May, ethanol production throughout the country fell to unforeseen levels with many plants idling production while others reduced output by 50 percent. 

That is why it is imperative for the Senate to include the financial aid package for the ethanol industry that was introduced by Sen. Chuck Grassley and Sen. Amy Klobuchar in the next COVID-19 relief bill. 

While this aid package is much needed for the short-term to stabilize the industry in this turbulent time, there are several measures that can be adopted at the state level to rebuild and regrow the ethanol industry for the medium and long-term. 

Moreover, these measures would grow the economy, retain jobs in the ethanol industry and significantly cut greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the transportation sector.

One way is to boost the use of E15. State vehicle fleets should be able to have access to, and use, E15 and E85. As more fleets use E15 and E85, these renewable fuels will gain even greater acceptance and become the new standards.

The second measure is focused on the use mid-level blends in non-flex fuel vehicles. The Walz Administration could set up a task force to identify the next steps to obtain data required by the EPA to certify a mid-level blend fuel for use in non-flex fuel vehicles and obtain certification. 

Biofuel infrastructure should also be a high priority to give Minnesotans greater access to renewable fuels. This can be done through creative funding options to help fuel retailers transition to E15 and higher blends. With 370 fuel retailers in the state already offering E15, we should focus on bringing another 290 retailers online.  

With 660 fuel retailers offering E15 and higher blends, we will reach critical mass and help E15 become the new standard in Minnesota. 

Another medium to longer term project would be a clean fuels policy. If such a policy were properly designed to account for the GHG value of ethanol and technology improvements made at ethanol plants, the policy would amplify the benefits of ethanol compared to petroleum. This could provide a huge catalyst for the petroleum industry in Minnesota to use E15 as the new regular fuel. 

Another measure would be to use the Clean Cars Minnesota rulemaking process to stimulate automakers to offer a variety of Low Emission Vehicles (LEVs) powered with ethanol.  

This vehicle rule gives us an opportunity to advocate for flex fuel, hybrid flex fuel and plug-in hybrid flex fuel as well as evolving technologies that can use E100. Success with this initiative will ensure future vehicles are compatible with E15 and higher blends.

All these measures will serve to fulfill a vision wherein Minnesota’s transportation sector is powered with increasing amounts of a homegrown renewable fuel and the energy dollars now used to import petroleum are kept in Minnesota, and the GHG emissions from the transportation sector are more rapidly reduced.

ED Column Web

To say that 2020 has been a challenging year for the ethanol industry would be a severe understatement.

A recent analysis by the Renewable Fuels Association shows that the industry has already suffered $3.4 billion in lost revenue this year with the possibility of losing up to $9 billion next year.

Just to reiterate, this is an industry that annually supports some 350,000 jobs nationwide and contributed $43 billion to GDP last year.

But somehow, every time the Senate comes up with a coronavirus relief package, the ethanol industry gets passed over.

Their latest relief package includes $20 billion allocated for agriculture which could theoretically be used to help ethanol producers. But considering what the industry has been put through in the last few years, you’ll forgive us if we’re a bit skeptical that this would actually happen.

Even more absurd is the fact that the Senate is refusing to include a proposal by Sen. Chuck Grassley and Sen. Amy Klobuchar to provide direct financial aid to ethanol producers through the Renewable Fuel Feedstock Reimbursement Act of 2020.

The problems the renewable ethanol industry have been saddled with require immediate financial aid. The problems are real, relevant and big.

Despite their track record on inaction, the Senate can still get this right - provide direct financial aid, now, to the ethanol industry so it can fulfill the Renewable Fuel Standard.  

The industry has a proven track record of building up rural communities, stimulating the economy and cutting greenhouse gas emissions in the transportation sector. 

Surely, this is an industry worth helping? 

Then again, considering how tone-deaf some members of the senate seem to the plight of Americans suffering from a recession, why should we expect anything different?

On a personal note, we want to express our condolences to Larry Johnson’s family. 

Larry was known as the “ethanol man.”  But when I met him in 2011, and throughout the intervening years, I came to know Larry as the renewable fuel visionary. He also saw a pathway to advanced biofuels and understood the role it could play in aggressively cutting greenhouse gas emissions in the transportation sector.  When we get the costs and benefits properly adjusted, that vision will again take off.  

We will miss Larry’s foresight in all things ethanol.

