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(Governors’ Biofuels Coalition) High-Octane Ethanol Should Replace Carcinogenic Gasoline Aromatics — Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem sent a letter to the Biden Administration pointing out the role that higher-octane ethanol could play in meeting the Administration’s climate and public health goals. Governor Walz is the chair and Governor
Federal Regulation
July 23, 2021
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(Blue Biofuels) Alliance BioEnergy Plus Inc., DBA Blue Biofuels, (the “Company”) is pleased to announce that it filed 3 additional patents that follow on the granted patent to its Cellulose-to-Sugar (“CTS”) technology system. In the process of testing and perfecting towards commercialization, the Company has developed additional unique technology related to
July 23, 2021
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(Office of Senator Chuck Grassley (R-I)) Prepared Floor Remarks by U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa Setting the Record Straight on Renewable Fuels — Many bills that get introduced in the Senate won’t go anywhere. They are simply messaging documents. I usually do not care to comment on these bills. It simply isn’t
July 23, 2021
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(Biomass Power Association/Biomass Magazine) The Biomass Power Association on July 17 expressed concern over a D.C. Circuit decision allowing the Environmental Protection Agency to delay crediting cellulosic fuel in a challenge to the agency’s 2019 Renewable Volume Obligation rule. The case is Growth Energy v. EPA, No. 19-1023. The RFS Power
July 21, 2021
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by Stephanie Kelly, Jarrett Renshaw (Reuters) The White House has delayed an annual process meant to decide how much ethanol and other biofuels U.S. oil refiners need to blend into their fuel each year, as it seeks a solution for an issue that pits refinery workers against corn farmers, two sources
July 21, 2021
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by Todd Neeley (DTN Progressive Farmer) The Renewable Fuels Association is planning to petition the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia for a rehearing of an E15 case that could jeopardize the year-round sale of the 15% ethanol blend of gasoline starting next year. The RFA may be
July 21, 2021
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(Office of Senator Deb Fischer (R-NE)) … The Consumer and Fuel Retailer Choice Act, which I reintroduced with Sen. Amy Klobuchar in response to the ruling, offers a common-sense solution to this problem. Our bill would reinstate the waiver that allowed high-ethanol blends like E15 to be sold all year.
July 20, 2021
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(South Dakota Farmers Union) South Dakota Farmers Union is among a coalition of agriculture and biofuel groups urging the administration to propose a higher octane fuel standard as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) updates its greenhouse gas emissions standards for passenger vehicles and light duty trucks. “It’s been a long-standing position
July 19, 2021
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by Todd Neeley (DTN Progressive Farmer) The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on Friday denied a biofuels group’s challenge to EPA’s inaction on restoring 4.3 billion gallons to the Renewable Fuel Standard lost to small-refinery exemptions between 2016 and 2018. The court, however, sent back the
July 19, 2021
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(Renewable Fuels Association) The Renewable Fuels Association today welcomed the D.C. Circuit Court’s outright rejection of arguments from oil refiners that the Renewable Fuel Standard causes them economic hardship and therefore the Environmental Protection Agency should have waived their 2019 RFS obligations. The court’s rebuke of the refiners’ arguments was part
July 19, 2021
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by Jerry Perkins (Successful Farming) … After years of research into the data about farming’s contribution to carbon emissions, that’s the conclusion reached by Ron Alverson, a South Dakota corn farmer and ethanol plant director, who spoke Wednesday at the Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo (FEW), which wraps up today at
July 16, 2021
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by Meghan Sapp (Biofuels Digest) In Georgia, Platts reports that Delta Air Lines said in a quarterly earnings call that the company refuses to spend cash willy nilly on a RIN marketplace that it sees as non-transparent. He confirmed that the company has accrued the RINs required for the Monroe Energy
July 16, 2021
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by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine) The U.S. EPA released updated small refinery exemption (SRE) data on July 15, reporting that six SRE petitions have been withdrawn in the past month. There are now 64 SRE petitions pending, down from 70 in June. One SRE petition was withdrawn for each of the
July 16, 2021
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(Renewable Fuels Association) Low-carbon ethanol’s “brightest and sunniest days remain ahead” despite recent judicial setbacks and a growing policy push on electric vehicles, RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper said in keynote remarks today at the International Fuel Ethanol Workshop and Expo. Even after two recent disappointing court decisions, “The ethanol
July 15, 2021
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(Office of U.S. Representatives Angie Craig (D-MN 2nd) Craig and Smith’s Legislation has been endorsed by Growth Energy, the Renewable Fuels Association and the National Corn Growers Association — Today, U.S. Representatives Angie Craig (D-MN) and Adrian Smith (R-NE) led Co-Chairs of the Congressional Biofuels Caucus in introducing the Year-Round Fuel Choice
July 14, 2021
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(Clean Fuels Development Coalition) Dozens of agricultural, ethanol, automotive, and manufacturing organizations are calling for higher octane in gasoline to help automakers increase vehicle fuel economy and reduce greenhouse gases. In a letter to President Joe Biden, signed by a range of agriculture and ethanol interests, they pointed to the
July 14, 2021
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by Stuart Parker (Inside EPA/Governors’ Biofuels Coalition) A coalition of biofuels and farm groups, led by former Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle (D-SD), is poised to press White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) officials to include a high-octane standard to boost fuel economy in EPA’s upcoming light-duty vehicle rules
July 13, 2021
