by Daniel Fisher (Forbes) A federal appeals court in California is mulling whether to reconsider a September ruling that upheld state global-warming regulations on ethanol producers. Critics say the decision gives the Golden State carte blanche to regulate virtually anything it doesn’t
LCFS (Low Carbon Fuel Standard)
Back TO HOMEAn Ethanol-Fueled Comeback for Sugar Beets
by Alice Daniel (California Report) California once grew a lot of sugar beets to supply the state's sugar mills. Most of those the mills are closed now, and farmers have turned to other row crops. But in the Central Valley, growers
September 23, 2013 Read Full Article
Ninth Circuit Upholds California's Low Carbon Fuel Standard
by Dana Hull (San Jose Mercury News) In a victory for environmentalists, clean energy advocates and state regulators, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld California's clean-fuel standards in a 2-1 decision Wednesday. The fuel standard is a cornerstone of
September 19, 2013 Read Full Article
Report: 160 Commercial Advanced Biofuel Plants under Development
by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine) Environmental Entrepreneurs (E2) has released a new report that predicts projected growth in advanced biofuel production capacity will be sufficient to meet both the federal renewable fuels standard (RFS) and California’s low carbon fuel
September 09, 2013 Read Full Article
Harnessing Corn Oil Power
by Holly Jessen (Ethanol Producer Magazine) A Kansas-based company is offering two bolt-on options for ethanol producers looking to turn crude corn oil into biodiesel or renewable diesel. It’s no secret that revenue from corn oil extraction has been key in keeping
August 13, 2013 Read Full Article
Court Rules to Uphold California LCFS, but Requires Corrective Action
by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine) On July 15, California’s Fifth District Court of Appeal issued its opinion in the lawsuit filed by Poet LLC against the California Air Resources Board. The lawsuit, originally filed in November 2011, challenged the
July 22, 2013 Read Full Article
If Sunset Lifts, Oregon’s Clean Fuels Program Could Bring Heavy Investments
by Spencer Richley (Clean Energy Fuels/Sustainable Business Oregon) Time is running out for the Oregon Legislature to lift the sunset on the Clean Fuels Program, a practical program that would greatly benefit Oregon consumers’ pocketbooks by boosting development of less-expensive
June 25, 2013 Read Full Article
Low Carbon Fuels Standard Review Drubs Oil Industry Report: Top 10 Quotes
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ... Oil refiners have been waging a well-funded war on California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard, which requires oil companies to reduce the carbon pollution from gasoline and diesel by 10 percent by 2020. Centerpiece in their strategy
May 10, 2013 Read Full Article
UC-Davis Publishes Status Update of Calif. LCFS
by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine) The University of California-Davis Institute of Transportation Studies has published a new status review of the state’s low carbon fuel standard (LCFS). The review is the second in a series of periodic status reports.
May 08, 2013 Read Full Article
Canergy Taps Beta Renewables for 25M Gallon Advanced Biofuels Project in California
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Energy cane for California’s Imperial Valley? Canergy lines up Beta, CHS, Certis as partners for greenfield low-carbon fuel project slated for 2016 opening. In California, Canergy announced that it has selected Chemtex and Beta Renewables for
May 01, 2013 Read Full Article
Who Killed $2.18 Gasoline?
