by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  The EPREINC scenario—One chart was prepared by the Energy Policy Research Foundation for its Congressional testimony on the Renewable Fuel Standard yesterday.
…
EPRINC’s scenario foresees a big shortfall between the production …

by Geoff Cooper (Renewable Fuels Association/The Energy Collective)  …Incredibly, the American Petroleum Institute’s anti-RFS “training center” (yes, Big Oil has a “training center” apparently intended to spawn an army of certified RFS haters) has the …

by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  On June 5, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on Energy Policy, Health Care and Entitlements held a hearing on the federal renewable fuel standard (RFS). …

by Geoff Cooper (The Energy Collective/Renewable Fuels Association)   Anyone with even a casual interest in energy policy knows that a full frontal assault has been launched against the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). Big Oil has …

by Fred Cannon (The Hill’s Congress Blog/KiOR)  More than one-third of the world’s total energy usage relies on liquid fuels – primarily from fossil fuels. In the first quarter of 2013 consumption outpaced production, and …

by Paul Kenney (KAAPA Ethanol/Kearney Hub) Opinion:  …Ethanol blends are becoming a staple at pumps across the nation, and ethanol accounts for more than 10 percent of the country’s motor fuel supply. It’s a higher-octane alternative …

by Joanna Schroeder (DomesticFuel.com)  The House and Energy Commerce Committee has released its third white paper on the Renewable Fuel Standard, “Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Environmental Impacts.” Executive Vice President of the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE), …

by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  Reps. Pete Olson, R-Texas, and Jim Costa, D-Calif., have introduced legislation that would allow ethanol produced from domestic natural gas to meet the volume requirements of the renewable fuel …

by Ryan Tracy  (The Wall Street Journal)  Instituting a carbon tax could help reduce the deficit and “produce incremental benefits” for the environment, but could also raise the cost of many goods and services, the …

by Brent Erickson (Biotechnology Industry Organization/Biofuels Digest)  …Renewable chemicals offer cost-competitiveness with petrochemicals or new properties and features that add value to innovative consumer products. In that way, they’ve captured some market share and created …

by Joanne Ivancic (Advanced Biofuels USA)  What used to be known as “The New York Sugar Conference” has become “The ISO and Datagro Sugar & Ethanol Conference” with a record-setting number of attendees (350 from …

by Barry Cohen (National Algae Association/PR Log) The DoE has spent $2.5 billion on algae research but to date nothing has been commercialized. Why? Because their mission is to develop technologies. It’s not their problem or …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  In Washington, BIO begins the week with applause for Sens. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Thad Cochran (R-Miss.) and other members of the Senate Agriculture Committee for including mandatory funding for …

by Tim McDonnell  (Mother Jones)  … In mid-March, in a speech at Illinois’ Argonne National Lab, Obama pitched an Energy Security Trust, which would collect $2 billion in additional revenues by 2020 from oil and gas …

by Cindy Zimmerman (DomesticFuel.com)  Legislation to reauthorize the Farm Bill energy title was introduced in the Senate Monday. Senators Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Al Franken (D-MN) introduced the Rural Energy Investment Act to “help farmers, ranchers, and …

by Geoff Cooper (Renewable Fuels Association)  As part of its ongoing review of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), the House Energy & Commerce Committee recently asked stakeholders to comment on the impact of the RFS on the …

by Ellyn Ferguson  (Roll Call) A House panel’s decision to look back at mandates set in the 2007 renewable-energy law could be a pivotal moment for industries hoping to slow down growth in the ethanol industry.
The …

by Tina Casey (TriplePundit)  Just yesterday, we noted that auto manufacturers are beginning to shed their century-old love affair with petroleum, and now it seems that the agriculture sector is ready to move on, too.
On …

by Kenneth Prewitt (Science Magazine) Editorial: This month, the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) will apply two criteria in its review of research proposals: intellectual merit and impact. One discipline, however, will have to meet a further …

