Domestic Fuel

National Biodiesel Chairman, Gary Haer, took to the stage at the National Biodiesel Conference to address attendees during a general session. He commented on the Presidential campaign in his state of Iowa and how nice it would be if they could get out and visit biodiesel plants on their campaign stops. A key focus of his remarks was how the growth of the RFS would create new jobs in America.

On our national biodiesel campaign tour, I’d introduce Americans to green-collar workers who are our boots on the ground. The people who put on work shirts, coveralls, and hardhats day-in and day-out to produce energy security one gallon at a time.

RFS2 can create 26 new green collar jobs every day, some of which will be in the oil and agriculture industries. That’s 26 new skilled, family-wage positions every day. 26 more domestic jobs producing our nation’s energy security in just two years with the growth of the RFS2.

Listen to Gary’s remarks here: Gary Haer Speech

You can find a lot more stories on the National Biodiesel Conference Blog. I’ve had the pleasure of being the Biodiesel Blogger for the 7th year this year!

2012 National Biodiesel Conference Photo Album

The big news today at the National Biodiesel Conference was the unveiling of the biodiesel bike built by Paul Teutul, Sr., Orange County Choppers. The bike was built in partnership with CIMA Green. Today the bike debuted on stage driven by former NBB Chairman, Ed Hegland. Then Paul Sr. himself drove it onto the biodiesel vehicle showcase floor where he talked about the project with attendees. CIMA Green actually had two bikes built and donated one to the National Biodiesel Board along with a check for $50,000 to use for transportation expenses to showcase the bike at various events around the country.

I spoke with Paul Sr. just prior to his entry into the exhibit hall and he says the bike was a tough one to build. He says it’s not a speed demon but it won’t break down, “It’s just made to go.” The bike has affectionately been named Susie, btw.

Listen to my interview with Paul Sr. here: Interview with Paul Sr.

Listen to Paul Sr. describe the biodiesel bike here: Paul Sr. Remarks

Here’s video of Paul, Sr. driving into the exhibit hall.

Remember that you can follow what the Twitterverse is saying about the conference using the hashtag #NBB12.

2012 National Biodiesel Conference Photo Album

Joe Jobe, CEO, National Biodiesel Board, welcomed attendees to the 2012 National Biodiesel Conference this morning. He started out by telling a story about what biodiesel means to him and how he got involved in energy, politics and history. One of the things that really got him interested in the industry was, “I wrote a paper for my high school economics class about developing a market for ag-based fuels to supplement our energy supply . . . So my paper was overly simplistic and naïve, but after working in this industry for almost 15 years now, the basic idea is clearer than ever, and has now become a reality.” However, he says, “Over the past four decades America has not had a consistent and clear energy policy.”

Joe spent some time talking about the RFS.

The RFS demonstrated last year that effective energy policy can be carried out by actual energy policy. After the first year of implementation it has its wrinkles to iron out and we are going to talk about those in depth. But 2011 demonstrated that the RFS can work at doing what Congress intended, which is to draw renewable fuels into the market. I want to commend the EPA for their work in bringing this program together. They have had a very difficult job to take a brand new complex law and a wide range of stakeholders, and build a workable program.

The RFS has created a clear, predictable, stable and sustainable future for this industry.

Listen to or download Joe’s speech here: Joe Jobe Speech

2012 National Biodiesel Conference Photo Album

Only a couple days now until the kick-off of the Super Bowl – and the 2012 National Biodiesel Conference.

We caught up with National Biodiesel Board CEO Joe Jobe at the Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit to get a preview of what promises to be a great conference. “Attendance is up, exhibitors are up, sponsorship is up, which is really a reflection of the fact that the industry’s back,” Jobe says. “The industry has come back and it’s really one of the most exciting come back stories since maybe Harley-Davidson.”

Jobe says there’s enthusiasm and excitement, but also a lot of work that needs to be done. “We need to talk about how we think about the industry going forward through the lens of the RFS, which is going to be the cornerstone of the industry moving forward,” he noted.

The conference will be held February 5-8 at the Gaylord Palms Convention Center in Orlando and while on-line registration is closed, there will be on-site registration for last minute attendees.

Listen to an interview with Jobe here: Joe Jobe interview

Leaders in the ethanol industry got together last week in Indianapolis to discuss the future of the industry in Indiana.

Steve Pittman, Director of the Indiana Ethanol Producers Association and General Manager of POET-Portland, is especially excited about the future of the cellulosic ethanol industry. “We see corn ethanol still stay as the basis of what we do and then we’ll see growth in cellulosic over the next ten years,” Steve said. “We don’t see corn going away. The concept is to reap the corn stover off the same fields we’re harvesting corn off of. We’ll have another opportunity for farmers to sell another product without having to grow another crop.”