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) An explosive report from Bloomberg alleges that a pathway to $2.18 per gallon gasoline was developed at Chevron-Weyerhaeuser owned Catchlight Energy. Yet, the project was sidelined. Why? Was the project really saddled with a threshold
April 19, 2013 Read Full Article
Low Carbon Fuel Standard: Consumer Choice Is Key to California Success
by Matt Horton (Mercury News) ...Yet at the fuel pump, consumers still have no power. We all know our dependence on fossil fuels weakens our economy and security while threatening our environment. We simply feel powerless to address it because
April 08, 2013 Read Full Article
Low Carbon Fuel Standard Not an Answer
by Amy Harder (National Journal) As policy makers in Washington DC and across the country confront the costly consequences of mandating renewable fuels, some have suggested a low carbon fuel standard (LCFS) as an alternative. But an LCFS would be
April 02, 2013 Read Full Article
Encouraging Advanced Biofuels Development in a Low Carbon Economy
by Jeff Kessler (The Energy Collective) ...Unlike the current consumer technology industry, where new products can offer novel or superior services, transportation fuel options compete primarily on price and availability with limited room for product differentiation. Without substantial government support
March 01, 2013 Read Full Article
Chevron VP: Forget Cellulosic Biofuel, Build Better Cars
by David R. Baker (San Francisco Chronicle) The oil industry is mounting a concerted push to roll back biofuel mandates, both in Washington and Sacramento. At the federal level, oil lobbyists have joined with environmentalists and ranchers — a Coalition of the Unlikely — to
February 08, 2013 Read Full Article
Clean Fuel Backers Seek Oregon Program Extension
by Christina Williams (Sustainable Business Oregon) Proponents of Oregon's Clean Fuels Program cosponsored an event in Salem Wednesday with Drive Oregon that brought a troupe of electric vehicles to the Capitol in Salem. On the heels of a report on Oregon's
February 08, 2013 Read Full Article
Analysis: Advanced Biofuel Companies Now In More Than Half Of U.S. States; Clean Fuel Standards Fueling Growth In Top States
(PR NewsWire/Yahoo! News) Top 5 States For Advanced Biofuel Companies: Calif., Ill., Colo., Texas and Iowa; New Web Site at www.FuelingGrowth.org Documents Impact of Growing Industry California is home to nearly 30 advanced biofuel companies, but dozens of other states from coast to
February 06, 2013 Read Full Article
RFA Urges CARB to Revise Carbon Intensity Values under the LCFS
by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine) The Renewable Fuels Association is urging the California Air Resources Board to revise indirect land use change (ILUC) penalties assigned to certain biofuels under the state’s low carbon fuel standard (LCFS). In a letter RFA President
January 24, 2013 Read Full Article
Clean Fuels Are the Way forward for Oregon
by Gavin Carpenter (Oregon Live/The Oregonian) As a growing Oregon company committed to creating jobs and propelling our state's transportation industry into the future, we were disappointed to see The Oregonian's shortsighted stance on the Clean Fuels Program ("Kill Oregon's
December 20, 2012 Read Full Article
Oregon to Implement Phase One of Clean Fuels Program
by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine) On Dec. 7, the Oregon Environmental Quality Commission elected to begin implementation of the state’s Clean Fuels Program. A spokeswoman for the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality confirmed the commission voted four to one to
December 17, 2012 Read Full Article
15 Burning Questions (and Answers) for Biofuels in 2013
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Policy, finance, technology, feedstocks, markets, prices, opposition. Here’s what’s on your mind, as the critical 2013 deployment year for biofuels looms. So here are 15 burning questions as suggested by various Digesterati — divided for convenience
December 14, 2012 Read Full Article
California-Grown Sorghum Used in Ethanol Production
(Chromatin/BusinessWire) Chromatin’s Sorghum Seed Recognized for Water Use Efficiency and Versatility Chromatin, Inc., a privately held provider of innovative crop breeding technology, sorghum seed products and feedstocks, announced it has generated the first crop of sorghum that has been grown and
December 05, 2012 Read Full Article
E2 Report Projects Increased Advanced Biofuel Production
(Biomass Magazine) A report published by Environmental Entrepreneurs (E2) demonstrates that the biofuel industry is well-positioned to meet increased demand for advanced biofuels, which will be driven by the federal renewable fuel standard (RFS) and California’s low carbon fuel standard
October 31, 2012 Read Full Article
LCFS Would Benefit Minnesota
by Joanna Schroeder (DomesticFuel.com) According to a recent study from Political Economy Research Institute, a Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) in Minnesota would have a positive environmental and economic impact. The paper, “The Employment Impacts of a Low- Carbon Fuel Standard
October 24, 2012 Read Full Article
California Defends Greenhouse Gas Regulation for Fuels
by Rory Carroll (Reuters) California attorneys advocating for a program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from fuels came under stern questioning from a three-judge panel on Tuesday (October f16, 2012), in a case that threatens a key component of the