(Renewable Fuels Association)  In seventeen pages of comments, the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) answered questions put forth in the U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Energy and Commerce Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) Assessment on Agricultural Sector …

by  Susanne Retka Schill (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  A bill proposed Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., that would put E15 on hold for another round of studies was evaluated by the Congressional Budget Office.
…H.R. 875 would require the …

by Joe Jobe (The Wall Street Journal/National Biodiesel Board)  It is not true that all renewable fuels are the same and that advanced biofuels aren’t being produced on a commercial scale (“An Ethanol Spring,” Review & …

by Kent Peppler (Denver Post)  …But predictions of more off-the-charts wildfires this summer are a reminder of how fragile it all is and how much we have to lose. Renewable fuels can help us protect …

by Darren Goode (Politico)  An effort by ethanol backers to get the Environmental Protection Agency to scale back the amount of advanced biofuels required in the U.S. gasoline supply this year has opened a rift …

by Ron Kotrba (Biodiesel Magazine)  If RFS detractors get their way, biodiesel may become a casualty of the war against ethanol. It’s up to all of us to make sure this doesn’t happen
In editorials and …

by Bruce Dale (The Hill/Michigan State University)  The oil industry hopes to protect its control over America’s fuel supply by undermining renewable fuels. By confusing us with misleading claims and outright falsehoods, oil companies hope …

by Michael Thede (Kearney Hub)  Letter to Editor:  Recent efforts by several members of Congress to dismantle the federal Renewable Fuel Standard are a direct attack on a domestic biofuels program that generates enormous benefits …

(25 x ’25)  …But the growth in new, clean energy is only just beginning, driven in large part by the energy programs first enacted in the 2002 Farm Bill and renewed again in 2008. Now …

(Environmental and Energy Study Institute)  The House Committee on Energy and Commerce is continuing its assessment of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). The Committee has issued its second white paper focusing on “Agricultural Sector Impacts.” …

by Nicole Lederer (Huffington Post) … One thing I’ve noticed over the years: The changing face of the clean energy industry. Increasingly, clean energy business leaders come from rural areas. They are farmers. They are community …

(US Senate Finance Committee)  This document is the fourth in a series of papers compiling tax reform options that Finance Committee members may wish to consider as they work towards reforming our nation’s tax system.  This …

by Douglas L. Faulkner with contributions from Jacques Beaudry-Losique (Biofuels Digest)  …We believe it is time for bioenergy industry leaders to take the initiative and chalk up a new comprehensive game plan, reflecting the new reality …

by Tom Buis (Growth Energy/Ethanol Producer Magazine)  …The industry has matured and is operating freely without any federal subsidies.
Yet, 100 years later, Big Oil refuses to give up its excessive tax subsidies.
The petroleum industry continues …

This webinar (First in this series) will focus on the current and past policies which drive or hinder (as the case may be) the emerging biofuels industry. In this webinar, participants will explore the similarities …

by Bob Dinneen (Renewable Fuels Association)  … (Robert) Murphy simply regurgitates Big Oil’s false argument that the RFS is driving up fuel costs. There’s not a shred of evidence to support that notion, but that’s never …

by Christopher Doering (Des Moines Register)  The battle between U.S. ethanol producers and oil companies has reached a turning point, with the winners poised to gain an advantage over the future of the country’s energy …

by Ken Root (High Plains Midwest Ag Journal)  …But there were sectors of agriculture that saw a dramatic change in the cost of their feedstock and began to align with each other and any other …

by RP Siegel (TriplePundit)  Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and Iowa Governor Terry Branstad appeared together recently defending the Renewable Fuel Standard from recent attacks from people like Robert Bradley Jr. who writes for Forbes. Bradley, an adjunct scholar …

by Bob Dinneen (Renewable Fuels Association)  If the editorial writers of the Wall Street Journal consider themselves students of mine, “An Ethanol Spring,” (April 17), I am saddened to report to you that you’ve failed.  …

by Pavel Molchanov (Raymond James and Associates/Biofuels Digest)  …There is no question that there have been growing pains along the way, more than we would have hoped, but the industry continues along its trajectory towards scale. We …