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by D’Arce McMillan (Western Producer) … Aside from weather and crop conditions, grain market traders are also keeping an eye on the debate playing out in the U.S. capitol over renewable biofuel blending regulations. The oil industry, refinery workers and some state governments do not like the blending requirements. They were
July 12, 2021
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by Josh Siegel (Washington Examiner’s Daily on Energy) Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg stressed the importance of strict fuel economy standards to clean up the transportation sector because, even as the U.S. shifts to more electric vehicles, gas-powered cars will still be on the roads for some time. “No matter how good we get
July 12, 2021
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(AgWeek) Coming up on AgweekTV, we will discuss the ethanol industry hitting another devastating court decision. We will tour an award winning regenerative farming operation in east central South Dakota. We will visit two ag businesses that are dedicated to staying in rural North Dakota. We will discuss the number
July 12, 2021
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by Todd Neeley (DTN Progressive Farmer) The nixing of EPA’s E15 rule that allowed year-round sales has in many respects taken the ethanol industry back to square one. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit last week tossed out the Trump administration’s rule that had been widely celebrated
July 9, 2021
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by Mike Stoll (Austin Daily Herald) … During the tour, Klobuchar (Senatory Amy Klobuchar D-MN) learned of the Institute’s research into the role biofuels play in reducing the risk of cancer. A recent study, which was a collaboration between The Hormel Institute, University of Minnesota, and the Energy Resources Center, University
July 9, 2021
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(National Association of Farm Bureaus/NewsDakota.com) Last week’s D.C. federal court ruling does not mean retailers must stop selling 15-percent ethanol-blended gas immediately. The court ruling was another setback for the ethanol industry, discouraging future blending pump investments if it sticks, and coming on the heels of a Supreme Court ruling also unfavorable
July 8, 2021
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by Chuck Abbott (Successful Farming) Despite losing two high-profile cases in seven days, the ethanol industry says the future is bright for the corn-based biofuel that it promotes as a low-carbon alternative to gasoline and a tool to slow global warming. “We view both decisions as only temporary setbacks but neither
July 7, 2021
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(Growth Energy) The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a 2019 rule by the Environmental Protection Agency that lifted outdated restrictions on the sale of a fifteen percent ethanol fuel blend (E15). The case, American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers, et al. vs. EPA, was a challenge by oil refiners to the rulemaking
July 2, 2021
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by Matthew Choi (Politico’s Morning Energy) EPA and the Transportation Department soon will propose a rule boosting federal tailpipe standards almost to Obama-era levels, with an eye toward more aggressive requirements later this decade to goose electric vehicle sales, the New York Times reports, citing unnamed sources. The proposal, anticipated
July 2, 2021
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(Renewable Fuels Association) he Renewable Fuels Association today thanked Reps. Randy Feenstra (R-IA) and Angie Craig (D-MN) for introducing legislation that reinforces the intended meaning of the term “extension” as it relates to the Renewable Fuel Standard’s small refinery exemption provisions. The bill stipulates that a small refinery may petition for an exemption
July 2, 2021
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by Chuck Abbott (Successful Farming) … Farm and ethanol groups said they were confident the EPA will approve few exemptions from the Renewable Fuel Standard, but they urged the agency on Monday to state how it will run the program in the wake of last week’s Supreme Court ruling on waivers.
June 30, 2021
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by Larry Lee (Brownfield Ag News) Biofuels supporters remain opposed to President Biden considering relief for oil refiners from biofuel blending requirements. Jonathan Gibbs with the Wisconsin Soybean Board tells Brownfield Biden’s planned Tuesday visit in Wisconsin would be a good opportunity for the President to show farmers he still supports
June 29, 2021
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by Neal Kemmet (Wisconsin State Farmer) President Biden is expected to discuss the farm economy during a trip to Wisconsin this week. It’s an exciting visit that will showcase the state’s leadership in the field and across the broader agricultural supply chain. It’s also a rare opportunity for our state’s leaders
June 28, 2021
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by Andrew Chung and Stephanie Kelly (Reuters/Yahoo!) The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday bolstered a bid by small oil refineries to win exemptions from a federal law requiring increasing levels of ethanol and other renewable fuels to be blended into their products, a major setback for biofuel producers. The 6-3
June 25, 2021
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by Doug Durante (Clean Fuels Development Coalition/Governors’ Biofuels Coalition) Commends Daschle HOLC Alliance Fight for National Higher Octane Gasoline Standard in SAFE-2 Rule — The Clean Fuels Development Coalition (CFDC) called a recent letter from automakers in support of high octane low carbon fuels further validation that ethanol has a key
June 25, 2021
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by Carol Werner (Morning Call) A June 7 column criticized the Renewable Fuel Standard, reflecting arguments we’ve heard from oil refiners since the program launched in 2005. They were wrong then, and they are wrong now. Renewable fuels are a boon for consumers, who saved an average of 22 cents per
June 24, 2021
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by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine) The Biden administration has signaled its intent to issue a notice of proposed rulemaking to develop post-2022 Renewable Fuel Standard regulations before the end of 2021. A proposed rule to set annual RFS renewable volume obligations (RVOs) for 2021 and 2022 is expected to be
June 22, 2021
