Once again yesterday the ethanol logo was flying high.
This banner was flown all over West Des Moines as multiple promotions were taking place including the one at the Kum & Go station.
The pilot was on the lookout for large gathering areas and flew some pretty tight circles.
The Iowa Corn Growers just held a press conference here at the Iowa Speedway to unveil the trophy for Sunday's Iowa Corn Indy 250. It's a tall good looking trophy.
The group show here consists of several board members and CEO, Craig Floss, speaking on the left. Craig made a short statement which you can listen to here: iowa-corn-07-icga-press-conf.mp3
Here's some of the reasons why the Iowa Corn Growers is involved and supporting this inaugural race:
• Promote renewable fuels
• Give general consumers information about ethanol, specifically E85 market
• Indy Racing League (IRL) is running on 100% ethanol in the 2007 season
• Celebrating 30 years of the Iowa corn checkoff and the success of the ethanol industry we’ve worked so hard to build in the state.
• Iowa is the leader in corn and ethanol production and we are working to be the leader in renewable fuel usage.
One of the people attending the ethanol pump promotion in West Des Moines was Pioneer Hi-Bred Marketing Director for Quality Traits, Russ Sanders. I interviewed Russ as things were heating up (quite literally) at this Kum & Go facility. Here’s Russ posing next to the #17 Indy Ethanol car which Pioneer is a sponsor of this year.
Russ says that Pioneer is working hard on new corn traits that will be more productive in the ethanol production process while also creating a more nutritious animal feed component from the by-products of the ethanol production process. He says it’s a time for American corn growers to be proud of what they are accomplishing in helping our country become more independent of foreign oil while helping create a cleaner environment. He also says that Pioneer will have several hundred of their customers here at the race this weekend.
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Here’s a good story from the Kum & Go pump promotion about their E85 start of summer promotional price. It’s hard to beat $1.85 gas if you’ve got a flex fuel vehicle in Iowa.
If you buy gas at a Kum & Go right now you can take your receipt, go online and enter to win a number of great prizes in their Fuel Good Sweepstakes. There will be monthly prize drawings from June through August.
At today’s Kum & Go pump promotion I got a chance to interview IndyCar driver Jeff Simmons once again. Jeff was on hand to pump ethanol enriched gas for customers during this midday promotion.
Jeff says this would be a great weekend for his first win and I and thousands of corn growers couldn’t agree more. You can listen to my interview with Jeff here: iowa-corn-07-simmons.mp3
He was also interviewed by quite a few local media representatives like KXNO-Am morning show man Larry Cotlar. KXNO is the local sports station. It was just a short live spot but I thought you might be interested to see Jeff in action with the media.
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Here’s the fine looking group of volunteers who worked on a hot day to pump and promote ethanol to consumers out here at the West Des Moines Kum & Go.
They’re employees of the Iowa Corn Growers Association, Ethanol Promotion and Information Council and Pioneer Hi-Bred.
I’ve got a number of interviews with representatives of these groups which I’ll post later on, including Kum & Go CEO/President Kyle Krause who clued me in on their “Fuel Good Sweepstakes” promotion going on now.
Since Cindy mentioned that Kum & Go is selling E85 around Iowa for $1.85 today I just happened to be at a pump promotion in West Des Moines in advance of the Iowa Corn Indy 250 where they’re doing just that.
In fact, this is an EPIC sponsored promotion out here today that also involves selling regular gas with a 10% blend of ethanol for $2.18 which happens to be how many miles the drivers will go at the race on Sunday (if they finish!).
I’ve got some interviews and lots of pictures which are being posted into an online photo album as usual. Feel free to visit often.
As summer officially begins, events in Iowa to promote and expand the use of E85 are shifting into high gear.
The American Lung Association of the Upper Midwest reports that Iowa Governor Chet Culver and Lt. Governor Patty Judge will address a workshop at Wallace Auditorium in Des Moines for 100 managers and directors of state-owned vehicle fleets on Thursday, “E85: Kicking the Oil Addiction.” The workshop was developed for the Iowa state agencies by the American Lung Association of the Upper Midwest, on behalf of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and the U.S. Dept. of Energy’s Energy Policy Act Program.
