by Mark Shenefelt (Standard-Examiner)  In 2014, the Box Elder County Redevelopment Agency created a $2.5 million, seven-year tax increment program to support expansions planned at the Washakie Renewable Energy plant in Plymouth. But the county economic …

by Erin Voegele (Biomass Magazine)  On June 13, the Senate ag committee approved the its version of the 2018 Farm Bill with bipartisan support. The legislation includes an amendment offered by Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., that …

(Growth Energy)  Coalition Petitions EPA to Revise the Way It Calculates Annual Renewable Fuel Obligations; EPA Is Failing to Comply with Statutory Mandate  —  Today a coalition of biofuel and agriculture groups petitioned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) …

by Jarrett Renshaw and Chris Prentice (Reuters)  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has awarded tens of millions of dollars worth of biofuel blending credits for this year to refiners HollyFrontier and Sinclair Oil after they argued …

(Solutions from the Land)  One of the three pillars of climate-smart agriculture is actions that farmers can take to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and simultaneously improve profitability. A principal means by which the agriculture …

by Chris Prentice and Jarrett Renshaw (Reuters)  A coalition of ethanol and farm groups sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday, challenging its decision to free three refineries, including one owned by billionaire investor Carl …

by Abby Smith (Bloomberg)  Lawsuits seek to force consideration of prior data in fuel economy proposal; Automakers expect fuller analysis, data to back up agencies’ proposed options  —  Lawsuits over the EPA’s April fuel economy determination are more …

by Ryan Felton (Jalopnik)  Major automakers are still reeling from the sudden realization they’ve collectively succumbed to Stockholm Syndrome, after they buddied up with President Donald Trump to alter fuel economy standards set by his predecessor. Since Trump …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  … But they’re part of the Washington dialogue this month, waivers and easy outs, since reports surfaced in media that the US Environmental Protection Agency granted a Renewable Fuel Standard hardship waiver …

by Joanne Ivancic* (Advanced Biofuels USA)  The Trump Administration is taking a new look at Obama Administration era Co2 regulations.  On the transportation side, these include reviewing Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards; threatening to take …

by Gavin Blade (Utility Dive)  o  A coalition of utilities and electric transportation companies sued the Enviornmental Protection Agency earlier this month over its efforts to roll back automotive fuel efficiency standards set by the Obama administration. 

The …

by John Siciliano (Washington Examiner)  The Environmental Protection Agency is meeting with California officials this week in Washington to negotiate the creation of a national fuel efficiency standard after the state sued the Trump administration over …

(DSM/PR Newswire)  Royal DSM, a global science-based company active in health, nutrition and materials received unanimous jury verdict in a Federal Court in Wisconsin concluding that all glycerol reducing ethanol yeast products sold by Lallemand infringe …

by Betsy Lillian (NGT News)  Several environmental and public interest groups have filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in response to the agency’s April 2 announcement to roll back vehicle emissions standards.
The …

by David Shepardson  (Reuters)  The Trump administration is moving ahead with plans to submit a series of options for softening fuel efficiency standards to the White House for approval in the coming week, two officials briefed on …

by Jarrett Renshaw and Chris Prentice (Reuters)  The Trump administration will scale back the use of biofuels waivers for small refineries and count ethanol exports toward federal biofuels usage quotas as part of a broad overhaul of …

by Michael McAdams (Advanced Biofuels Association/Biomass Magazine)  At ABFA, we’ve been keeping our eyes on the U.S. EPA during the first quarter of 2018. The EPA’s actions over the next several months will have ripple effects …

by Kelsey Tamborrino (Politico’s Morning Energy) The looming fight between the Trump administration and the state of California over climate change rules for cars will cover some familiar terrain – where the liberal state and …

by Tom DiChristopher  (CNBC)  -Shares of CVR Energy have more than doubled since August, resulting in a $1.4 billion paper gain for Carl Icahn, who holds an 82-percent stake in the company.
-CVR Energy’s stock price …