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(Growth Energy) Today, Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor participated in the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Subcommittee on Rural Development and Energy hearing titled “Renewable Energy – Growth and Opportunities for our Rural Economies”. In the hearing, Skor spoke on biofuels’ ability to drive economic growth using data from a
June 22, 2021
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by Matthew Choi (Politico’s Morning Energy) The Senate Agriculture Rural Development and Energy subcommittee meets today on renewable energy opportunities in rural areas. Subcommittee Chair Tina Smith plans to use the hearing to highlight biofuels’ role in emissions reductions, particularly in hard-to-electrify industries like aviation, according to a copy of her opening remarks shared
June 22, 2021
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by Cindy Zimmerman (Energy.AgWired.com) The Farm Futures Business Summit being held this week in Iowa featured corn farmers and ethanol industry leaders on the first day of the program to shed light on the future of ethanol. The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) sponsored the panel with Iowa corn farmer and NCGA Ethanol Action Team
June 18, 2021
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by James Osborne (Houston Chronicle) … The decision by a Louisiana federal judge Wednesday requiring the Department of Interior to end its pause on oil and gas leasing came as the administration’s plan to spend hundreds of billions of dollars on electric vehicle charging stations and tax credits was looking
June 18, 2021
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(National Biodiesel Board/Biodiesel Magazine) While welcoming federal support for domestic SAF on par with support for biodiesel and renewable diesel, the NBB wants Congress and the Biden Administration to understand how all three fuels support the nation’s climate and clean air priorities. The Biden administration delivered some positive news to
June 17, 2021
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(Office of Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)) U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Susan Collins (R-ME) led a bipartisan letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael Regan urging the Biden administration to address languishing applications under the renewable fuel standard (RFS) program, including moving forward with allowing renewable electricity made from biomass to
June 17, 2021
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by Paul Winters (National Biodiesel Board/Public Opinion) Jim Snell’s argument against the Renewable Fuel Standard needs fact checking (“Op-Ed: Renewable Fuel Standard makes us more reliant on foreign oil,” June 4). Of the East Coast oil refineries that closed since 2005, according to the Energy Information Administration, five were converted to storage
June 16, 2021
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by Jennifer A. Dlouhy and Kim Chipman (Bloomberg/Yahoo!) The Biden administration is developing targets for biofuel that are likely to be relatively flat or even lower as it seeks to balance the interests of blue-collar refining workers and advance a clean-energy agenda. The Environmental Protection Agency is set to propose renewable
June 16, 2021
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by Matthew Choi (Politico’s Morning Energy) EPA air officials said Tuesday they’re in the early stages of additional regulations related to conventional and greenhouse gas emissions from tailpipes. The agency says it is on track to propose new federal light-duty standards sometime next month to replace the Trump rollback, but the
June 16, 2021
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by Mikkel Pates (AgWeek) Former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., talks about corn ethanol opportunities in the Biden administration and reflects on the recent passing of Orrie Swayze, a farmer and former Marine fighter pilot from Wilmot, S.D., who Daschle described as a “mentor” in his passion for an
June 15, 2021
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by Joanne Ivancic* (Advanced Biofuels USA) President Biden is going to prop up petroleum oil refineries? Really? Shouldn’t he be using every tool in his box to convince them to use as many renewables as possible in their products? To transition to renewable fuels as some are slowly doing already?
June 11, 2021
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by Anthony Adragna (Politico’s Morning Energy) EPA announced Thursday it would take another look at one of the agency’s most sweeping and important public health regulations that the Trump administration opted to leave alone last year, Pro’s Alex Guillén reports. The agency said it’s reconsidering the National Ambient Air Quality
June 11, 2021
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(Renewable Fuels Association) A recent poll found that voter support for the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) has hit its highest levels in at least five years. Meanwhile, the tracking poll shows support for the use of biofuels like low-carbon ethanol has remained consistently high, with a bipartisan majority of voters expressing
June 10, 2021
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by Chet Thompson (Real Clean Energy/American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers) … AFPM members make approximately 10 percent of the ethanol produced in America, and over the last year U.S. refiners announced eight new renewable diesel projects. This focus on sustainability is also why for several years AFPM has advocated for
June 8, 2021
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by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine) A notice published by the National Institute of Standards and Technology states that the 106th annual meeting of the National Conference on Weights and Measures will address a proposal related to E15. The event is scheduled for July 18-23 in Rochester, New York, and will be
June 8, 2021
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by Dave VanderGriend (Urban Air Initiative/Biofuels Digest) … Carbon emissions include not just CO2 but a range of unburned hydrocarbons that are criteria pollutants that form ground level ozone, or summertime smog. Fine and ultra-fine particulates from toxic aromatics in gasoline present a host of negative health impacts as they enter
June 8, 2021
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by Matthew Daly (Associated Press) Officials from California, New York and other states urged the Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday to allow California to set its own automobile tailpipe pollution standards, an action that would reverse a Trump administration policy and could help usher in stricter emissions standards for new passenger
June 3, 2021