by Christopher Doering (Des Moines Register)  A meaningful change to the country’s renewable fuel mandate would drastically curtail the market opportunity for a cellulosic ethanol plant being built in Emmetsburg by ethanol producer Poet and …

by Nick Juliano (MidWest Energy News)   A proposal to allow renewable energy developers to take advantage of a tax structure that has long been popular among fossil fuel companies is gaining traction among lawmakers tasked …

by Ayesha Rascoe (Reuters)  * Wyden says committee will explore ethanol mandate
* Energy committee to look at gasoline prices this Spring
* Lawmakers introduced bill ending corn ethanol targets
The chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural …

by Amy Harder (National Journal)  It’s hard to rival the diversity and sheer number of groups and companies with a vested interest in the renewable-fuels standard, from food and livestock businesses to those in the …

by Bob Dinneen (Renewable Fuels Association) To the Editor:   What’s there about lower prices at the pump, less pollution and reduced reliance on imported oil that Robert Bradley, Jr., doesn’t like (“It’s Time to Repeal the …

by Zack Coleman (The Hill E2Wire) The head of a powerful oil industry lobbying group met with top White House officials and senior lawmakers Wednesday about stripping a federal biofuel rule.
“We’re talking about the renewable fuel …

by Joanne Ivancic (Advanced Biofuels USA)  Although conference convener, Biofuels Digest’s Jim Lane, insisted that he “discouraged industry bashing,” the first morning of this 3-day conference was replete with unveiled references to The Oil Industry, …

by Jennifer A. Dlouhy (FuelFix)  In unveiling his $3.8 trillion spending plan for the U.S. government on Wednesday, President Barack Obama revived his longstanding attack on oil industry tax breaks and formally launched a plan …

by Scott Irwin and Darrel Good (FarmDocDaily)  …Here, we present a proposal for implementing the RFS2 through 2015 that recognizes the constraints implied by the E10 blend wall and will avert the impact of the …

by Holly Jessen (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  The ethanol industry reacted swiftly to the so-called RFS Reform Act, legislation introduced April 10 in the U.S. House of Representatives, which they said would gut the renewable fuel …

(EV-olution.org)  President Obama’s FY 2014 budget proposal submitted to Congress provides $28.4 billion in discretionary funds for the Department of Energy, an 8% increase above the 2012 enacted level. Among the direct transportation-related highlights of the department’s …

(American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers/PR Newswire)  The American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM) filed formal comments detailing the problems and harmful consequences caused by the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) proposed rule Regulation of Fuels and Fuel …

by Emily Pickrell (FuelFix)  On Jan. 1, Congress made algae-based fuel production eligible for a $1.01-per-gallon cellulosic biofuel production federal tax credit.
Cellulosic biofuels typically are made from woody, non-food material such as grasses or wood …

(Renewable Fuels Association)    The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) today (April 5, 2013)  responded to the questions posed by the U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Energy and Commerce in a white paper entitled, “Examining ‘Blend …

by Bill Chameides (The Green Grok/Duke University)  …As a libation, ethanol’s been around for a long, long time. As a fuel, it dates back to 1826 when it was first used in an internal combustion engine. …

by Brooke Coleman (National Journal/Advanced Ethanol Council)  First, let’s assess what we know to be true …

RFS2 is just five years old. We are about one-third of the way through a 15-year commitment to diversify …

by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  Sens. David Vitter, R-La., and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, have sent a letter to U.S. EPA administrator nominee Gina McCarthy, asking her to outline “how she will protect American citizens …

by Bob Dinneen (Renewable Fuels Association)  There’s a fight for the future of American motor fuels – renewable fuels versus fossil fuels. Environmentalists shouldn’t have much trouble deciding which side they’re on.
After all, the major …