by Camille von Kaenel (E&E News)  … The Trump administration’s efforts to weaken vehicle pollution requirements could set up a split U.S. market, concentrating fuel-efficient cars in mostly Democratic states and gas guzzlers in the red …

by Sonari Glinton (National Public Radio)  Martin Winterkorn, the former head of Volkswagen, was indicted on Thursday along with five other former VW executives on charges of conspiracy and fraud in connection with a years-long scheme …

by Todd Neeley (DTN The Progressive Farmer)  Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, mentioned on Tuesday he wants to change language in recent appropriations bills approved by Congress in the past three years.
Grassley told agricultural journalists the language …

by Jarrett Renshaw (Reuters/Successful Farming)  The Trump administration has invited a
group of U.S. senators to the White House early next week to discuss biofuels policy, the latest in a series of such meetings aimed at helping refiners cope …

by John O’Dell (Trucks.com)  “Stay the course” is the message a panel of leading clean vehicle developers, users and regulators delivered Tuesday in the wake of the Trump Administration’s plan to roll back tough fuel economy …

by Jarrett Renshaw (Reuters)   A biofuels trade group asked a federal court on Tuesday to rule whether the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency violated the law in granting a growing number of small refineries exemptions from renewable …

by Raphael Orlove (Jalopnik)  Our emissions standards are probably the biggest booster to automotive performance in the past half century, making our cars not only more eco-friendly but more powerful, too. Trump has been trying to cut it …

by Kelsey Tamborrino (Politico’s Morning Energy)  The Trump administration plans to argue that California does not have the authority to enforce stringent greenhouse gas emissions standards for cars, despite the Obama administration’s 2009 waiver, according to a …

by Erin Voegele (Biomass Magazine)  A coalition led by California Attorney General Xavier Becerra and the California Air Resources board has announced plans to sue the U.S. EPA over its failure to enforce existing landfill methane …

(Urban Air Initiative)  In an effort to rebut erroneous assumptions about ethanol’s health effects in a lawsuit filed by the Sierra Club, the Urban Air Initiative submitted an amicus brief describing the health benefits of blending …

The Houston Chronicle’s James Osborne reported an unnamed executive for one refining company describing the feeding frenzy for exemptions from Renewable Fuel Standard biofuels obligations, “Anyone with a brain submitted an application,” the executive said. …

by Jarrett Renshaw and Chris Prentice (Reuters)  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has approved the request of 25 small refineries to be exempted from the nation’s biofuels laws, an agency source said on Wednesday, marking a …

by Kelsey Tamborrino (Politico’s Morning Energy)  A Delaware Bankruptcy judge approved a consent decree between EPA and bankrupt refiner Philadelphia Energy Solutions, allowing PES to get out of much of its obligation under the Renewable Fuel …

by Timothy Cama and Miranda Green (The Hill)  California officials promised Monday to put up a fight against the Trump administration’s newly announced decision to lower standards for car tailpipe emissions.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) declared Monday …

by Cindy Zimmerman (Energy.AgWired.com)  Recent actions by EPA have effectively reduced the Renewable Fuel Standard conventional renewable volume obligation (RVO) for 2016 by more than 1 billion gallons, and the agency appears poised to take similar …

(Biotechnology Innovation Organization)  BIO is greatly concerned by the Department of Justice’s and Environmental Protection Agency’s proposed Settlement Agreement to resolve a dispute about the PES Holdings’ obligations under the Renewable Fuel Standard.

…
This Settlement Agreement …

by Chris Clayton (DTN The Progressive Farmer)   A special assistant to President Donald Trump on agriculture said Wednesday, “the search for a win-win continues” in the debate over how to relieve oil refiners of their obligations …

by Ron Kotrba (Biodiesel Magazine)  The public comment period opened March 16 after publication in the Federal Register on the proposed consent decree and environmental settlement agreement lodged by the U.S. Department of Justice with the U.S. Bankruptcy …

by  Jarrett Renshaw (Reuters)  The state of Pennsylvania wants a federal judge to halt the bankruptcy of Philadelphia Energy Solutions (PES), arguing the refiner owes an estimated $3.8 billion in fuel taxes, according to a court …