Listen to an interview with Pittman here: Steve Pittman interview

Right now, infrastructure is important to expanding consumer choice, according to Rosalind Leeck, Director of Biofuels for Indiana Corn Marketing Council (ICMC). “Our farmers believe that expanding infrastructure to allow consumers more access to ethanol-blended fuel is crucial to the success and growth of the industry,” said Leeck, adding that ICMC is funding a program to encourage fuel retailers to add flex fuel pumps that offer mid-level blends, like E30, in addition to E85 to drivers of Flex Fuel Vehicles. “Through this program, 14 flex fuel pumps will be added to fuel stations across the state over the next several months.”

Listen to an interview with Rosalind Leeck here: Rosalind Leeck interview

Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis agrees that building infrastructure is critical to the increasing consumer choice. Buis told Gary Truitt of the Hoosier Ag Today (HAT) that he is optimistic about the future of ethanol in Indiana and nationwide. “Unlike Big Oil, ethanol is not stuck in the past, we’re focused on moving forward. With the introduction of E15 into the marketplace and increased build out of Flex Fuel pumps, American consumers will finally have choice when they fill up at the pump,” Buis says. “We know we can do more, we know it’s good for America.”

Listen to Truitt’s interview with Buis here: Tom Buis interview

Indiana produces 1.1 billion gallons of ethanol every year in 13 different ethanol plants across the state. Thanks to Gary Truitt of HAT for attending the Indiana ethanol forum and provided the photos and audio interviews.

At some point in 2012, the final i’s will be dotted and t’s will be crossed so 15% ethanol can finally become the new consumer choice at the pump.

The final panel of the day at last week’s 6th Annual Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit focused on preparations that are being made to make sure retailers and consumers have all the information they need to make an informed choice when it comes to E15.

“A lot of what consumers know now is wrong,” said Ron Lamberty with the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE).

Lamberty says while there are consumers who are opposed to the use of ethanol and are unlikely to change their minds, there is a good percentage of people who say they would use E15 if it were available. “When we do get E15 out to the marketplace, one of the things we have to make sure we tell people is that it’s out there and they can use it,” he said, noting that the main thing consumers need to know about E15 is that it is the most tested of fuel in history.

Another point that Lamberty believes is important for consumers to know is that the E15 approval for cars and light trucks newer than 2001 is not a mandate. “Approved for and not required,” Lamberty said. “No stations have to sell it and nobody has to buy it,” he said, although the industry believes that once consumers do try it they will want to use it.

As to when E15 will make it to the market, Lamberty says it is anyone’s guess, but he expects Iowa will be one of the very first places it will be available.

Listen to a Lamberty’s presentation at the summit here: Ron Lamberty at Iowa RFA Summit

Listen to an interview with Lamberty here: Ron Lamberty interview

Greg Emick of W&H Cooperative Oil Company spoke as a retailer that has adopted the use of blender pumps last year so they are already offering E15 as a choice in three different locations, along with other mid-level ethanol blends. “Our E15 sales were somewhat slow to increase but the E30 sales jumped right away,” he said. “I feel with promotion, advertising and pubic awareness about E15, it could become a larger percentage of sales at our retail facilities.”

Emick says their customers appreciate that they are promoting flexible fuels because of their environmental friendliness and competitive pricing, and he sincerely believes in the product and wants to see it continue to grow.

Listen to Greg Emick at the summit here: Greg Emick at Iowa RFA Summit

Photos from 2012 Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit

There is a lot made about tensions between the ethanol and livestock industries but the distillers grains co-product of ethanol production is providing significant benefits for animal producers even as ethanol has helped prop up corn prices.

A great discussion at the 6th Annual Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit featured corn and cattle organizations on the same panel talking about the “Synergies of Livestock and Ethanol.”

Moderator Iowa Agriculture Secretary Bill Northey opened the discussion by noting that sales of crops and livestock have risen as ethanol production has increased from $12 billion in 2002 – 6 billion in crop and 6 billion in livestock – to $24 billion in 2010, and 2011 is expected to be about $30 billion with at least $13 billion of that for livestock. “$13 billion on the livestock side versus $6 billion nine years ago,” Northey said. “Has ethanol been good for livestock agriculture in Iowa? I think very clearly.”

Listen to a brief interview with Secretary Northey here: Iowa Agriculture Secretary Bill Northey

Iowa Cattlemen’s Association Executive Director Matt Deppe says it’s easy to see the benefits that distillers grains (DDGS) have brought to especially cattle feeders. “We look at it as a corn replacement,” Deppe says about DDGS. “It means that they (feedlot operators) have another option that’s cost effective to put into their rations.”