(Platts)  A third key congressional committee has entered the debate over the Renewable Fuel Standard, calling for comment on a series of questions and issuing a “white paper” detailing concerns about the biofuels mandate and …

by Dan Piller (Des Moines Register)  Gasoline prices remain stuck above $3.50 per gallon despite the highest monthly domestic oil production in 21 years.
Big Oil and renewable fuels advocates on Wednesday blamed each other for …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  This week in Washington, it has been one for the record books, emailwise and biofuelswise. Reams and reams of emails attest to the seriousness of the stakes — as NGOs, …

by Scott Irwin and Darrel Good (University of Illinois/FarmDocDaily)  …The suggestion to waive the mandate assumes that ethanol production and blending is motivated only by the RFS and that a lower mandate would result in less …

by Amy Harder (National Journal)  …Energy and Commerce Chairman Fred Upton, R-Mich., and ranking member Henry Waxman, D-Calif., released the first in a series of white papers on Wednesday seeking input on how—or whether—Congress should …

by Zack Coleman (The Hill E2Wire)  An amendment to a $984 billion Senate government funding bill that would have stripped funds from the Defense Department’s drop-in biofuels program failed by a 40-59 vote on Wednesday.
Sen. …

by Dan Piller (Des Moines Register)  Major oil companies called on Congress Wednesday to repeal the Renewable Fuel Standard, the six-year-old federal law mandating biofuels use that is the base of demand for both ethanol …

by Meg Cichon  (Renewable Energy World)  Happy birthday, Big Oil! A group gathered in Washington D.C. this week to celebrate 100 years of tax subsidies for the oil industry – but attendees certainly weren’t oil-industry insiders …

by Grant Gerlock (KBIA)  Ethanol is an up and down industry, and right now it’s down. Ethanol plants in at least 13 states have stopped running over recent months because of higher corn prices and …

Advanced Biofuels USA, an internationally respected nonprofit educational organization dedicated to promoting the understanding, development and use of advanced biofuels as an energy security, economic development, military flexibility and climate change/pollution control solution finds the …

by John Voelcker (Green Car Reports)  …Now two bills recently introduced into Congress seek to delay or ban altogether the sale of E15 gasoline, which contains 15 percent ethanol rather than the 10-percent maximum standard …

by Matthew L. Wald (New York Times) A glut of ethanol in the gasoline supply is threatening to push up prices at the pump and may have exacerbated the growing cost gap between regular gasoline and …

by Zack Coleman (The Hill E2Wire)  Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) filed two amendments to a $984 billion government funding bill on Thursday that would gut the military’s alternative fuels program.
The amendments already are drawing criticism …

by Anne Steckel (Biodiesel Magazine/National Biodiesel Board)  The National Biodiesel Board recently welcomed the proposed rule from the U.S. EPA establishing the 2013 advanced biofuels requirements under the renewable fuel standard (RFS) at 2.75 billion …

by Cindy Zimmerman (DomesticFuel.com)  The Governor’s Biofuels Coalition met in Sioux Falls Wednesday and sent a letter to members of Congress in support of the Renewable Fuels Standard.
The letter from the 30 governors represented by the Coalition, led by …

by Scott Faber (Environmental Working Group/The Hill E2Wire)  It’s time to face facts: the biofuels mandate Congress established in 2005 is creating too much bad biofuel and not enough good biofuel.
This year, that mandate requires …

by Holly Jessen (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  A bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives seeks to repeal the E15 waiver and require additional testing of the fuel, despite extensive testing by the U.S. DOE.
Rep. …

(Platts)  Prices of renewable fuel credits, needed by refiners to comply with the nation’s Renewable Fuel Standard, have skyrocketed over the past few months, an indication to some that the dreaded “blend wall” is close.
The …

(1011Now.com)  …Nebraska ethanol and ag leaders believe E15 is key in getting idle ethanol plants back to producing.
Robert White, the director of market development for the Renewable Fuels Association, tells fuel retailers that gasoline demand dropped 6 …

by Holly Jessen (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  A Feb. 26 hearing featured testimony of three E15 critics, including a representative of the Coordinating Research Council, which has authored research reports concluding E15 could damage engine valves …

by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Science, Space and Technology’s Subcommittee on Environment is scheduled to hold a hearing on mid-level ethanol blends on Feb. 26. The hearing …