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by Rod Nickel and Karl Plume (Reuters) … Botanists, businessmen, farmers and federal lawmakers, they all gathered to peer at the waist-high plant usually considered a pest and uprooted on sight because of its foul odor, toxicity and the grim taste it leaves in the milk of grazing cattle. This was
June 2, 2021
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by Sean Hill and Matthew French (U.S. Department of Energy Energy Information Administration) The prices of renewable identification number (RIN) credits—the compliance mechanism used for the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)—sharply increased through April of this year, and they are now higher than at any
June 2, 2021
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by Geoff Cooper (Renewable Fuels Association/Las Vegas Review-Journal) In response to your May 23 editorial: The increased use of ethanol resulting from the 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act has lowered — not increased — prices at the pump for American drivers. That’s because high-octane ethanol costs less at the wholesale
June 1, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) … Things move faster these days, and in the past 24 hours, we’ve had 10 different Worlds shaken to their foundations by events taking place around the world and within the Circular Economy. 1. United States announced as Chair of multilateral Biofuture Platform In Brazil, the United
May 27, 2021
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by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine) Sens. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Reps. Randy Feenstra, R-Iowa; Ashley Hinson, R-Iowa; and Mariannette Miller-Meeks, R-Iowa, sent a letter to President Biden on May 25 urging him to uphold his promise to support biofuels. The letter urges the Biden administration to include
May 26, 2021
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(Office of Senator Deb Fischer (R-NE)) U.S. Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, and Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) introduced the bipartisan RFS Integrity Act of 2021. This legislation would provide more certainty for rural America by bringing transparency and predictability to EPA’s small refinery exemption process.
May 26, 2021
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(Renewable Fuels Association/Ethanol Producer Magazine) Following last week’s decision by the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals to vacate and remand three small refinery exemptions granted by EPA to Sinclair Oil Corp. on the eve of President Biden’s inauguration, the Renewable Fuels Association on Monday asked both the Tenth and D.C. Circuit
May 26, 2021
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by Matthew Choi (Politico’s Morning Energy) Sens. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) and Rob Portman (R-Ohio) are introducing legislation today that would help businesses finance carbon capture technology at power plants and other industrial facilities, and seek to give a boost to direct air capture. The bill, dubbed the Carbon Capture Improvement Act, would also open up tax-exempt
May 26, 2021
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(Biofuture Platform/PR Newswire) – Policy Blueprint was also unveiled to urgently accelerate the growth of the global bioeconomy; – The IEA’s Net Zero by 2050 report published last week has highlighted the critical role that sustainable bioenergy will play in the clean energy transition — The United States is in line to
May 26, 2021
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by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine) The U.S. EPA on May 20 published updated small refinery exemption (SRE) data, reporting that two additional SRE petitions have been filed for Renewable Fuel Standard compliance year 2020. The agency also changed the status of three previously filed SRE petitions. There are now 70
May 21, 2021
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by Geoff Cooper (Renewable Fuels Association/Wall Street Journal) The Renewable Fuel Standard deserves credit for reducing pump prices and saving Americans billions each year. — Regarding your editorial “The Ethanol Gasoline Tax” (May 15): The 16-year-old law requiring oil refiners to blend renewable fuels with gasoline has nothing to do with recent higher
May 20, 2021
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(U.S. Department of Agriculture) The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today published the 90-Day Progress Report on Climate-Smart Agriculture and Forestry (PDF, 561 KB). The report represents an important step toward in President Biden’s Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad and shift towards a whole-of-department approach to climate solutions. The
May 20, 2021
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by Lisa Whitley Coleman (EHS Daily Advisor) The Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) ends its current phase in 2022. The EPA has asked the oil, corn, and biofuels industries for input on the next phase of the biofuel policy, according to Reuters. … “The original intent of the law was to enhance
May 19, 2021
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by Lisa Gibson (Ethanol Producer Magazine) University of Nebraska Researchers have proven E30 is safe for long-term use in non-flex fuel vehicles. The findings could bolster the push for state- and federal-level low-carbon fuel legislation. — Two researchers from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln are eager to continue sharing their results
May 19, 2021
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by Lloyd Ritter (Green Capitol LLC/Biofuels Digest) The aviation industry is currently responsible for less than 3% of total global carbon emissions, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). But with air travel expected to increase by more than 60 percent (compared to pre-pandemic 2019 levels) by mid-century,[1] emissions will continue rising
May 19, 2021
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by Geoff Cooper (Renewable Fuels Association/Ethanol Producer Magazine) The RFS creates competition that lowers fuel prices and reduces carbon emissions. Yet, refiners still complain. — … Indeed, at their request, the RFS includes provisions allowing refiners to comply without ever physically blending a drop of biofuel. As an alternative to
May 12, 2021
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by Jarrett RenshawStephanie Kelly (Reuters) … The electric car maker is one of at least eight companies with a pending application at the Environmental Protection Agency tied to power generation and renewable credits, the sources said. The EPA produces a list of pending applications with some details, but not companies’ names.