October 24, 2012 Read Full Article
ZeaChem a Finalist for $4.6M 3-Carbon Platform Grant from California Energy Commission
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ...(California Energy) Commission staff have proposed a $4.6 million award to ZeaChem for the development of a pilot plant at its Menlo Park, Calif. research and development (R&D) facility to scale up the company’s C3 (three-carbon
October 23, 2012 Read Full Article
California Greenhouse Gas Rules Face Major Court Test
by Howard Mintz (Mercury News) Having fended off a challenge to groundbreaking emissions standards for new cars, California now finds itself in a legal tug-of-war to preserve some of its unprecedented regulations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions of fuels. The 9th
October 16, 2012 Read Full Article
Study Finds a LCFS in Minnesota Would Create Nearly 32,500 Jobs
by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine) A study recently published by the Political Economy Research Institute at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst explores some of the economic impacts of establishing a low carbon fuel standard (LCFS) in Minnesota. The study,
October 15, 2012 Read Full Article
$1-2/gal Price Hikes, Refinery Closures Seen Under California LCFS
(Opisnet.com) While already suffering through the highest pump prices in the continental U.S., Californians could face even higher gasoline and diesel costs when new low carbon fuel regulations gain traction Jan. 1, warn fuel experts. Price hikes of as much
October 03, 2012 Read Full Article
Fueling California Releases First of its Kind Comprehensive Issue Brief on California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS)
(Fueling California) Issue brief reviews and highlights, the best and most current research and analysis on all viewpoints of the LCFS Fueling California released “A Comprehensive Analysis of Current Research and Outlook for the Future,” a first of its kind comprehensive
September 13, 2012 Read Full Article
California Clean Fuel Standard Poised to Drive Growth in Biofuels Industry
(PR NewsWire) E2 Report: Biofuel industry well positioned to meet demand under California standard Despite a challenging year, the advanced biofuels industry continues to grow, according to a new report from Environmental Entrepreneurs (E2). Biofuel production capacity has increased from 437 million gallons
September 06, 2012 Read Full Article
Researchers: LCFS Would Help America
by Joanna Schroeder (DomesticFuel.com) During a bipartisan briefing on Capitol Hill, researchers from six institutions advocated that adopting a national Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) would be a positive step for America. Renewable fuels, they said, will be cleaner, cheaper
July 20, 2012 Read Full Article
New Hampshire Bill Restricts Ability for State to Join LCFS Programs
by Erin Voegele (Biodiesel Magazine) The New Hampshire legislature recently passed legislation (HB 1487) that aims to prohibit the state from participating in any low carbon fuel standard (LCFS) programs that require quotas, caps or mandates on transportation fuels, fuels
July 05, 2012 Read Full Article
United States Leads World in Exports of Ethanol
(Hart Energy/PR NewsWire) Hart Energy study insists U.S. production mandates are out of sync with market reality Hart Energy's newly released study, U.S. & Brazil Ethanol Outlook to 2022, finds the United States has vaulted over Brazil to lead the world in the export of ethanol, a
May 01, 2012 Read Full Article
California Wins Temporary Reinstatement of Carbon Fuel Standard
By Karen Gullo and Lynn Doan (Bloomberg) California won temporary reinstatement of its low-carbon fuel standard, which was blocked last year by a federal judge. The U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco yesterday granted a request by California officials to put on hold the Dec.
April 24, 2012 Read Full Article
Low Carbon Fuel Standard Could Double Gas Prices
by Cindy Zimmerman (DomesticFuel.com) A new study released today by the Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA) indicates that a low carbon fuel standard (LCFS) in Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states could result in doubling gasoline prices and other negative economic impacts. The study, “Analysis of the
March 27, 2012 Read Full Article
Ethanol, Farm Groups File Brief Supporting Court-Ordered Injunction on California LCFS
(Renewable Fuels Association) A coalition of national ethanol groups, along with California and Midwest farming groups, filed a brief urging the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals to uphold a court-ordered injunction on the California Air Resource Board’s low-carbon fuel
March 05, 2012 Read Full Article
California to Appeal Ruling against Fuel Standard
(Equipment World) States considering a Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) will be watching the federal 9th Circuit Court of Appeals to see if it will overturn a lower court’s decision that California’s LCFS is unconstitutional. The appellate court has set an April 16
February 06, 2012 Read Full Article
Judge Denies Petition to Implement California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In California, Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill denied the California Air Resources Board’s (CARB) motion to stay the decision he issued on December 29, 2011 that had halted the enforcement of the California’s Low Carbon Fuel
January 24, 2012 Read Full Article