(Internal Revenue Service)  The American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (Pub. L. 112-240) retroactively extends certain fuel tax credits that expired on Dec. 31, 2011. The retroactively extended fuel tax credits are the biodiesel mixture …

by Holly Jessen (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  On Feb. 14, U.S. Sens. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and David Vitter, R-La., introduced legislation that would overturn U.S. EPA approval of E15 for model year 2001 and newer light …

by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  Pending legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives aims to limit the ability of the U.S. EPA to increase the cellulosic biofuel requirements its sets each year under the …

By Joshua Rathod (Advanced Biofuels USA) Thinking about the back and forth on EPA’s cellulosic fuel mandates in the last month, the press on the harmful effects of diverting food crops for fuel processing in …

by Joanna Schroeder (DomesticFuel.com)   Former North Dakota Senator Byron Dorgan is truly an advocate for biofuels. While in office, Dorgan authored the first renewable fuel bill, requiring 8 billion gallons of biofuels. When President …

by Patrick Rucker (Reuters)  President Barack Obama wants Congress to create a $2 billion clean-energy transportation fund using fees paid by oil and gas producers on federal lands, the White House said Wednesday, expanding a plan announced …

by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  On Feb. 4, Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, ranking member of the Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources, released an energy blueprint that calls for a wide variety of …

by Jeremy Martin and Jim Collins (Politico) The fuels of the future are here today, and we can thank Congress for enacting the Renewable Fuel Standard. This bedrock policy has brought us to the point where …

by Bryan McBournie (SmartBlog) … Shell Oil Products’ Downstream Policy and Advocacy Manager John Reese said his company is a big supporter of biofuels, but the RFS needs to be adjusted to avoid problems down the …

(FuelFix)  Lawmakers have unveiled the first major proposal to rewrite a mandate forcing refiners to blend biofuels into gasoline, amid a growing outcry against the eight-year-old requirement.
Rep. Gregg Harper, R-Miss., and Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, …

by Douglas L. Faulkner (“The Cleantech Conservative”/BiofuelsDigest)  … That is, the cost of renewed tax breaks for the biofuels industry came at a great cost relative to the benefits gained. Being lumped in with Hollywood filmmakers, rum …

by Paul Winter (Biotechnology Industry Organization)  Less than a decade ago, the nation’s energy experts projected imports of oil to continue to grow throughout the first third of the century. Both Congress and the President …

by Ben Geman (The Hill E2Wire)  Former Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.), President Obama’s nominee for Defense secretary, is backing a controversial ban on military purchase of alternative fuels that have higher greenhouse gas emissions than …

by Sandra I. Erwin (National Defense Magazine)  The biofuels industry is seeing promising signs from Washington. President Obama in his inauguration speech tied green energy to economic growth. Congress agreed to allow the Pentagon to …

by Dan Haugen (Midwest Energy News)  By organizing as a type of partnership instead of a corporation, companies that extract, process or transport “depletable” natural resources have been exempt from corporate income taxes.
That word — …

by Ned Stowe (Environmental and Energy Study Institute)  The USDA estimates that farmers in the U.S. will plant nine million more acres in corn in 2013 than they did in 2011, an increase of almost 10 …

by Theda Skocpol (Foreign Policy)  If Obama wants to make good on his inaugural promise, he’ll need to remember the lessons he learned as a community organizer.
…The inside game has failed in part because climate …

(Iowas Renewable Fuels Association)  A group of Iowa businesses and organizations today congratulated President Obama on his Inauguration and announced the formation of the Iowa RFS Coalition.  In a letter to the President, also copied …

by Cindy Zimmerman (DomesticFuel.com)  The Agriculture Energy Coalition (AgEC) today urged Congress to begin work on a new five-year Farm Bill with strong mandatory funding for energy programs.
The coalition notes that programs included in the …

by Cindy Zimmerman (DomesticFuel.com)  Delegates for the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) last week voted overwhelmingly to support continuation of the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS), despite the fact that membership in the organization includes a …

(AOL Energy/Fuels America Coalition)  The oil industry has taken aim at the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) in a self-interested bid to retain dominance over America’s transportation fuel sector. Our dependence on oil is stifling consumer …