May 12, 2021
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by Tyne Morgan (AgWeb) … Renewable fuels groups are offering up a solution that could help ease supply pressures. Both Growth Energy and Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) are now calling on EPA to take immediate steps to allow low-carbon ethanol to fill the void on the East Coast. In a letter to EPA Administrator
May 12, 2021
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(Growth Energy/Ethanol Producer Magazine) … Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor kicked off the event with a speech that framed the future of biofuels by addressing three key priorities to drive biofuel demand: building out access to higher blends nationwide, positioning biofuels as a climate solution in policy discussions, and expanding consumer
May 10, 2021
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by Stephanie Kelly (Reuters) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is handing over to the Government Accountability Office information on oil refiners that petitioned for exemptions to biofuel blending mandates, in an effort to help the government watchdog investigate the exemption program. The move shows the Biden administration’s willingness to help scrutinize
May 6, 2021
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by Stephanie Kelly (Reuters/NASDAQ) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency filed a motion on Friday to vacate three waivers given by the previous administration to Sinclair Oil Corporation refineries that exempt them from biofuel blending mandates. In the motion, the EPA said that the agency under the Trump administration did not analyze
May 5, 2021
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(American Coalition for Ethanol/Grainnet) The American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) encouraged the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to help establish a protocol for biofuel producers and farmers to easily document the carbon intensity benefits of changes in agricultural practices in comments submitted April 29 regarding USDA’s climate strategy for President Biden’s Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and
May 1, 2021
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(Renewable Fuels Association) In separate comment letters submitted to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Renewable Fuels Association explained how expanded ethanol production and use can support the administration’s “climate-smart” agriculture goals and encouraged USDA to use the Rural Energy Pilot Program to support research into the use of ethanol for
April 30, 2021
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by Spencer Chase (Agri-Pulse) … On the issue of biofuels, Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, pressed (Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael) Regan on the administration’s views on the future of ethanol, expressing her concern about the fact that advanced biofuels are commonly the first technology referenced in conversations on the subject
April 29, 2021
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by Cindy Zimmerman (Energy.AgWired.com) Agri-Pulse is investigating how the biofuels industry has changed and where it’s headed in season two of the farm policy news outlet’s Deep Dive podcast series. … The first episode – “Running on E” – focuses on the history of biofuels and the policy surrounding the Renewable Fuel
April 28, 2021
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by Emily Hammond (SCOTUSBlog) On Tuesday, the Supreme Court will hear oral argument in HollyFrontier Cheyenne Refining, LLC v. Renewable Fuels Association. The case presents an issue of statutory interpretation involving the Renewable Fuel Standard program — a part of the Clean Air Act that calls for incorporating renewable fuels into transportation
April 27, 2021
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by Matthew Choi (Politico’s Morning Energy) The EPA on Monday said it will reassess the Trump-era rule preventing California from setting stricter car pollution standards than the federal government after a similar move last week by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. If California is free to set its own
April 27, 2021
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by Rachel Frazin (The Hill) … The Transportation Department’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) proposed a withdrawal of its part of a Trump-era rule that preempted states from setting their own standards. Early next week, the Environmental Protection Agency is expected to take action on its piece of the issue:
April 23, 2021
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(Renewable Fuels Association) President Biden’s plan for re-entering the Paris climate agreement includes low-carbon renewable fuels as a strategy for helping to achieve a 50-52% economy-wide reduction in net greenhouse gas pollution by 2030. The following is a statement from Renewable Fuels President and CEO Geoff Cooper: “We are pleased to see the
April 22, 2021
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by Matthew Choi (Politico’s Morning Energy) EPA’s technical experts were largely shut out of the rulemaking process when the Trump administration rolled back tailpipe greenhouse gas standards, according to a report by the agency’s internal watchdog. OIG’s review could help the Biden administration in reversing the Trump-era move and bolstering
April 21, 2021
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(TOM/Iowa Agribusiness Radio Network/KIWA Radio) Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley recently said he’s encouraged the Environmental Protection Agency is siding with the ethanol industry in a case that goes before the Supreme Court later this month. The industry and the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals say the EPA can only grant ethanol
April 20, 2021
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by Tom Doran (AgriNews) … The American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers urged Regan, who was confirmed as EPA administrator on March 10, to “take swift action” on the Renewable Fuel Standard by extending compliance deadlines and “setting achievable targets” for the current and coming years. … In response to the
April 19, 2021
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(Renewable Fuels Association) The Renewable Fuels Association today responded to proposed changes by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to E15 fuel dispenser labeling requirements and underground storage tank regulations to accommodate the safe storage of E15 and other higher blends. “RFA is supportive of many of the changes proposed by EPA,
April 19, 2021
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by Jordan Godwin (OPIS Biofuels News) The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) will ask Congress to adopt a national clean fuels policy or low carbon fuels standard (LCFS) that would build upon the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), the ethanol industry group said on Friday. In a call with reporters to discuss its
April 19, 2021