Low Carbon Fuel Standard: A Petroleum Marketer's Perspective
by Erin Voegele (Biodiesel Magazine) California’s low carbon fuel standard is a hot topic at this week’s California Biodiesel & Renewable Diesel Conference in San Francisco. During a panel titled “California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard and its Implications for Biodiesel
January 23, 2012 Read Full Article
Cool Planet BioFuels Announces Road Testing of Negative Carbon Gasoline Begins in California
(Cool Planet BioFuels/MarketWatch) Cool Planet BioFuels announced today it has received approval from the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to begin fleet-testing its negative carbon gasoline. Cool Planet BioFuel's technology converts low-grade biomass -- such as grass and woodchips --
January 12, 2012 Read Full Article
US Federal Court Issues Injunction against California Low Carbon Fuel Standard
by Jim Lane and Todd Guerrero (Biofuels Digest/Fredrikson & Byron, P.A.) Us federal judge rules that California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard interferes with the “maintenance of a national economic union unfettered by state-imposed limitations on interstate commerce.” Today, we look
December 30, 2011 Read Full Article
CARB Releases 2011 LCFS Review Report
by Kris Bevill (Ethanol Producer Magazine) The California Air Resources Board has completed the first required formal review of the state’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard, a regulatory program that requires stakeholders to reduce the carbon intensity (CI) of fuels sold
December 23, 2011 Read Full Article
Fulcrum Bioenergy’s $115M IPO: The 10-Minute Version
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) The first zero-cost feedstock biofuels company comes to the public markets with its IPO. ...Fulcrum becomes the 12th company to file for an IPO in the industrial biotech boom, which began with a successful listing on
September 26, 2011 Read Full Article
Good Read, Hot Topic: Advanced Biofuel Market Report 2011: Meeting the California LCFS
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In California, Mary Solecki and Bob Epstein of E2 and David Richey of the Goldman School of Public Policy released a monumentally good read and one of the best primers available on advanced biofuels, with
August 01, 2011 Read Full Article
EPA Proposes 15.2 Billion Gallon Biofuel Mandate for 2012; 50 Percent Jump in Advanced Biofuels
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ...EPA proposes to mandate the blending of 15.2 billion gallons of renewable fuel into the US fuel supply, and increased the proposed mandate for advanced biofuels by 48 percent, to 2 billion gallons. ...The proposed 2012
June 27, 2011 Read Full Article
California's Clean Fuel Push Opens Door To Brazilian Ethanol
by Ben Lefebvre (Dow Jones News Wires) California's push to reduce fuel emissions in the next decade could lead to Brazilian ethanol makers making new inroads into the U.S. The Golden State is attempting to reduce the carbon intensity of its transportation
June 15, 2011 Read Full Article
2 Studies Target Sticking Points, Gaps in Life-Cycle Calculations of Biofuels
by Jenny Mandel (New York Times/Greenwire) Conducting in-depth life-cycle assessments of the environmental impacts of biofuels is complicated, and new research suggests some questions in comparing biofuels to alternatives like petroleum-based fuels will never be answered. Furthermore, one study argues, consumer
February 18, 2011 Read Full Article
Ethanol Gets Seat on California LCFS Panel
by Cindy Zimmerman (DomesticFuel.com) Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) Vice President of Research and Analysis Geoff Cooper has been selected to represent the ethanol industry on the California Air Resources Board’s (CARB) Low Carbon Fuels Standard (LCFS) Advisory Panel. Panel
February 18, 2011 Read Full Article
Popping the Hood on California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard: A Digest Special Series
by Brooke Coleman (NewFuelsAlliance/Biofuels Digest) ...(W)hat’s good and what needs to be fixed in the LCFS? Where should the biofuels industry be happy, be hopeful, or be hopping mad? Brooke Coleman of the New Fuels Alliance – who knows this better
January 06, 2011 Read Full Article
Air Resources Board Is Clinging to Old Science
by Joe Irvin (Capitol Weekly) This week, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) convened a group of experts to discuss issues related to the Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) that was approved last year. The Expert Working Group has been
August 19, 2010 Read Full Article
The New Imperium: A Major Player in Biodiesel 1.5 Aims for Biofuels 2.0
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Back in 2008 the death watch began on Imperium Renewables. Though its 100 Mgy multi-feedstock plant in Grays Harbor was, at the time, the largest and most modern biodiesel facility in the US, the company lost its
August 03, 2010 Read Full Article
CARB Proposes LCFS Soil Sustainability Provisions
by Joanna Schroeder (DomesticFuel) The California Air Resources Board (CARB) is far from over on discrediting biofuels as part of their mandated policy known as the Low Carbon Fuels Standard (LCFS). For the past year, the ethanol industry has been
July 30, 2010 Read Full Article
A Simpler Path to Cutting Carbon Emissions
by Vinod Khosla (Washington Post) If our goal is carbon reduction, a cap-and-trade or carbon-pricing bill, with its likely compromises, would be worse right now than no regulation. Pricing carbon below $40 per ton will not change how industry does