Listen to an interview with Matt Deppe here: Matt Deppe Interview

The livestock industry has traditionally been the most important market for corn, noted Iowa Corn Growers CEO Craig Floss, although use for ethanol has increased significantly in the past decade. “But a third of every one of those bushels that goes into an ethanol plant goes into DDGS,” he said.

The panel also included Randy Ives, director of ethanol services for the commodity management firm Gavilon Group.

Listen to or download the entire panel discussion here: Ethanol and Livestock panel

Photos from 2012 Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit

The 6th Annual Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit this week was another great one, according to Iowa Renewable Fuels Association president Brad Albin, who is VP of manufacturing for Renewable Energy Group (REG).

There were over 500 people at the conference on Tuesday in Des Moines and Albin says that’s a far cry from when he first started in the biodiesel industry. “I’ve personally been involved in biodiesel since 1996, helped build the first multi-feedstock biodiesel plant,” he said. “There was probably ten of us in a room at one time. And since then, we’ve seen some hard times but this year (2011) has been a strong year for us and now we need to just keep the strong going forward.”

Listen to my interview with IRFA president Brad Albin of REG here: Brad Albin interview

Photos from 2012 Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit

The CEO of the National Biodiesel Board (NBB) told attendees at the 6th Annual Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit in Des Moines on Tuesday that the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS2) is the number one priority for the industry in 2012.

“We have an immediate challenge before us,” NBB CEO Joe Jobe said of the postponed decision regarding 2013 volumes for biomass-based diesel under the RFS2. “The EPA recommended that we raise those volumes from the statutory minimum of a billion gallons to 1.28 billion gallons.” The Office of Management and Budget has to approve that recommendation and Jobe says that decision will be made within the next 45-60 days.

“We need to establish a precedent whereby we can have conservative, modest growth in the biomass-based diesel category,” Jobe said. He called on the biodiesel industry to make its collective voice heard on the issue. “We ask that you participate in our effort to send letters to the White House, to the OMB, to the administration and to members of Congress,” said Jobe, noting that more details about the effort will be coming soon.

Listen to part of Jobe’s address to the 6th annual Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit here: Joe Jobe comments

Photos from 2012 Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit

For the second year in a row, Iowa high school students have been rewarded for their creative videos promoting renewable fuels.

At the 6th Annual Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit in Des Moines on Tuesday, Ames High School senior Sam Ennis was declared the first place winner of the 2nd Annual “Fuel the Future” video contest for Iowa high school students. For his highly creative, entertaining and informative music video entitled “I Got You Ethanol” Ennis was awarded the $1,000 grand prize by the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association. Ennis is pictured here with Andy Anderson of the law firm Faegre Baker Daniels LLP, which sponsored the contest.

Second place and $600 was awarded to Clay Central Everly Community School tenth grade students Gabby Huss, Rebecca White and Blair Montgomery for their video entry called “Ethanol for the Economy.” Third place and $400 went to eleventh graders Cassandra Davis, Haley Jewell, Lauralin Berkley, Cody Corchado, and Meredith Brister of Pleasant Valley High School in the Quad Cities for “Dear 25 Year Old Me.”

All the videos can be seen on IRFA’s YouTube channel. Watch “I Got You Ethanol” below and listen to the song here: I Got You Ethanol

Photos from 2012 Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit

The idea of turning oil into salt may sound like something that should be done in a science lab but Dr. Gal Luft says it’s something that Congress can do with a simple piece of legislation.

Luft, who is executive director of the Institute for Analysis of Global Security, explained his analogy between oil and salt at the 6th Annual Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit in Des Moines on Tuesday.

“Salt used to be the most strategic commodity of all because it was the only way to cure food,” said Luft. “That changed with the invention of canning and refrigeration. Those two simple technologies essentially stripped salt of its strategic status.”

“Just like salt dominated food preservation, oil today dominates transportation,” he continued. “And just like salt’s strategic status was diminished through those simple inventions, oil’s strategic status can be diminished through the technology of flexible fuel vehicles.”

That’s why Luft strongly advocates the simplest solution to diminishing the stranglehold oil has on the transportation industry, and that is requiring all new vehicles sold in the United States to be capable of running on a variety of fuels. “Whether it is ethanol or methanol or butanol, whatever it is, let’s give people choices,” he said, noting that there is just such a bill pending in Congress called the Open Fuel Standard Act.

Luft and co-author Anne Korin wrote a book about the analogy between salt and oil and the importance of fuel choice, called “Turning Oil into Salt”, which was reviewed here on Domestic Fuel in 2009.