by Kurtis Alexander (San Francisco Chronicle)  A San Francisco judge who must decide whether to hold the world’s largest oil companies responsible for global warming is ordering up what many are calling the most comprehensive, and …

by Susan Reidy (World-Grain.com) A $1.5 billion settlement has been reached in the nationwide class action suit over Syngenta’s genetically modified corn seed. It is believed to be one of the largest agricultural settlements in U.S. …

by Kelsey Tamborrino (Politico’s Morning Energy) EPA will allow bankrupt refinery Philadelphia Energy Solutions to meet only a portion of its outstanding obligation under the Renewable Fuel Standard as part of a settlement filed with …

by  Cara Bayles (Law 360) A trade group representing small fuel retailers can’t challenge U.S. Environmental Protection Agency benchmarks for renewable fuels blended into the nation’s gas and diesel supply because its members aren’t subject to the …

(National Biodiesel Board)  Commerce Department Finds That Argentina and Indonesia Sell Biodiesel Imports Below Fair Value in US  —  The National Biodiesel Board (NBB) Fair Trade Coalition won a final antidumping determination from the Commerce Department. The …

by Tim Pearce (Daily Caller)  Two environmental groups sued the Trump administration Friday over the threat that the 2018 renewable fuel volume standards pose to endangered species.
The Sierra Club and the Gulf Restoration Network are targeting …

by Bernadette Christina Munthe, Maximiliano Rizzi and Fransiska Nangoy (Reuters)    Indonesia plans to file a case against the U.S. Department of Commerce at the U.S. Court of International Trade over anti-subsidy duties imposed on Indonesian …

by Todd Neeley (DTN The Progressive Farmer)  The biofuel and petroleum industries are back in court as both sides argue the Environmental Protection Agency should have implemented the Renewable Fuel Standard differently in 2017.
Attorneys for biofuels …

by Adam Lidgett (Law 360)  Refiners and a biodiesel trade group have taken aim at a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rule that set the levels of renewable fuel that must be blended into the nation’s fuel supply, …

by Scott Waldman (E&E News)  Scott Pruitt is one of the Trump administration’s most aggressive critics of climate change science, but lately he’s been talking about the dangers of greenhouse gas.
Well, one greenhouse gas in particular: …

by Bill de Blasio (New York City Mayor/Washington Post)  … America’s largest city, 8.5 million strong, is taking decisive action on two separate fronts. We are demanding compensation from those who profit from climate change. And …

by Michael McAdams (Advanced Biofuels Association/Biomass Magazine)  Last year was among the most active and interesting years we’ve seen in the biofuels space. The industry has confronted multiple challenges over the past 12 months, culminating in …

by Brian Jennings (American Coalition for Ethanol/Ethanol Producer Magazine)  … ACE believes the best way to grow demand well into the future is to harness the low-carbon, high-octane value of ethanol. That’s why we were very …

by Allen Schaeffer (Diesel Technology Forum/The Hill)  … The Sierra Club’s has offered a one size, all-electrification-fits-all recommendation — that would just be another bad choice that would actually lead to dirtier air for a longer time. There …

by Geoff Dembicki (Vice.com)    The attorney who won a $200 billion settlement from tobacco companies in the 90s has set his sights on an even bigger target. When you want to sue the largest, most …

(National Biodiesel Board)  NBB Fair Trade Coalition Filed Cases on Harm from Biodiesel Imports from Argentina and Indonesia  —  Today the International Trade Commission (ITC) voted 4-0 in favor of the National Biodiesel Board (NBB) Fair Trade …

by Christie Smythe (Bloomberg Technology)  (Oliver) Schmidt to be sentenced on Dec. 6 over emissions scandal; ‘Regrettably, I agreed to follow it’; faces 7 years in prison  —  … 
In a letter to the judge last week, …