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(Ag Newswire) The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) provided an ethanol industry update on Friday, presenting a history of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) and its success, how small refinery waivers have undermined production, progress on recovery after COVID, a new consumer attitudes survey, and more. Speakers include: Geoff Cooper, RFA President and
April 19, 2021
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by Stephanie Kelly (Reuters) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has asked industry groups for their input on the future of the nation’s biofuel policy after it ends its current phase in 2022, four sources familiar with the matter said. The consultations will provide a new opportunity for the oil, corn and
April 16, 2021
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by Lorraine Woellert (Politico) In a draft executive order, President Joe Biden reaches into all corners of the federal government with plans that would touch every sector. — President Joe Biden is preparing to instruct federal agencies to take sweeping action to combat climate-related financial risks to government and the
April 16, 2021
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(Urban Air Institute) A three-judge-panel in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit heard oral arguments Tuesday that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) did not go far enough when it extended the 1 pound RVP waiver to allow year-round E15. The Urban Air Initiative (UAI), along with a broad
April 14, 2021
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(Renewable Fuels Association) Today, the D.C. Circuit Court will hear oral arguments in American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers, et al. vs. EPA, a case in which oil refiners challenge the Environmental Protection Agency’s 2019 rulemaking that paved the way for the year-round sale of E15. As intervenors in the case, the Renewable
April 13, 2021
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by Lura Roti (SDPB Radio) Results from a recent University of Nebraska Study could dramatically increase demand for ethanol. This is optimistic news for South Dakota corn farmers, ethanol manufacturers and family farm advocates. Redefining Renewable Fuels was a year-long study conducted by researchers from the University of Nebraska Department of Chemical
April 9, 2021
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by Jacqui Fatka (Farm Progress) Bipartisan members urge Administrator Regan to maximize benefits of RFS. The bipartisan Congressional Biofuels Caucus extended an invitation to meet with EPA Administrator Michael Regan to discuss the Renewable Fuel Standard and other biofuels priorities. In a letter to Regan, the members urged the administrator to maximize
April 9, 2021
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by Jan Koninckx (USA TODAY Network/Delaware Online) Every few years, leaders like Sen. Tom Carper and Sen. Chris Coons are on the receiving end of lobbying blitz by area petroleum refiners seeking to roll back the Renewable Fuel Standard. The 2005 law requires oil refiners to blend a modest, but growing
April 9, 2021
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by Ron Kotrba (Bio-Based Diesel Daily) Canada’s largest agribusiness, Richardson International Ltd., is doubling canola crush capacity at its processing facility in Yorkton, Saskatchewan. In addition to doubling capacity to 2.2 million metric tons, the company said it will optimize operational efficiencies and modernize the plant to meet growing demand. Construction
April 8, 2021
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by Matthew Choi (Politico’s Morning Energy) The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit in New York has sided with the Biden administration in a lovers’ quarrel with green groups, blue states and Tesla over the Trump administration’s delay of a fuel economy penalty increase. A late-Trump rule (Reg.
April 7, 2021
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by Kellan Heavican (Brownfield Ag News) The clock on the Renewable Fuel Standard won’t run out at the end of 2022 when it resets, but industry leaders wonder how the Environmental Protection Agency will set volume requirements for 2023. Renewable Fuels Association CEO Geoff Cooper calls the RFS “an absolute winner.”
April 6, 2021
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Southwest Research Institute’sEloy Flores, Assistant Director R&D in Chemical Engineering, shared this illuminating slide guide on SwRI’s work with alternative fuels technology and all steps from idea/concept, engine testing to pilot plant, scale up and transformation to the commercial plant. READ MORE Malaysia sends back
April 6, 2021
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(EcoEngineers) bp’s Cherry Point Refinery is the first refinery in the Pacific Northwest capable of manufacturing diesel made from biomass-based feedstocks, which are processed alongside conventional feedstocks in an existing ultralow-sulfur diesel unit. Renewable diesel has the same properties as conventional ultralow-sulfur diesel, but with a lower carbon footprint. Producing and distributing
April 5, 2021
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by Matthew Choi (Politico’s Morning Energy) Despite procedural objections from states and environmentalists, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday granted the Biden administration’s request to pause litigation over federal auto emissions and fuel economy standards. That will give the agencies time to rewrite the SAFE Vehicles rule that
April 5, 2021
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(AgNewsWire) The 16th Annual Ethanol: Emerging Issues Forum last week, hosted by the Nebraska Ethanol Board and Renewable Fuels Nebraska, featured an industry CEO panel that discussed some of the most pressing topics in the renewable fuels space. Renewable Fuels Nebraska (RFN) interim director Pam Miller moderated the panel with American Coalition for Ethanol CEO Brian
April 2, 2021
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(U.S. Department of Agriculture) Agency to Host Public Listening Session on April 22, 2021 — The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced it is requesting public input from interested parties, including potential customers and interested stakeholders, to help create a new Rural Renewable Energy Pilot Program. To ensure a diverse
April 2, 2021
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by Andrew Quinlan (Center for Freedom and Prosperity/Washington Examiner) Plummeting demand due to reduced travel during the COVID-19 pandemic compounded the many flaws with the Renewable Fuel Standard and strained some in the petroleum industry to the breaking point. … The RFS has not brought promised environmental benefits. A large
April 2, 2021
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by Jarrett Renshaw, Stephanie Kelly (Reuters) The White House has directed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to study how using renewable fuels to power electric vehicle charging could generate tradeable credits under the nation’s biofuels program, two sources familiar with the discussions told Reuters. … If the program were expanded
