Domestic Fuel

Two E85 and biodiesel promotions will be held in Austin, Minnesota next week. E85 will be sold for 85 cents off per gallon and B5 will be sold for 20 cents off per gallon at both events.

The first promotion will be held on Tuesday, Aug. 18, from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. at the Freeborn County Coop at the intersection of Highways 56 and 90. Two days later, on Thursday, Aug. 20, the Kwik Trip at 4th St. NW (near the I-90 exit) will offer the same discount on E85 and B5 from 1-3 p.m. There will be a 30-gallon limit per vehicle at both events.

The promotions are supported by Freeborn County Coop, Kwik Trip, Mower County Corn & Soybean Growers, Minnesota Corn Growers Association, Minnesota Soybean Growers Association, the Minnesota Clean Air Choice Team and the American Lung Association in Minnesota.

Minnesota currently houses the highest number of E85 stations within the U.S. with 361 sites. For a listing, click here.

Bioengineering firm Joule Biotechnologies of Massachusetts recently unveiled a new technology that uses sunlight to directly convert carbon dioxide into ethanol. The process, called Helioculture™, produces what the company is calling SolarFuel™ liquid energy.

According to Joule, the conversion requires no agricultural land or fresh water, and leverages a highly scalable system capable of producing more than 20,000 gallons of renewable ethanol or hydrocarbons per acre annually.

“There is no question that viable, renewable fuels are vitally important, both for economic and environmental reasons. And while many novel approaches have been explored, none has been able to clear the roadblocks caused by high production costs, environmental burden and lack of real scale,” said Bill Sims, president and CEO of Joule Biotechnologies. “Joule was created for the very purpose of eliminating these roadblocks with the best equation of biotechnology, engineering, scalability and pricing to finally make renewable fuel a reality—all while helping the environment by reducing global CO2 emissions.”

Read more here.

A Maryland-based biotech/biofuel company is working on the development of a portable biofuel production system called “Follow the Crop.”

Atlantic Biomass Conversions president Bob Kozak recently explained the concept to Congressman Roscoe Bartlett (R-MD 6th) at his Go Green Energy Expo in Frederick, Maryland. According to Kozak, instead of bringing biomass to biorefineries, the bioconversion technology will go to the crops.

Following the model of combines that follow the harvest season, “Follow-the-Crop” modules will be deployed nationwide as energy grasses and crops are harvested.

By creating a viable market for environmentally suitable “energy” grasses and agricultural residues grown in stands as small as 10 acres, the deployment of this system would improve the income of small and medium growers. This positive impact would greatly help rural economies throughout the country.

Read more about it here on the Atlantic Biomass Conversions website.

Corn growers and the ethanol industry are uniting to provide consumers with more choices at the pump, gas station owners with more product flexibility, and the nation with the ability to achieve its renewable fuels targets with a new campaign to increase the number of ethanol blender pumps nationwide.

The campaign is a partnership between leading corn-producing states, the American Coalition for Ethanol, and the Renewable Fuels Association, with the goal of installing 5,000 blender pumps nationwide over the next three years.

The “Blend Your Own Ethanol” campaign – or BYOethanol (pronounced “bio”) – will offer a single source of ethanol information and technical expertise for petroleum marketers looking to upgrade equipment or begin offering more choices to their customers. By serving as a central clearinghouse for renewable fuels infrastructure incentives, the “BYOethanol” campaign will bring blender pumps to key areas of the country, and from there they will spread as neighboring gas stations see the benefit and want to remain competitive.

The announcement was made today at the opening of the 22nd Ethanol Conference & Trade Show in Milwaukee. Domestic Fuel reporter Joanna Schroeder will have interviews and photos from the event coming soon.

A deal that would have provided biodiesel to a Hawaiian Electric Co. plant has been dealt a tough blow that in all intents and purposes kills the project.

The Honolulu Star-Bulletin reports that the state Public Utilities Commission has denied HECO’s request to change where it would have gotten the green fuel for its plant:

According to the contract terms, [Seattle-based] Imperium [Renewables] was to build a local refinery with a pipeline to supply biodiesel for HECO’s newly completed, $142.3 million, 110-megawatt plant at Campbell Industrial Park.