by  Lisa V. Mueller (Michael, Best & Friedrich/Biofuels Digest)  On November 27, 2017, the Supreme Court of the United States will hear arguments in Oil States Energy Services LLC. v. Greene’s Energy Group. It’s no “ho-hum” case.
If …

by Miles Weiss, Jennifer A Dlouhy, and Mario Parker (Bloomberg)  U.S. Attorney for Southern District of N.Y. seeks information; Icahn Enterprises discloses request in securities filing  —  Federal investigators have issued subpoenas for information on Carl Icahn’s efforts …

by Ron Kotrba (Biodiesel Magazine)  Industry stakeholders and legal experts discuss the recent RFS court ruling, the ongoing U.S. trade cases against Argentina and Indonesia, and the biodiesel tax credit in context of U.S. EPA’s Notice …

by Eric Walsh (Reuters)  The U.S. Commerce Department set preliminary antidumping duties on imports of biodiesel from Argentina and Indonesia, after an initial finding that the products used as motor fuel were being sold at prices …

by Donnell Rehagen (National Biodiesel Board/Biodiesel Magazine)  … Our big three in D.C. remain the Renewable Fuel Standard, the trade case and the biodiesel tax incentive. All three issues require a comprehensive, multifaceted approach made up of …

(U.S. Environmental Protection Agency/Federal Register)  This document provides additional data and an opportunity to comment on that data and potential options for reductions in the 2018 biomass-based diesel, advanced biofuel, and total renewable fuel volumes, and/or …

(Argus Media)  US independent refiners seized on protectionist themes and two key biofuel industry victories this year to argue regulators must reduce federally mandated blending of renewable fuels.
Refiners framed a US-first pitch to slash more than …

(Urban Air Initiative/Ethanol Producer Magazine)  A judge rules that the Urban Air Initiative should have access to more EPA documents discussing test fuels. The D.C Federal Judge made the ruling in regards to a Freedom of Information Request …

by Terry Mazanec, Bob Kodrzycki, and Lorenz Bauer (Lee Enterprises Consulting/Biofuels Digest)  …  In the “bio” sectors of our economy in particular – whether it be fuels and chemicals, manufacturing and sensors, or health and pharma – …

by Anthony Adragna (Politico’s Morning Energy)  Reversing course, DOT told a federal judge in New York in a letter it will publish a regulation requiring states to track emissions from highways and craft reduction goals, Pro’s Alex Guillén reports. Once …

by Ken Kimmell (Union of Concerned Scientists)  Oakland and San Francisco today (September 20, 2017) announced lawsuits against fossil fuel companies seeking compensation for current and future costs of adapting to climate-related sea level rise. …

(Summit County Citizens Voice)  Agency’s move could violate federal environmental laws  —  A little more than a year after determining that greenhouse gas emissions from aircraft are a threat to public health, the EPA has …

by Sean Pratt  (The Western Producer)  If the U.S. plans to fill the gap created by slamming the door on Argentina and Indonesia, it may need Canadian canola  —  A biodiesel dispute involving the United …

by Michael McAdams (Advanced Biofuels Association/Biomass Magazine)  The time is now to make sure policymakers in Washington, D.C., understand the importance of staying the course on fuels of the future. —  On July 28, the …

by Mario Parker and Jennifer A Dlouhy (Bloomberg)  Billionaire Carl Icahn says an oil industry push for structural changes to the U.S. biofuels mandate will persist, even if the Environmental Protection Agency rebuffs requests from refiners to …

by Brian Dabbs  (Bloomberg BNA)  An era of relaxed biofuel blending requirements may be dawning for small oil refineries nationwide following a watershed court decision and new congressional direction for regulators.
That prospect is cheered on …

by Andrew Revkin (ProPublica) The Trump administration plans to sharply reduce the government’s estimate of how much each ton of carbon emissions harms the planet. It hasn’t done so yet, and that delay is slowing Trump’s …

