It was one year ago today that President Donald Trump made a victorious visit to Southwest Iowa Renewable Energy (SIRE) ethanol plant in Council Bluffs, Iowa, to celebrate regulatory changes that would finally allow year-round retail sales of 15% ethanol (E15). At the event, the President also heard from farmers and ethanol industry leaders about the devastating impact of RFS …
Farm & Biofuel Groups Challenge Retroactive RFS Waivers
Nine leading biofuel and farm organizations sent a letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Andrew Wheeler Tuesday asking him for answers on what is seen as a new effort to undermine the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). During a Senate hearing last month, administration officials confirmed their consideration of retroactive small refinery exemptions (SREs) covering previous years. The “gap-filings” are …
Ethanol Ready to Fuel Summer Adventures
As America gets moving again, ethanol is ready to fuel summer adventures. Ethanol production is slowly climbing back up after hitting historic lows due to coronavirus restrictions keeping people from traveling. Now that people are getting back on the road and in the water, Renewable Fuels Association Vice President of Industry Affairs Robert White talks about some of their summertime …
Ag and Biofuel Groups Ask Congress for COVID-19 Relief
America’s top biofuel and farm advocates are calling on Congress to ensure the next round of COVID-19 relief includes U.S. ethanol and biodiesel production. A joint letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell was signed by the Renewable Fuels Association, Growth Energy, the National Biodiesel Board, the American Farm Bureau Federation, the National Corn Growers …
USDA Announces Funds for Biofuels Infrastructure
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is making up to $100 million in competitive grants available to help expand the availability and sale of renewable fuels. “American ethanol and biofuel producers have been affected by decreased energy demands due to the coronavirus, and these grants to expand their availability will help increase their use during our economic resurgence,” said Agriculture Secretary …
Analysis Shows $50 Per Acre Loss for Corn
A new analysis from the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) is projecting a $50 per acre revenue decline for the 2019 corn crop as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The analysis showed cash corn prices since March 1 have declined by 16 percent on average, with several regions experiencing declines of more than 20 percent. NCGA commissioned the economic …
Ethanol Industry Losses Mount
As the COVID-19 pandemic and crude oil glut continue to ravage world fuel markets, U.S. ethanol sales in 2020 could fall by more than $10 billion and the industry’s contribution to gross domestic product (GDP) could drop by nearly one-third, according to a new analysis by the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA). The economic losses stem from a “pernicious combination of …
Lower Ethanol Demand Could Impact Planting Decisions
USDA’s 2020 Prospective Plantings report released Tuesday estimates planted acres for corn this year at 97.0 million acres, up 8 percent or 7.29 million acres from last year. But when farmers were surveyed a month ago, coronavirus had yet to have the impact it is now having on ethanol demand and prices thanks to a drastic cut in demand for …
Energy Ag News 3-26-20
The Nebraska Ethanol Board (NEB) and Renewable Fuels Nebraska (RFN) have rescheduled the Ethanol: Emerging Issues Forum 2020 for July 15-16. The Forum will be held at the La Vista Conference Center in Greater Omaha if the threat of COVID-19 has subsided. The Renewable Fuels Association is pleased to welcome two new associate members, Barchart and Bion. Based in Chicago, …
Administration Will Not Appeal Tenth Circuit SRE Ruling
Biofuels stakeholders are celebrating some good news today with word that the Trump administration had made the decision not to request a rehearing of the recent unanimous ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit that the EPA had “vastly exceeded its authority in granting exemptions from 2016 and 2017 RFS requirements to three refineries.” The challenge …