Ethanol production averaged over a million barrels per day for 44 out of 52 weeks in 2017, which means another record year for the industry. And despite a very average growing season, corn yield for 2017 is estimated at a record high 176.6 bushels per acre, and production was only down four percent because farmers planted less acres. AgWired’s Cindy …
U.S. Ethanol Production Near Capacity but Constraints Limit Growth
As demand for ethanol has increased, the number of ethanol plants in the U.S. has quadrupled since 1999. A USDA report says the growth in the number of ethanol plants has been driven by the Renewable Fuels Standard, which was first enacted in 2005. The initial increase in plant numbers after 2005 led to some plants not producing at their …
Grain Sorghum Is Now an Advanced Biofuel
The Environmental Protection Agency recently released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking regarding sorghum and advanced biofuels. Growth Energy says the release had to do with the life-cycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions associated with biofuels that are produced from grain sorghum oil extracted at dry-mill ethanol plants. The agency says in evaluating the product, the GHG emissions of producing biofuels from distillers’ …
Cruz Proposal Could Harm Renewable Fuels
Texas Senator Ted Cruz made a recent proposal to cap the cost of Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs) as a way to control the cost for refiners that blend renewable fuels into the nation’s gasoline supply. A DTN report says capping the cost of RINs at ten cents each would basically all but eliminate the Renewable Fuels Standard mandate for biodiesel …
‘Tremendous Progress’ Made Toward Meeting Energy, Environmental, Economic Goals of RFS2
Ten years ago, Dec. 19, President George W. Bush signed into law the Energy Independence and Security Act, greatly expanding the scope and impact of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). In the decade since passage, significant progress has been made towards greater energy security, cleaner air and boosting local economies, according to a new analysis by the Renewable Fuels Association, …
Cruz Proposes Renewable Fuel Credit Cap
Senator Ted Cruz of Texas is proposing to cap the price of renewable fuel credits purchased by refiners at 10 cents, a mere fraction of the current market value. Prices of renewable fuel credits were trading at roughly 70 cents last week. The credits had been trading at 90 cents each at the end of November. Cruz is making the …
Northey Nomination Still on Hold
The nomination of Bill Northey to a top Department of Agriculture post remains on hold following a White House meeting on the Renewable Fuels Standard. The meeting, requested by Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz, offered no major breakthroughs regarding what Cruz wants to change in the RFS. Cruz told Politico he is still holding up the vote to confirm Northey, …
Oil and Ethanol Supporters Get Together to Talk RFS
The White House is hoping to play mediator between the oil and ethanol industries as it brought together Wednesday (12/13/17) for a preliminary discussion on the Renewable Fuels Standard. Refiners say they can’t afford the RFS compliance costs. The biofuels industry insists it has to have the mandates in the RFS to keep expanding and growing biofuels. Senators Chuck Grassley, …
UF/IFAS-Developed Sorghum Cultivars Can Produce Thousands of Gallons of Ethanol
Sweet sorghum is not just for breakfast anymore. Although sorghum is a source for table syrup, scientists see a future in which we convert sorghum to biofuel, rather than relying on fossil fuel. That potential just grew as University of Florida researchers found three UF/IFAS-developed sorghum varieties could produce up to 1,000 gallons of ethanol per acre. “Sweet sorghum has …
China Needs More Corn to Meet Fuel Mandate
To meet a fuel blend requirement, China must import more corn, according to industry analysts. A Stewart Peterson advisor tells Farm Journal’s AgDay that China will need to import “an additional billion bushels of corn a year” to meet the mandate. Earlier this year, China announced the nation would require ethanol blends in all fuel by 2020. Demand is growing …