(National Biodiesel Board)  Department Finds That Argentina and Indonesia Unfairly Subsidize Biodiesel They Export to US   —  The National Biodiesel Board (NBB) Fair Trade Coalition won a preliminary countervailing duty determination from the Commerce Department …

by Brent Erickson (Biotechnology Innovation Organization/Biofuels Digest)  We were disappointed, but not surprised, to see Mike McAdams and his members come out in support of changes to the Renewable Fuel Standard in Biofuels Digest (July 26 – The …

Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) (River Cities’ Reader)  Q: How has your support for renewable fuels helped Iowa?  A:  Iowans breathe cleaner air and can chalk up a stronger, healthier economy thanks to renewable fuels. My …

(25 x ’25 REsource) In a radio interview in Iowa late last week, EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt made pretty clear the rational that went into his agency proposing lower levels of cellulosic biofuels, advanced biofuels, and total renewable …

(Federal Register/International Trade Administration)  On April 12, 2017, the Department of Commerce (Department) initiated antidumping duty (AD) investigations on biodiesel from Argentina and Indonesia.[1] Currently, the preliminary determinations of these investigations are due no later …

by Jarrett Renshaw (Reuters)    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency used too strict of a test when it denied Sinclair Oil Corp’s request for an exemption from the country’s biofuel regulations, a U.S. appeals court ruled …

(U.S. Department of Justice)  An Acton couple was arrested today and charged with defrauding the U.S. Treasury Department of more than $50 million in tax free energy grants as part of the American Recovery and …

by Scott Irwin and Darrel Good (FarmDocDaily/University of Illinois)  Three words–inadequate domestic supply–have taken center stage in the implementation of the RFS since 2014. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) used a controversial definition of this …

by Timothy Cama (The Hill) A federal court told the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Monday that it has to enforce an Obama administration methane pollution rule.
The order from Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia …

(Department of Justice)  Andre Bernard, of Mount Kisco, New York, pleaded guilty today for his participation in a multi-state scheme to defraud biodiesel buyers and U.S. taxpayers by fraudulently selling biodiesel credits and fraudulently claiming …

by Eric Wolff (Politico)  The Trump administration plans to reject a proposal that would let oil refiners off the hook for complying with the federal ethanol mandate, a senior administration official told POLITICO, dashing the …

by John Siciliano (Washington Examiner)  A federal appeals court on Friday handed the ethanol industry a major victory, ruling that the Environmental Protection Agency under the Obama administration fundamentally misinterpreted its authority under the national …

(National Biodiesel Board)   New data show that dumped and subsidized biodiesel imports from Argentina continue unabated and, in fact, have further surged into the United States. In March of 2017, the National Biodiesel Board (NBB) …

by Anthony Adragna (Politico’s Morning Energy)  EPA wants to cut imports of biofuels, but the biodiesel and advanced biofuels industries are mystified as to why it’s getting into that arena, Pro’s Eric Wolff reports . …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  Renewable Energy Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: REGI) is the US’  biggest producer of biomass-based diesel, and leading provider of cleaner, lower carbon intensity products and services. REG utilizes an integrated procurement, …

(Environmental Protection Agency)  On July 5, 2017 EPA issued proposed volume requirements under the Renewable Fuel Standard program for cellulosic biofuel, advanced biofuel, and total renewable fuel for calendar year 2018.  EPA also proposed biomass-based diesel volume standards for calendar year …

(National Biodiesel Board)  New data show that dumped and subsidized biodiesel imports from Argentina continue unabated and, in fact, have further surged into the United States. In March of 2017, the National Biodiesel Board (NBB) …

by Valerie Volcovici (Reuters)  A U.S. watchdog group filed a lawsuit in a federal court on Tuesday to force the Environmental Protection Agency to release communications with billionaire investor Carl Icahn, who it says tried to …

by Jeff Amy (Fox Business/Associated Press)   A federal judge has approved a $4.5 million settlement for private shareholders of failed biofuel maker KiOR, and a lawsuit by the state of Mississippi seeking to recover a …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  In Washington, the US Patent & Trademark Office has just issued a “notice of allowance” for a patent by the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency for a high efficiency, high …