Listen to Luft’s address to the 6th annual Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit here: Gal Luft address

Listen to a brief interview with Gal Luft here: Gal Luft interview

Photos from 2012 Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit

Like oil in World War II, U.S. Army Ret. General Paul J. Kern believes that biofuels are the “ammunition” for America today.

Gen. Kern ended his address to the 6th Annual Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit in Des Moines on Tuesday on that note, displaying a WWII military poster declaring “Stick to your job – oil is ammunition.”

“It’s your job to change that from oil is ammunition to alternative fuels are ammunition,” he said. “We need that for our country and for our Department of Defense. Your military relies on fuel to do the job that we ask them to do.”

The main focus of the highly decorated retired army general’s address was on the national security dimensions of fuel.

Listen to Gen. Kern’s address to the 6th annual Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit here: Gen. Paul Kern address

Listen to a brief interview with Gen. Kern here: Gen. Paul Kern interview

Photos from 2012 Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit

The 6th Annual Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit kicked off in Des Moines on Tuesday on a very positive note, considering that 2011 was a record year in the state for both ethanol and biodiesel.

In his annual address to the summit, Iowa Renewable Fuels Association Executive Director Monte Shaw noted that the state’s 41 ethanol plants produced 3.7 billion gallons of ethanol. “If Iowa were a country, it would be the third largest ethanol producer in the world, behind only the rest of the United States and Brazil,” said Shaw.

He also noted that with the return of the biodiesel tax credit in 2011 helped most of Iowa’s biodiesel plants return to production. “Ten Iowa biodiesel plants operated during 2011 produced a record 169 million gallons,” said Shaw.

However, Shaw noted that the challenges facing biofuels are just as strong as ever. “I know it’s hard to believe, but not everyone in America enjoys the renewable fuels success story,” he said, outlining the attacks against ethanol in particular by the food and oil industries. “Today the oil industry enjoys billions of dollars in tax subsidies while the renewable fuels industry has none,” said Shaw, proceeding to name off all of the subsides unique to the oil industry.

Shaw outlined the priority issues for the renewable fuels industry in 2012 as getting the biodiesel tax credit reinstated, keeping the Renewable Fuel Standard in place, and getting E15 commercially available.

Listen to Shaw’s address to the 6th annual Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit here: IRFA Executive Director Monte Shaw address

Photos from 2012 Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit

Ethanol giant POET is partnering with a Netherlands-based life sciences company with the intention of making advanced biofuels a reality by next year.

POET has announced a joint venture with Royal DSM to commercially demonstrate and license cellulosic bio-ethanol based on their proprietary and complementary technologies. POET–DSM Advanced Biofuels, LLC, is scheduled to start production in the second half of 2013 at one of the first commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol plants in the United States.

The two partners will produce cellulosic ethanol from corn crop residue through a biological process using enzymatic hydrolysis followed by fermentation. The first commercial demonstration of the technology will be at Project Liberty, which is currently being constructed adjacent to POET’s existing corn ethanol plant in Emmetsburg, Iowa. The initial capacity is expected to be 20 million gallons in the first year, growing to approximately 25 million gallons per year.

DSM and POET will each hold a 50% share in the joint venture, which will be headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The initial capital expenditure by the joint venture in Project Liberty will amount to about $250 million. The closing of the joint venture is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

As a result of the joint venture project, POET has also announced its intent to decline the $105 million loan guarantee it was awarded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) in September. POET will officially decline the guarantee prior to drawing any funds when the joint venture closes.

Listen to some comments from DSM Managing Board Chairman/CEO Feike Sijbesma and POET CEO Jeff Broin and questions from media during a telephone press conference today: POET-DSM press conference

A Texas corn grower says the “feed versus fuel” debate is based in fallacy.

Texas Corn Producers Board member Wesley Spurlock of Stratford has been speaking to groups across the Midwest explaining how U.S. corn farmers continue to grow a crop abundant enough to meet all growing demands and he has gained attention from industry publications looking to find the truth behind the headlines.

“To put it simply, growth in demand from the ethanol industry has mirrored an increase in productivity that yields larger corn crops,” Spurlock said. “We are still supplying the livestock industry with the corn that they need for feed, but we now have a market that utilizes an increasingly abundant resource to help solve our energy problems also.”

Listen to an interview with Sprulock in the National Corn Growers Association’s podcast series “Off the Cob” discussing how corn farmers are growing a larger crop on the land already in production while decreasing inputs used. During this interview, he also discusses the innovations facilitating increased yield trends, how the Texas drought plays a major role in recent cattle industry shifts, and the amazing story of modern American agriculture.