“While we’re disappointed in the ruling from the PUC, we understand their concerns about cost to ratepayers,” said Imperium CEO John Plaza. “We put together the best proposal we could based on HECO’s contractual requirements to source sustainable palm oil.”

The original deal was seen as a savior for the ailing Imperium Renewables, which has struggled in recent years when feedstock prices skyrocketed.

A bill that would extend the biodiesel tax incentive by five years, as well as changing the way the program is administered, has been introduced.

SustainableBusiness.com reports it is a bi-partisan measure from Democrat U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell of Washington state and Republican Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa:

The Biodiesel Tax Incentive Reform and Extension Act is expected to provide stability and reliability to the biodiesel industry by extending the tax incentive for five years. In addition, the legislation would change the tax incentive from a blenders excise tax credit to a production excise tax credit. This change will focus the incentive on the domestic biodiesel industry, improve administration of the nation’s tax laws and protect the integrity of the credit, according to the National Biodiesel Board (NBB), the trade association for the U.S. biodiesel industry.

The bill gained the praise of the NBB:

“Domestic production and use of biodiesel is consistent with an energy policy that values the displacement of petroleum with low-carbon, renewable fuels. This legislation will provide certainty to biodiesel producers and improve the form and function of the biodiesel tax incentive. We strongly support this proposal and commend Senator Cantwell and Senator Grassley for introducing this forward thinking legislation,” said NBB CEO Joe Jobe.

A group of Rhode Island students who drove a biodiesel-powered truck 3,000 miles cross-country last summer are showing off their latest green energy project.

A fuel-celled powered Model T from Ponaganset High School, put together by teacher Ross McCurdy and his student, is going to be on display at GovEnergy 2009, the premier energy training workshop and tradeshow for Federal agencies, going on now in Providence, Rhode Island:

ConEdison Solutions has been involved with Ponaganset High School, part of the Foster-Glocester school district, as a result of a major energy efficiency program which has saved the district $700,000 annually and reduced its energy use by 29 percent. The company also introduced the state’s first environmentally friendly biomass boiler – a wood chip gasifier system using locally-produced chips – to heat the 371,000 SF Ponaganset Middle and High Schools in North Scituate, RI.

Along with the Model T, that biodiesel truck that made the trek from Rhode Island to California last August (see my post from August 25, 2008) will also be on display.

Underwriters Laboratories (UL) today announced an additional dispenser certification path for mid-level ethanol fuel blends up to 25 percent ethanol.

“The development of renewable energies continues to evolve at a rapid pace and we understand the need for future innovation, cost effectiveness and getting product to market quickly; however, public safety must remain paramount,” said Jeff Smidt, General Manager Global Energy Business for UL. “We now have multiple certification paths available for fuel dispensers that will provide not only for public safety, but also future blend flexibility for dispenser manufacturers. We feel with this additional certification path, we have addressed current and future industry needs.”

There are now three certification paths for pre-blended ethanol fuels:

1) UL 87 for gasoline and ethanol fuel blends up to E10
2) The established requirements of Subject 87A-E85, which address gasoline and ethanol fuel blends up to E85
3) The new certification path in Subject 87A-E25, which addresses gasoline and mid-level ethanol fuel blends up to E25

Prior to August 1, UL had two certification paths for gasoline and ethanol fuel dispensing units, UL87 for blends up to E10 and Subject 87A for blends up to E85. UL first announced Subject 87A covering E85 dispensers in October of 2007.

Although equipment manufacturers were consulted in a recent meeting regarding this issue, it is unclear if this will be positive or negative for the increased use of ethanol in retail equipment across the U.S.

Growth Energy today introduced a renewable fuels road map desigened to “help America reduce our dependence on foreign oil, create new green collar jobs and reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases.”

Growth Energy co-chairman, retired General Wesley Clark announced the five-point plan at the National Clean Energy Summit in Las Vegas, NV.