by Meghan Gordon (Platts) The US International Trade Commission voted Friday to allow US biodiesel producers’ petition against Argentina and Indonesia to go forward.
The National Biodiesel Board filed the petition in March, seeking antidumping and countervailing …

by Brian Jennings (The Hill/American Coalition for Ethanol)   … By every measure, increasing the production and use of homegrown renewable fuels has spurred economic growth for U.S. farmers and supported high-skill, high-wage jobs in rural …

by Mikkel Pates (Agweek)  An Iowa biofuels promoter who came to North Dakota in 2012 and sought investments in factories, including a proposed beets-to-ethanol plant Grafton, N.D., has been accused of violating federal wire fraud, …

(telam.com) The meeting between the presidents will be an opportunity for the country to try to recover the market for agroindustrial exports that are paralyzed. Bilateral trade in 2016 reached US $ 10,472 million, with a …

by Anthony Adragna (Politico’s Morning Energy)  EPA got caught in a cross-fire of skepticism at the D.C. Circuit Monday over its use of general waiver authority to lower RFS volumes for 2016, Pro’s Eric Wolff reports …

(National Biodiesel Board)  Americans for Clean Energy, et al., v. Environmental Protection Agency  —  Today the National Biodiesel Board (NBB) argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit regarding the …

(Reuters)  The owner of a New Jersey feedstock processor was sentenced to five years in prison for his role in a scheme that generated fraudulent tax and renewable fuel credits, the U.S. Department of Justice …

by Ron Kotrba (Biomass Magazine)  U.S. imports of biomass-based diesel hit extreme heights in 2016, fulfilling a third of the consumption market, driving the domestic biodiesel industry to more actively seek counteracting measures to protect …

by Maximiliano Rizzi (Reuters)  Argentina’s biodiesel exports could be devastated if the U.S. government imposed anti-dumping duties on the coutrtry based on a complaint by the U.S. National Biodiesel Board, the heads of two local industry …

by Christine Prentice and Michael Hirtzer (Reuters)  The National Biodiesel Board said on Thursday it has filed a petition to the U.S. government to investigate imports from Argentina and Indonesia, saying they have violated trade laws …

(Public Citizen)  Carl Icahn and His Businesses Haven’t Registered As Lobbyists Yet Continue to Influence Government Policy  —  Icahn Enterprises, CVR Energy and their related affiliates appear to be in violation of the Lobbying Disclosure …

by Darren Fishell and Nick Sambides Jr. (Bangor Daily News)  Investors seeking to build a biofuel refinery that they say would employ more than 100 people at the former Great Northern Paper Co. mill site were …

(Law 360)  Ethanol production conglomerate Poet LLC slapped its competitor Nelson Engineering and an ex-employee with a lawsuit in South Dakota federal court Monday, claiming the employee violated a confidentiality agreement by sharing proprietary fermentation …

by Rudy Miller (Lehigh Valley Live)  The attorney for a man charged with participating in a $50 million biofuel scam says the charges should be dismissed because his client got bad legal advice.
David Dunham, of Bethlehem, allegedly …

by Lauren Tyler (NGT News)  The Sierra Club has filed a notice of intent to sue the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for its failure to conduct the required environmental impact analysis on the Renewable …

by Todd Neeley (DTN The Progressive Farmer/AgFax) In a point-by-point answer to a number of plaintiffs who filed suit challenging how the Renewable Fuel Standard is implemented, attorneys for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency contend in …

by Todd Neeley (DTN The Progressive Farmer)  A biofuels group and two petroleum interest groups have asked a federal appeals court to review the final 2017-2018 biodiesel volumes in the Renewable Fuels Standard published in …

(WNAX)  Oral arguments have been set for April 24 in a Washington D.C. appeals court where biofuel groups claim the EPA has mismanaged the renewable fuel standard. Renewable Fuels Association Senior Vice President Geoff Cooper …

(Biofuels International)  A Washington man was sentenced this week for laundering more than $39 million for a company that bilked federal programs supporting renewable energy, according to Tri-City Herald.
Richard Estes, 77, was part of a …