ED Column Web

What would it take to cut petroleum use by at least 85 percent in the near term? What vehicle powertrain can use two renewable sources of energy and on one fill provide a range greater than 450 miles? It’s the plug-in flex fuel hybrid vehicle.

As California and other states, including Minnesota, explore the role of ultra low emission vehicles in cutting harmful greenhouse gas emissions, it’s time for a closer look at the plug-in flex fuel hybrid, which is built on existing powertrain technology. 

This vehicle is comprised of three key components.

The plug-in component enables this vehicle to charge a traction battery and operate in electric vehicle mode. An electric vehicle range of approximately 30 miles, according to research from the University of Southern California, Davis, is sufficient for commutes in certain metro areas. To make the EV power component truly green and low emission, the electricity used for charging the battery should be generated with only renewable energy sources such as that from wind or solar photovoltaic systems.

Then there is the flex fuel component of this vehicle that can use E85. When a driver exhausts the EV mode, the flex fuel powered engine operates the powertrain. This dual energy combination (from the plug-in and ethanol) significantly extends the range of travel. The dual energy arrangement is especially well suited for those climate zones where greater amounts of energy are required to provide vehicle cabin cooling and heating.

The hybrid component mirrors that in vehicles with traditional hybrid powertrain systems. In typical braking systems, the brakes convert vehicle momentum into heat which is lost to the environment. A hybrid system, however, captures the energy from braking to charge the traction battery.

Moreover, as noted above, carmakers won’t have to make significant investments to offer plug-in flex fuel hybrid powertrains in their vehicles. Plug-in hybrids and flex fuel vehicles already exist in the market. In fact, in 2017, Toyota introduced a flex fuel hybrid vehicle in South America.

With the right signals from regulators and consumers, carmakers will be compelled to offer plug-in flex fuel hybrids to the market in the near term and improve energy security by cutting dependence on one energy source and dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the transportation sector.

ED Column Web

The Governor’s Council on Biofuels, earlier this month, set forth some constructive recommendations for attaining at least 25 percent volume ethanol in Minnesota by 2025, stimulating enhanced production efficiency of biofuels and helping to reduce Greenhouse Gas emissions in the transportation sector. These recommendations, when taken as a package, chart a very positive future for ethanol in Minnesota.

Five key recommendations of the Council, if fully implemented, hold the potential to boost the agriculture sector, significantly increase demand for renewable ethanol over more carbon intensive petroleum and renew Minnesota’s leadership role on ethanol issues.  

One of the recommendations calls for making the transition from the standard E10 fuel to E15. Most notable in these recommendations is the realization that many fuel retailers will need some type of financial assistance to properly upgrade their fuel storage and dispensing systems to offer the better emission reduction E15 to Minnesotans. Interestingly, the Council also calls for equipment standards that will enable fuel retailers to offer even E25 at some point in time.

In its wisdom and foresight, the Council also set the course for work on a Clean Fuels Program. Absent action by the Minnesota Legislature in the 2021 session, the recommendation calls for the use of a working group to chart a course of action. If properly constructed, a CFP holds the potential to stimulate further reductions in transportation sector GHG emissions while giving a boost to Minnesota agriculture. Agriculture holds tremendous potential for reducing and sequestering GHG emissions. Therein rests an important tool and economic opportunity for farmers.

While it seems straightforward, there are a number of hurdles to getting E85 and E15 into state fleet vehicles. Council recommendations call for the Governor to use an Executive Order to make biofuels a priority for use in State vehicles. This is where the Minnesota Bio-Fuels Association biofuel locator app can of service - rather than paper documents in vehicles, state employees can simply use the app to find the nearest fuel retailer that offers E15 and higher bends.

Most of us know the level of disinformation that surrounds ethanol. Given the challenges on this front, the Council calls for a coordinated communications and education program to provide Minnesotans with the facts about homegrown and produced ethanol and to provided a stable source of funding.

Lastly, the Council calls for increased funding to the bioincentive program. This is a sure path to boosting the production of advanced biofuels and further lowering their carbon intensity thereby making it an even greater value to Minnesotans.

Although the Minnesota ethanol industry is confronted with some short-term challenges due to the Covid-19 crisis, implementation of the Councils recommendations suggest a positive future and some new paths for renewable ethanol in Minnesota to boost the economy and reduce GHG emissions.