July 02, 2010 Read Full Article
Small Seattle Biodiesel Producer Plans to Expand. Secret? Fast-Food Deep Fryers
by Martha Baskin (Seattle Post Globe) At a time when the US biodiesel industry has been in turmoil – faulted for where it sources raw materials or feedstock - a small producer in Seattle has plans to expand. What’s their
June 04, 2010 Read Full Article
RFA: Carbon Accounting Should Be Equitable, Based on Science
(Renewable Fuels Association) The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) today continued to call into question accounting gimmicks and unproven theories used by environmental activists seeking to undermine the growth of biofuels as a way to displace fossil fuels. The latest iteration is a
June 04, 2010 Read Full Article
Climate Policies Drive California’s Economic Future
by Mary Nichols (California Air Resources Board, Sustainable Industries) When California Gov. Schwarzenegger cut the ribbon at the opening of the world’s first bio-butanol plant earlier this year, he credited California’s climate action law Assembly Bill 32. ... In the case of
June 03, 2010 Read Full Article
Future California Biofuels Production
by Cary Blake (Western Farm Press) Steve Kaffka paints an optimistic picture of the future of California biofuels production. Weather, water availability, and state and federal policies, Kaffka says, will help determine if California agriculture one day serves as a larger
June 01, 2010 Read Full Article
Developing an Advanced Biofuels Industry: State Policy Options for Lean and Uncertain Times
(Environmental and Energy Study Institute) ...The purpose of this project was to determine what incentives best support the commercialization of environmentally sustainable, low carbon, renewable biofuel technologies, to identify ways federal and state incentives can work together, and to determine
May 06, 2010 Read Full Article
Ethanol Industry Rep Appointed to California Panel
by Cindy Zimmerman (DomesticFuel.com) At least one ethanol industry representative has been appointed to an expert work group attempting to assess the true carbon footprint of all fuel sources under the California’s proposed Low Carbon Fuel Standard. POET Senior Vice President
February 23, 2010 Read Full Article
Is Ethanol from Corn Bad for the Climate? The Obama Administration Says No, California Says Yes. Who Is Right?
by Douglas Fischer (Scientific American) The Obama administration last week gave the green light to corn ethanol as a low-carbon renewable fuel – in apparent contradiction to California's declaration last summer that the biofuel's carbon footprint was too big to
February 17, 2010 Read Full Article
Truckers, Oil Refiners Sue California to Overturn State's Low-Carbon Fuel Standard
(edmunds.com) Oil refiners and truckers have sued California to overturn the state's low-carbon fuel standard. The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California, alleges that the LCFS violates the Constitution's commerce clause, which reserves
February 11, 2010 Read Full Article
California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard: Testing the Boundaries of Green Federalism
Mackinnon Lawrence (Biofuels Digest) California, a long-time pioneer in the area of environmental law and policy, is now the target of a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of its recently adopted Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS), given final approval by the
February 09, 2010 Read Full Article
BIO Comments on Preliminary Draft Regulation for the California Cap-and-Trade Program
Comments by Brent Erickson, Executive Vice President, Industrial and Environmental Section of the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) to the California Environmental Protection Agency and Air Resources Board (January 11, 2010): ... The essence of the cap-and-trade program is the establishment
January 18, 2010 Read Full Article
Governors of 11 Northeast and Mid-Atlantic States Agree to Work Together Toward Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Fuels
Governors of 11 Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states today took the next step toward developing a regional Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) by signing a Memorandum of Understanding that commits their states to continued participation in a regional effort to reduce greenhouse gas
January 03, 2010 Read Full Article
Ethanol Groups Sue California Over Low-Carbon Rule
by Stephen Power (Wall Street Journal) Two groups representing ethanol producers asked a federal court on Thursday to strike down a California rule that calls for a reduction in the carbon content of fuels sold in that state, saying the
December 29, 2009 Read Full Article
Growth Energy Calls on ARB to Allow Public Comment on Undisclosed LCFS Documents
Growth Energy, the coalition of U.S. ethanol supporters, called on the California Air Resources Board (ARB) to allow the public to comment on documents pertaining to their low-carbon fuel standard (LCFS) rulemaking that were not disclosed and should influence the
November 23, 2009 Read Full Article
Meeting Ethanol Mandates in California: A 5-Part Series
Spot.us, a new venture dedicated to crowdfunded reporting, was able to commission Wired.com staff writer Alexis Madrigal to move forward with his article on meeting ethanol mandates in California. Gas2.0 is proud to be the first media source to publish Alexis’