(Biobased and Renewable Products Advocacy Group)  … Throughout his campaign for President, Trump repeatedly pledged his support for biofuels and the federal Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). Indeed, it is this support that helped Trump win in …

by Brent Snavely and Nathan Bomey (Detroit Free Press)  The U.S. EPA said Thursday it notified Fiat Chrysler Automobiles of Clean Air Act violations for the diesel emissions of 104,000 Jeep Grand Cherokee SUVs and Ram 1500 …

by Chelsea Harvey (The Washington Post)  … It seems increasingly likely that the Trump administration would either alter, or attempt to stop using entirely, an Obama-era metric known as the “social cost of carbon” in its federal rule-making processes. …

by Meghan Gordon (Platts)  A US appeals court Tuesday dismissed a challenge by American biodiesel producers to the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision allowing Argentinian biodiesel to qualify for US renewable fuel credits.
The National Biodiesel Board trade …

(Environmental Protection Agency)  Settlement requires Volkswagen to offer to buy back older vehicles, and spend $225 million to mitigate NOx pollution. Volkswagen will also repair newer vehicles to comply with the standards to which they …

by Mario Parker (Bloomberg)  Icahn refiner wants $15 billion renewable-fuels market changed; Cost of credits surged as U.S. mandates on biofuels at record — Six weeks before he becomes U.S. president, Donald Trump is already disrupting an …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  In Washington, the US Environmental Protection Agency released the 2017 renewable fuel volume obligations (and the 2018 volume obligations for biomass-based diesel), with a strong push beyond what has been …

by Susanne Retka Schill (Ethanol Producer Magazine)   … This one’s about the U.S. EPA and a Freedom of Information Act request that uncovered emails providing evidence of collusion between EPA and the oil industry to …

by Brett Murphy ( Naples Daily News)  A federal judge sentenced two Florida men to 10-plus years in prison for their part in a $46 million scheme that defrauded government agencies and the renewable energy industry …

by Mark Drajem & Ari Natter (Bloomberg)  Early last year the EPA sent a letter to the Argentine biodiesel board that set out how its members could qualify their fuel as having been produced from “qualified …

by Ron Kotrba (Biodiesel Magazine)  For better or worse, the U.S. biodiesel industry continues to consolidate. While 2014-’15 has been a rough period in the sector, the fallout has presented undeniable opportunities for key players …

by Rich Piellisch  (Fleets & Fuels)  NGVAmerica Urges States to Take Advantage of Settlement  —  States should take advantage of the big diesel emissions settlement with Volkswagen to promote natural gas vehicles to reduce pollution, …

by Susanne Retka Schill (Ethanol Producer Magazine) … The lame duck Congress offers the next best chance for some movement on one issue important to the ethanol industry, said Brian Jennings, executive vice president of the American …

(U.S. Department of Justice)  The owners of an Indiana biofuel producer pleaded guilty to conspiracy, fraud and false statements for participating in a scheme that generated over $60 million in fraudulent tax credits and U.S. …

(Environmental Protection Agency)  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Justice today announced the filing of a complaint against NGL Crude Logistics, LLC and Western Dubuque Biodiesel, LLC and a settlement …

by Joanna Schroeder (Energy.AgWired.com)  Minnesota has been and continues to be a leader in the support of biofuels and was the first state to pass a biodiesel mandate requiring B20 (20 percent biodiesel, 80 percent …

by Adam Lidgett  (Law360)  The American Petroleum Institute said Wednesday a swath of biodiesel industry groups shouldn’t be able to chime in on a set of consolidated appeals in the D.C. Circuit challenging the U.S. …

(Farm Futures)  EPA and DOJ allege Chemoil exported biodiesel, but failed to retire RINs.  —  Chemoil Corporation is required to retire 65 million renewable fuel credits to resolve alleged violations of the Renewable Fuel Standard …

(U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission)  On September 26, 2016, the Securities and Exchange Commission charged Texas-based Mard, Inc., formerly known as KiOR, Inc., (“KiOR”), and its former CEO and President Fred Cannon for failing to …