April 1, 2021
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by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine) The Advanced Biofuels Association, Coalition for Renewable Natural Gas, the National Biodiesel Board and a group of eight states on March 31 filed amicus briefs with the U.S. Supreme Court urging the court to affirm the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals’ January 2020 ruling
April 1, 2021
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by Erin Voegele (Biomass Magazine) The USDA on March 30 announced it is seeking public input on a new rural energy pilot program that was authorized in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021, a bill signed by former President Donald Trump on Dec. 27, 2020. Section 781 of that nearly 5,600-page bill authorizes
March 31, 2021
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by David Shephardson (Reuters) … “Neither the current trajectory of consumer adoption of EVs, nor existing levels of federal support for supply- and demand-side policies, is sufficient to meet our goal of a net-zero carbon transportation future.” The White House did not immediately comment on the letter. John Bozzella, who heads
March 30, 2021
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by David Blackmon (Forbes) With electric vehicles making up just 2% of U.S. auto sales in 2020, achieving a rapid “energy transition” to an all-electric vehicle fleet in the coming 15 years will be a huge endeavor, one that President Joe Biden and his fellow Democrats in congress are determined to aggressively
March 25, 2021
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by Todd Neeley (DTN Progressive Farmer) One day after EPA granted deadline extensions to refiners to comply with the Renewable Fuel Standard, EPA Administrator Michael Regan said the Biden administration will be working to get the RFS back on track this year. On Tuesday, EPA announced it would extend deadlines for
March 25, 2021
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(Consumer Reports) The Biden-Harris Administration has committed to getting the U.S. on a path to a low-carbon economy by 2050, bringing back the Obama-Biden vehicle standards, and setting new, ambitious ones. Meeting those commitments will require steady progress on gasoline vehicle fuel economy and zero emissions vehicle market share. Consumer Reports
March 23, 2021
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(Renewable Fuels Association) The Renewable Fuels Association on Wednesday asked newly confirmed EPA Administrator Michael Regan to “stay the course” on the Renewable Fuel Standard, as the important policy faces renewed attacks from oil refiners. In a letter to Regan, RFA responds to several assertions about the RFS and RIN credits contained
March 18, 2021
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by Steven Mufson and Juliet Eilperin (Washington Post) The Commodity Futures Trading Commission aims to create a new Climate Risk Unit, joining initiatives at Treasury, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Federal Reserve — A growing number of federal regulators are pushing corporate America to reckon with the cost
March 18, 2021
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by Burl Haigwood (Clean Fuels Development Coalition) … Imagine it is 2050 and Texas gets hit by another winter storm, flood, heat wave, or God forbid, a physical or cyber terrorist attack on a vulnerable electric power system. As news cameras roll with footage of citizens lined up to evacuate, or
March 18, 2021
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by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine) The USDA on March 15 announced it is opening a 45-day public comment period to gather input on its climate-smart agriculture and forestry strategy, including several topics focused specifically on biofuels, bioproducts and renewable energy. The agency said the notice soliciting public comments represents an
March 16, 2021
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by Julie Harker (Brownfield Ag News) A reset of the Renewable Fuels Standard will take place in 2022 as part of the original law. Gary Marshall, former CEO of the Missouri Corn Growers, tells Brownfield the EPA Administrator will have to assess the RFS program. “The RFS (will) all of a
March 16, 2021
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by Larry Lee (Brownfield Ag News) An ethanol court case over Small Refinery Exemptions will be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court April 27th. Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Geoff Cooper says he is confident the Supreme Court will review the case and affirm the 10th Circuit Court decision in their favor,
March 16, 2021
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(Our Daily Planet) The Chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission wants to know what you want to know about how corporations are dealing with climate change and other environmental risks. In a speech yesterday to the liberal think tank the Center for American Progress, she explained specifically what the Commission, which
March 16, 2021
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(Renewable Fuels Association) In comments submitted today (March 11, 2021) to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Renewable Fuels Association opposed a proposal to extend the deadlines for demonstrating compliance with the Renewable Fuel Standard for 2019 and 2020. “This proposal is unnecessary, and the timelines are excessive,” wrote RFA President
March 15, 2021
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by Matthew Choi (Politico’s Morning Energy) … On April 27 the court will hear refiners’ appeal of the 10th Circuit’s ruling that severely limited EPA’s ability to exempt small refiners from biofuels blending requirements. (EPA recently shifted to support the 10th Circuit’s decision and is waiting to act on 46
March 15, 2021
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by Matthew Choi (Politico’s Morning Energy) Automakers are proposing a vehicle emissions standard lower than both the Obama administration’s rates and the deal that California set with five automakers, the Associated Press reports. The standards would be above the Trump administration’s 1.5 percent annual improvement requirement, but would fall short of
March 15, 2021
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(Clean Fuels Development Coalition) The Clean Fuels Development Coalition called the pending revision of the nation’s fuel economy rules one of the most immediate and tangible actions the Biden Administration can take to address a range of issues impacting climate, health, and economic challenges. In a letter congratulating incoming Environmental Protection
March 12, 2021
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by Jacqui Fatka (Farm Progress) House climate proposal includes RFS integrity provisions and Adopt GREET Act recognizes ethanol’s improved environmental benefits. — Legislators are looking to expand access and acceptance of biofuels with the introduction of several bills this week on Capitol Hill. On Wednesday, Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., introduced the