In addition, E85 stations across the state are offering discounted fuel today in honor of the Iowa Corn Indy 250 in Newton on Sunday, June 24.
Kum and Go is offering E85 at $1.85 per gallon from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at stores in Ames, Ankeny, Clear Lake, Coralville, Grinnell, Johnston, Lamoni, and West Des Moines.
An additional group of stations is selling E85 at 85 cents below their posted price from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Council Bluffs, Dubuque, Durant, Estherville, Farnhamville, Fort Dodge, Keota, Mapleton and Roelyn.
Besides E85, which can only be used in flex-fuel vehicles, the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council is sponsoring pump promotions on E10 around the state prior to the race on Sunday. Promotions are being held Thursday in West Des Moines and Grinnell, and Friday in Newton.
An attempt to end the 54-cent-a-gallon tariff on foreign ethanol has been turned away in the U.S. Senate.
This story in the Des Moines Register says that Sen. Judd Gregg of New Hampshire had made the argument that it was costing motorists on the East Coast:
“I would rather buy ethanol from Brazil than oil from Venezuela. It just makes a lot more geopolitical sense in how we protect ourselves,”Gregg said.
Usually, you see votes in the Senate split along party lines, but this one had more of a regional feel to it as Midwestern Senators sided with protecting their homegrown ethanol. Plus, the corn-rich, and thus ethanol-rich, Midwest would continue to enjoy the 51-cent-a-gallon federal ethanol incentives. The Senate ended up voting 56-36 to reject a procedural move that was needed to add the tariff repeal to a pending energy bill.
Defending the tariff, Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Ia., said that ethanol supplies were adequate and that fuel additive is being imported in spite of the levy.
“There is imported ethanol shipped into New York and Baltimore harbor today,” he said.
EarthFirst Technologies, Incorporated will be building America’s first bio-refinery, capable of producing ASTM 6751 biodiesel from palm-based methyl esters.
Similar projects have been built in Singapore and Malaysia. This story on the Power Online web site says the new bio-refinery will be in Channahon, Illinois:
The key to the Company’s Bio-refinery is the use of palm oil based feedstock. The chemical composition and stability of palm oil make it suitable for refinement into numerous products.
To secure the continuous availability of palm oil feedstock, EarthFirst has entered into a 15-year Supply Agreement with LODERS CROKLAAN USA, LLC (“Loders”), a wholly owned subsidiary of the IOI Group. IOI has an existing supply chain for palm oil products from Malaysia to Channahon, Illinois which serves Loders’ specialty fats business supplying the requirements of the US food industry. The Company also has a 15-year Agreement with Loders to lease a currently unused vegetable oil fractionation facility, located on its own self-contained site, adjacent to Loders’ other operations in Channahon.
The Illinois site was chosen because it sits in the center of seven Midwestern states that consume almost 90% of the biodiesel currently produced in the U.S. In addition, Illinois has biodiesel incentives to offer, as well as the federal subsidies already out there. Officials say there will also be a market for the other bio-refinery products.
Two veterans of the energy business from Houston, Texas have been named to the board of directors of Better Biodiesel, Inc…. a Utah-based company that uses a proprietary technology that eliminates the use of some caustic chemicals for the production of biodiesel (see my post from January 26th).
Check out this story that appeared on Grainnet.com:
Steven A Nordaker was appointed as an independent member of the board.
Nordaker is presently senior vice president-finance for the Energy Capital Group in Houston, TX.
Nordaker has about 40 years experience in energy finance, including 20 years in the energy group at JP Morgan Chase.
Better Biodiesel also announced that John Robinson, Ph.D., has been appointed to the board to replace Peter Kristensen who has relinquished his board seat while remaining a company vice president.
Robinson is currently the CEO of ChemConnect, Houston, TX, an electronic marketplace for buying and selling chemical feedstocks, commodity and specialty chemicals and polymers. Previously, Robinson spent 17 years with BP (British Petroleum).