(MediaAlerts)  The owner and manager of a New Jersey feedstock collector and processor pleaded guilty to conspiracy and obstruction for his role in a scheme that generated over $6 million in fraudulent tax credits and …

(WNAX)  A report out by a former EPA official says that the RINS market or renewable identification numbers may be ripe for fraud or abuse. In order to comply with the RFS, refiners are required …

by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  Sept. 15, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana issued an order finding problems with certain GS CleanTech Corp. patents that are subject to multiple lawsuits …

by Jennifer A. Dlouhy (Earth & Water Group/Bloomberg) — A program to boost the use of biofuels in the U.S. has become vulnerable to scams that have bilked victims out of nearly $1 billion so …

(KTIC/DTN/Progressive Farmer) With all of the political fights about the role ethanol and other biofuels have in the transportation sector, there is common ground for the ethanol, oil and automobile industries that could bode well for …

by David Vandergriend (Sacramento Bee)   … But the day-to-day threat facing many communities doesn’t come from carbon. It comes from airborne chemicals with less attention-grabbing names like volatile organic compounds, nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide, particulate …

by Robert Walton (Utility Dive) The Obama Administration has won a significant victory for its use of a social cost metric to determine the impacts of new environmental and efficiency rules, in a unanimous circuit court decision that appeared …

by Dustin Walsh (Crain’s Detroit Business)  Jerry Jung, former owner of Michigan CAT and longtime environmentalist, is using his wealth to take down ethanol production.
Jung, chairman of the Michigan Colleges Alliance, recently launched RethinkEthanol.com — …

by Timothy Cana (The Hill)  A federal appeals court is upholding the Obama administration’s accounting of the costs of greenhouse gas emissions as applied to a Department of Energy (DOE) regulation.
In a unanimous decision late …

(Diesel Technology Forum)  For any level of funding, more near-zero NOx technologies may find their way on the road and at work with clean diesel than other technologies.  —  The Volkswagen settlement may be the …

by David Shepardson (Reuters)  Three U.S. states plan to unveil new lawsuits against Volkswagen AG (VOWG_p.DE) on Tuesday tied to the automaker’s sale of diesel vehicles with emissions-cheating software, even after they announced settlements with …

by Alex Guillén (Political Pro)  …   The two standards were last reviewed in 2010 – meaning EPA is currently a year behind the five-year review schedule for those standards set under the Clean Air Act.
The Center …

by Emily Monacelli (Michigan Live)  The chief executive of a former Southwest Michigan biofuels company has been indicted in what federal prosecutors allege was a scheme to defraud the government out of $2 million in …

by David Shepardson and Joel Schectman (Reuters)  German automaker Volkswagen AG (VOWG_p.DE) will pay more than $15.3 billion to settle charges that it cheated on U.S. diesel emissions tests, an agreement that will fund buybacks for …

by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  On June 22, the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Energy and Power Subcommittee held a hearing on the renewable fuel standard (RFS). The event featured testimony from government officials, …

(U.S. Department of Justice)  Thomas Davanzo, of Estero, Florida, and Robert Fedyna, of Naples, Florida, pleaded guilty today for their participation in a multi-state scheme to defraud biodiesel buyers and U.S. taxpayers by fraudulently selling …

by Art Cullen (Storm Lake Times) … So how can we produce ethanol sustainably — that is, a scheme under which farmers can make money without releasing nitrate to the river and help power America while …

by John Siciliano (Washington Examiner)  The ethanol industry will lay into the Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday for proposing a 2017 renewable fuel standard that it says is based on oil industry “hogwash.”
The industry also …

by Dani Meyer (Law 360)  Volkswagen and Porsche separately urged a California federal court Monday to toss the government’s allegations that the automakers cheated emissions standards, with Volkswagen arguing that the suit doesn’t show it …

by  Kali Hays (Law 360)  Fuel and agricultural groups need to make more specific arguments if they want to reassert claims tossed from their challenge to California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard, now that the rule …