March 4, 2021
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by Rusty Halvorson (KFGO) Speaking at the National Farmers Union National Convention February 26, 2021, South Dakota Chapter President Doug Sombke said ethanol advocates need to prioritize support for a high octane standard in the new fuel economy rule that could triple demand for ethanol over the next decade. Sombke and NFU
March 3, 2021
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by Rachel Frazin (The Hill) An increasing number of states are looking to follow the precedent set by California and adopt stricter vehicle emissions standards as the Biden administration appears poised to green light those efforts. The Virginia legislature this past week passed legislation to toughen its emission rules, and similar
March 1, 2021
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by Avery Ellfeldt (E&E News) The acting head of the Securities and Exchange Commission is expanding the agency’s efforts to push public companies to be transparent about the threats they face from climate change. Acting SEC Chair Allison Herren Lee announced yesterday (February 24, 2021) that the agency’s Division of Corporation Finance
February 26, 2021
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(Brownfield Ag News) Ethanol industry leaders say the EPA’s recent change of policy on Small Refinery Exemptions is a start, but there is still a lot of work to do. Geoff Cooper with the Renewable Fuels Association tells Brownfield the EPA’s change, of course, does not take care of re-allocating
February 25, 2021
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by Sean Hill (U.S. Energy Information Administration) The prices of renewable identification number (RIN) credits—the compliance mechanisms used for the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)—have been steadily rising in recent months and are approaching their highest nominal levels in the history of
February 24, 2021
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by Cindy Zimmerman (Energy.AgWired.com) Do Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) policies conflict or complement the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS)? That was the question Dr. Jarrett Whistance with the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute at the University of Missouri was called on to answer at last week’s National Ethanol Conference. Whistance, who is Program
February 24, 2021
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(U.S. Postal Service) … Under the contract’s initial $482 million investment, Oshkosh Defense will finalize the production design of the Next Generation Delivery Vehicle (NGDV) — a purpose-built, right-hand-drive vehicle for mail and package delivery — and will assemble 50,000 to 165,000 of them over 10 years. The vehicles will be
February 24, 2021
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by Marc Heller (E&E News) A backlog of applications for advanced renewable fuels at EPA is spurring a new debate in the biofuel industry: Should the agency catch up on proposals related to electric vehicles first? That’s a possibility, a biofuel industry source told E&E News, as the Biden administration faces
February 22, 2021
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by Erin Voegele (Biomass Magazine) Reps. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., and Angie Craig, D-Minn., on Feb. 19 reintroduced the Renewable Fuel Standard Integrity Act, which aims to ensure transparency and predictability in the U.S. EPA’s administration of the small refinery exemption (SRE) process. The bill would require small refineries to submit a
February 22, 2021
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by Tyne Morgan (Ag Web) Renewable Fuels groups are celebrating an EPA win. More than a year after the 10th Circuit Court issued its initial ruling on the small-refinery provisions within the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS), EPA announced Monday it’s supporting the court’s ruling. As a result, there will be tighter
February 22, 2021
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(Energy.AgWired.com) This edition of the Ethanol Report features highlights from the 26th annual National Ethanol Conference (NEC). First, we hear some of Renewable Fuels Association president and CEO Geoff Cooper’s annual State of the Industry address focusing on ethanol as essential energy. Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-IL) discusses her Next Generation Fuels
February 19, 2021
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(Biofuels International) POET has urged the new Biden administration to embrace E15. The world’s largest biofuels producer, based in Sioux Falls in South Dakota, has also welcomed the new President’s leadership in making climate a top priority. … Rob Walther, vice president of Federal Advocacy at POET, said each member
February 19, 2021
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(Environmental Protection Agency) Per an announcement in the Federal Register (FR) FRL-10019-87-OAR, the Draft Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory is now available for public comment. To ensure your comments are considered for the final version of the document, please submit your comments by March 15, 2021. Learn more on how to submit comments.
February 17, 2021
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(Renewable Fuels Association) Just as ethanol has played an essential role in addressing the COVID-19 pandemic, the low-carbon fuel will also serve as essential energy for combatting climate change, Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Geoff Cooper said today at the 26th annual National Ethanol Conference. “As COVID cases began to
February 17, 2021
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by Jan Lewandrowski (US Department of Agriculture) Over the past two decades, the demand for renewable fuels — including corn-based ethanol — has helped drive a strong domestic market for corn, and supported rural America by generating jobs (PDF, 1.5 MB). New research is confirming that corn ethanol also has more greenhouse gas
February 15, 2021
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by Janet McGurty (S&P Global Platts) Technical feasibility study ongoing; Project would mitigate RFS costs — PBF Energy is considering a renewable diesel project at its 190,000 b/d refinery in Chalmette, Louisiana, as it seeks to mitigate the high cost of meeting the Renewable Fuel Standard, a company executive said Feb. 11.
February 12, 2021
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Department of Energy Seeks Public Feedback on Removing Barriers to Participation in Funding Programs DEADLINE August 6, 2021
(Department of Energy) The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is releasing a request for information (RFI) to understand the current barriers and actions needed to make its funding opportunities and innovation and entrepreneurship activities more inclusive, just, and equitable, in line with the Administration’s climate goals. DOE is committed to developing