The five main points of the road map include:

1. Lift the regulatory cap on ethanol in gasoline.
2. Build an alternative fuel infrastructure by increasing flex fuel pumping stations and constructing biofuel pipelines.
3. Require all vehicles sold to be Flex Fuel Vehicles.
4. Strengthen market transparency to give Americans more information about the hidden costs of foreign oil and its carbon content.
5. Adopt a national Low Carbon Fuel Standard.

“These are five concrete steps we can begin taking right now,” Clark said during a press conference from Las Vegas. “Within 3-4 years, if we follow this plan, we’ll have reduced our dependency on foreign oil by a million barrels a day. That’s the equivalent of taking Venezuela out of the U.S. import group.”

Clark says the plan would also create more than 136,000 new jobs and introduce more green fuel into the nation’s energy supply.

Clark was joined at the press conference by Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis, and ethanol industry leaders Jeff Broin of POET and Dave Vander Griend with ICM. Listen to their opening statements here:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (3.0MB)

“Cash for Clunkers” has another $2 billion to get less fuel-efficient vehicles off the road – but the renewable energy loan guarantee program has $2 billion less for research into alternative fuels.

Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen says Congress should replace those borrowed funds as soon as possible. “While the cash for clunkers idea has merit, it contains no language or direction to steer consumers to alternative-fuel vehicles,” said Dinneen. “As such, a failure to replenish this fund when Congress returns this fall would be robbing Peter to pay Paul. We need not choose between clean fuels and clean vehicles, we need both.”

Dinneen says the loan guarantee program being tapped to provide the cash for the clunkers is critical to bringing next generation biofuels and other renewable energies to the marketplace. “Companies seeking to turn sugar waste and other cellulosic materials into biofuel, for example, were looking to this program as the security they need to take the risks that will accelerate the commercialization of their technologies. Now, those companies are forced to anxiously wait and see if Congress will replace those funds,” he added.

The Senate last week voted 60 to 37 to approve $2 billion in additional funding after approval by the House the week before.

A spiky tree with a reptilian bark may be able to take a bite out of the cost to produce cellulosic ethanol.

The tree is often called a sweetgum, but it also goes by the name “alligator tree” because it does look like one. So, it’s appropriate that researchers with the University of Florida – home of the Gators – have found that bacteria growing in its wood may improve the process of making cellulosic ethanol.

As the team from UF’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences reported in the July issue of the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology, a strain of the wood-decaying Paenibacillus sp. bacteria named JDR-2 has a knack for breaking down and digesting one of these components, hemicelluloses.

The team has now mapped JDR-2’s genome, and Preston expects that, within the year, they will transfer genes behind JDR-2’s abilities to bacteria used to produce ethanol. This would be followed by the design of processes for the cost-effective production of ethanol from wood, agricultural residues and other potential energy crops.

Illinois Congresswoman Debbie Halvorson yesterday voiced her support of increasing the blend of ethanol in gasoline to 15 percent. The Congresswoman, along with many other supporters, spoke at a news conference at the Illinois Corn Growers Association home office.

In March, national trade group Growth Energy submitted a Green Jobs Waiver asking the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to allow gasoline blended with as much as 15 percent ethanol. A rule that dates back to the 1970s arbitrarily caps at 10 percent the amount of ethanol that can be blended with gasoline. The report titled “Economic Impacts of Increasing the Ethanol Blend Limit on Top Ethanol Producing States” was released Thursday by Growth Energy. Congresswoman Halvorson announced findings of the report, “I’m proud to say that by extending the ethanol blend in our gasoline mixture to E15, Illinois has the capacity to gain over 4,000 full-time jobs and have $833 million injected into Illinois’ economy. Blending higher percentages of ethanol into our gas is a step we can take right now to create American jobs, local jobs, increase our energy independence, improve our environment, and help many of our local farmers.”

Gene Griffith, secretary of the Illinois Renewable Fuels Association, added, “A significant portion of the Illinois economy is based on renewable fuels, many of which are small ethanol-producing plants. By increasing the cap on ethanol blends from 10 percent to 15 percent, the EPA would enable the renewable fuels industry to grow, which would result in more Illinois jobs, a more stable economy, cleaner emissions and greater energy independence. With high unemployment in Illinois, there couldn’t be a better time to implement this new plan.”