A bill pending in Congress would provide grants to community colleges to implement renewable energy education and training programs.
This press release from the Renewable Fuels Association says the New Era Act, introduced by Iowa Congressman Bruce Braley, is before a congressional committee and would promote an educated and skilled workforce to meet the demands of an expanding renewable fuels industry:
In prepared testimony before the House Small Business Committee Subcommittee on Contracting and Technology, Hawkeye Renewables Founder and CEO Bruce Rastetter stated on behalf of his Iowa-based ethanol company that there is no lack of demand or interest for jobs in the biofuels industry. However, he added that a large majority of interested individuals are not adequately educated in the field.
“When our Fairbank, Iowa plant was set to open, we received over 800 applications for 45 jobs. However, it was easy to sift through prospective hires based on the degree of education, training or experience that applicants had,” said Rastetter. “There are many people with an interest in gaining employment in the biofuels industry; some just may lack the necessary skill-set to obtain employment. The return on investment grants like this can provide for communities, states and our nation is immeasurable.”
“As our industry continues to grow, the demand for skilled and educated workers provides a plethora of job opportunities for individuals interested in ethanol production in the U.S.,” said Renewable Fuels Association President Bob Dinneen. “For the benefit of our communities’, we must respond to this demand by providing opportunities for education on renewable fuels in our community colleges.”
You can read the full text of Rastetter’s testimony at www.ethanolrfa.org.
Team Ethanol partner Pioneer Hi-Bred International sponsored an appearance of ‘Discover Ethanol,’ complete with the Team Ethanol IndyCar simulator, at the Downtown Farmers’ Market in Des Moines this past weekend to promote the upcoming Iowa Corn Indy 250, the inaugural IndyCar Series race in Iowa.
Iowa-based Pioneer, a subsidiary of DuPont, teamed up with the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council (EPIC) earlier this year to provide funding for ethanol promotion and education programs and as a sponsor of Team Ethanol in the IndyCar® Series for the 2007 season.
Pioneer representatives Steve Schaaf, Elizabeth Owens, Jeff Burnison, Bill Niebur, Russ Sanders, and Meredith Evans were on hand for the event in downtown Des Moines, which featured lots of fun activities for the kids and educational displays for the adults.
To see more pictures, go to Meredith’s Kodak gallery photo album.
Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell was at the dedication of a new wind farm… the seventh one in the state.
According to this press release posted on Rendell’s web site, the Locust Ridge project in Schuylkill County is part of the state’s aggressive push for wind power:
At present, the state’s wind farms generate enough electricity to serve about 45,000 homes, or less than 1% of the Pennsylvania market. But the state expects another four wind farms to begin operating within the next year, more than doubling capacity.
“This is an exciting day for Pennsylvania,” said Governor Rendell while standing atop Locust Ridge in Schuylkill County. “This project shows the kind of growth we can achieve by committing ourselves to clean and renewable energy, and by making the strategic investments necessary to attract leading companies that create quality jobs for our men and women.”
Iberdrola, the largest owner and operator of renewable energy facilities in the world, owns the wind farm.
South Dakota Senator John Thune says Senate leaders want to pass an energy bill by the Fourth of July… but warned a group of about 100 people this week at the Ethanol Public Policy Summit in Sioux Falls that conflict looms on the horizon.
This story in the Argus (SD) Leader says some powerful opponents are against some key provisions in this year’s bill:
Some lawmakers oppose extending the tariff on foreign ethanol and allowing fuel blends with more ethanol, both of which Thune supports.
Perhaps the greatest risk is that more controversial provisions will sink the overall bill.
Thune said the auto industry is the major opponent to 20 percent ethanol and other blends, which are necessary to ensure market growth.
“They’re kind of clinging to a past in terms of energy and fuels, and the ones that are smart, in my view, are going to start looking toward the future,” he said.
Thune admits some of his fellow Republicans are also some his biggest opponents. But he says this country will have to step it up to bring our renewable energy output up to the 36-billion-gallon-a-year level by 2022.