July 20 marked the end of the EPA’s 90-day public comment period on the waiver application. The EPA has until December of this year to decide if it will allow up to a 15 percent ethanol blend in the American fuel supply.

The Environmental Protection Agency’s peer review of the renewable fuel standards lifecycle analysis released today is being characterized by corn and ethanol industry groups as biased, bizarre and puzzling.

The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) says the EPA “stacked the deck against biofuels in its process to “peer review” the agency’s indirect land use change analysis (ILUC) conducted for the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS2) proposed rule” by including as reviewers “several noted anti-ethanol and anti-agriculture activists, including environmental lawyer Timothy Searchinger.”

“EPA has asked the foxes to guard the hen house on this issue,” said RFA President Bob Dinneen. “By adding lawyers and advocates to a scientific review panel, EPA bureaucrats have made a mockery of the Administration’s commitment to sound science.”

Tom Buis, CEO of Growth Energy, responded to the release of the study today by calling on Congress to repeal the ILUC provision in the 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act.

“We need to stop this nonsense. This is the most bizarre concept I have ever seen. EPA’s peer review proves that too much uncertainty about the economic modeling, data and science exists to allow this to ever become regulation. Even the peer review committee could not agree,” Buis said.

National Corn Growers Association president Bob Dickey says they are disappointed in the lack of objectivity in the review.

“We are dismayed by EPA’s complete disregard for an approach that is fair and balanced. We are also puzzled as to why the United States Department of Agriculture, which has extensive knowledge related to this issue, was in no way included in the peer review process,” Dickey said. “We call upon the EPA to modify its approach to reflect the commitment of President Obama to adhere to policies based on sound science and a transparent process.”

According to EPA, the peer reviewers “are recognized as leading experts in their respective fields, which include: lifecycle assessment, economic modeling, remote sensing imagery, biofuel technologies, soil science, agricultural economics, and climate science.” EPA will consider the peer review results along with public comments received, and implement the reviewer’s technical recommendations to the greatest extent possible.

Chrysler’s sale to Fiat has not stopped them from rolling out their line of flexible fuel vehicles (FFVs) in 2010. Chrysler will have seven vehicles able to use E85 in their 2010 line up:

4.7L Dodge Dakota
4.7L Dodge Ram
3.3L Dodge Grand Caravan
2.7L Dodge Avenger
3.3LChrysler Town & Country
2.7L Chrysler Sebring Convertible
2.7L Chrysler Sebring Sedan

The 2010 FFVs will be available for purchase in all states excluding: California, New York, Massachusetts, Maine, Vermont, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Rhone Island, New Jersey, Oregon and Washington.

Hey all you marketers out there – listen up! This week I reviewed a book on how to successfully market your environmentally friendly product through the “Gort Cloud”.  What is the Gort Cloud you ask? “The vast but invisible community that has the power to make or break green brands and much of this community and interaction is done online. The Gort Cloud is the discovery of marketing and branding expert Richard Seireeni who is the author of this week’s book, The Gort Cloud: The Invisible Force Powering Today’s Most Visible Green Brands.

The book consists mainly of a number of case studies from varying industries including energy, that detail the marketing and branding strategies green companies have taken to become powerful brands. Most of these brands have never used traditional advertising such as print ads and TV ads, but have used the power of public relations and the immense network of green adopters who have created communities on the web.

Some components of the Gort Cloud include providers, provider support, rule makers and watchdogs, advocacy groups, special – interest authorities, information disseminators, green search engines, social networks, lifestyle movements, reuse, recycle, in-person exchange, competitions, campaign and fundraisers, education and career. Seireeni talks in detail about these components and how to tap into them.

The Gort Cloud is one of the best marketing books I’ve read with regards to developing a green brand and marketing it. As more and more traditional media disappear and the internet becomes an even more powerful medium, this book will help you navigate the web to better reach your target audience.

You can buy this book or any book I read by visiting “Joanna’s bookstore“. In addition, if you have a book that you would like me to review, email me at jomschro2071@gmail.com.