Domestic Fuel

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.

Reaction to President Obama’s call for an “all-of-the-above energy strategy” in Tuesday’s State of the Union address was met with applause by many renewable energy interests, who at the same time hope his words will be backed with actions.

“We applaud the President’s announcement that he is going to push for homemade, U.S.-energy after 40 years of being addicted to foreign oil,” said Tom Buis, CEO of Growth Energy. “We have to move ahead with American ethanol as part of that solution.”

“The U.S. biodiesel industry is proving that we can accomplish the president’s goals of creating jobs while building a clean-energy economy,” said Anne Steckel with the National Biodiesel Board. “That’s why we’re calling on the Administration to quickly finalize the delayed EPA rule for boosting biodiesel use under the Renewable Fuel Standard in 2013.”

National Corn Growers Association Chairman Bart Schott said they were pleased to hear President Obama’s continued commitment to the nation’s energy independence. “As family corn farmers have risen to the challenge to meet our nation’s energy needs, we are hopeful the direction the President outlined offers similar opportunities for others to expand our energy independence,” he said.

“Working with the President, we can help America become less dependent on foreign oil and a smarter consumer of energy,” Adam Monroe, President of Novozymes North America, said. “Innovations like advanced biofuels can play a major role in the President’s vision but we need steady policies like the Renewable Fuel Standard – and we look forward to working Congress to preserve them.”

The federal district court judge who ruled California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) to be unconstitutional has denied a motion to continue implementation of the law.

On Monday, Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill denied the California Air Resources Board’s (CARB) motion to stay the decision he issued on December 29, 2011 that had halted the enforcement of the LCFS regulation because that regulation is unconstitutional.

On Friday, January 20, 2012, CARB filed papers asking the Court to reverse its decision and allow the state to continue implementing the LCFS in 2012. Judge O’Neill ruled that CARB “improperly seeks to relitigate issues this Court resolved in its order granting the preliminary injunction and orders on the summary judgment motions.” He further noted that CARB sought not to preserve the “status quo” but rather to “allow enforcement that imposes higher restrictions than had been imposed previously” without citing any authority to show why the Court would have jurisdiction to grant that type of relief.

“Judge O’Neill’s decision demonstrates the strength of our claims against the LCFS,” said Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen and Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis in a joint statement. “The California LCFS seeks to regulate conduct outside its borders and is blatantly discriminatory and unconstitutional. American ethanol advocates will continue to oppose CARB’s effort to reinstate this punitive policy that illegally seeks to dictate the production and transportion of ethanol and other fuels outside its border.”

CARB has appealed Judge O’Neill’s finding that the LCFS violates the Commerce Clause of the Constitution. That litigation is in the 9th Circuit Federal Court of Appeals.

The black No. 3 Chevrolet that carried Dale Earnhardt Jr. to four NASCAR Nationwide series championships will boast a new American Ethanol paint scheme in several races during the 2012 season.

The new look for the iconic car was unveiled this past weekend during the NASCAR Preview 2012 event in Charlotte, North Carolina, where it was also announced that the driver would be Austin Dillon, 2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Champion. Dillon is also the grandson of team owner Richard Childress, who decided to bring the No. 3 car back full time into the NASCAR Nationwide Series last November. Dillon drove the No. 3 in the Camping World Truck Series last year.

American Ethanol has also teamed with RAB Racing and driver Kenny Wallace for the 2012 season. They will attempt to make their Sprint Cup Series debut in the 54th annual Daytona 500 on Feb. 26, with Wallace at the wheel of the No. 09 American Ethanol Toyota Camry. Wallace and the No. 09 team finished seventh in the 2011 Nationwide Series driver championship standings, a career-best for the team after posting 11 top-10 finishes.

“The Daytona 500 is the race I grew up watching every year as a kid in St. Louis. It’s a very important race to me,” Wallace said. “I take this opportunity very seriously. I want to thank everyone at RAB Racing for working so hard in preparing this American Ethanol Toyota Camry.”

This is the second year for the American Ethanol partnership between NASCAR, Growth Energy and the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA).

American Ethanol is gearing up for the 2012 NASCAR season with a renewed commitment to the sport that spotlights racing on 15% ethanol fuel.

During the NASCAR Preview fan event in Charlotte, N.C. this weekend, American Ethanol announced that it will continue relationships with Richard Childress Racing and RAB Racing for the 2012 season. This is the second year for the racing partnership between NASCAR, Growth Energy and the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA).

“American Ethanol is getting a lot of positive attention because it’s a good fit for NASCAR’s green initiative, and because of the increased horsepower on the track,” said NCGA President Garry Niemeyer.

Austin Dillon, 2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Champion, will drive the No. 3 Chevrolet during the 2012 NASCAR Nationwide Series season with American Ethanol serving as the primary sponsor for six races as well as one race in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in 2012.

Dillon, pictured here with team owner (and grandfather) Richard Childress, is looking forward to representing the ethanol industry. “I’m proud to carry the American Ethanol colors in NASCAR,” he said. American Ethanol will also be an associate sponsor for the entire RCR family of drivers.

Kenny Wallace, a driver who has been a strong promoter of corn growers and ethanol over the past year, will drive the No. 09 Toyota Camry in the NASCAR Nationwide Series for RAB Racing. American Ethanol will partner with Wallace for the Sprint Cup Series Daytona 500, as well as five races in the Nationwide Series.

“I’m honored to represent American Ethanol. I not only talk about American Ethanol, I truly believe in it,” Wallace said. “I’ve been to the farms, I’ve met the families, I’ve been to the ethanol plants, and I’ve been in the hallways of the U.S. Senate in Washington, D.C., in support of it.” (Listen to a prior interview with Wallace)

“Through our partnerships with Austin Dillon and Kenny Wallace, we are telling NASCAR and its fans that American Ethanol is committed to the sport,” said Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis. “These drivers are ideal ambassadors for the American Ethanol team and will help tell the story of how American-made ethanol creates jobs, cleans our air and fosters energy independence.”

Representing a wide array of ethanol supporters, from farmers to bio-engineering firms, American Ethanol was established by Growth Energy and NCGA with NASCAR starting with the 2011 racing season, the same year that NASCAR switched its fuel to Sunoco Green E15.

Listen to prior interviews with Childress, Growth Energy and NCGA.

Corn growers are pleased with the ruling last week by a Federal District Court judge in Fresno, California that the state’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) violates the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution and is therefore unconstitutional. The ruling is in response to a suit filed in December 2009 by the Renewable Fuels Association and Growth Energy asserting that the LCFS violates the Commerce Clause by seeking to regulate farming and ethanol production practices in other states.

“This ruling reaffirms our position that the state of California violated the U.S. Constitution when it created a low carbon fuel standard punitive to farmers and ethanol producers outside of the state’s border,” said National Corn Growers Association President Garry Niemeyer. “Corn farmers are good stewards and advocates for thoughtful, fair strategies that will improve our environment through the advancement of biofuels. We hope that this ruling will lead to an inclusive discussion where regulators join other stakeholders to find effective renewable energy solutions.”

The judge ruled that the LCFS discriminates against out-of-state corn-derived ethanol and impermissibly regulates extraterritorial conduct and that the California Air Resources Board (CARB) failed to establish that there are no alternative methods to advance its goals of reducing GHG emissions to combat global warming.

A Federal District Court judge in Fresno, California has sided with America’s ethanol industry in ruling that the State of California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) violates the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution and is therefore unconstitutional.

In a joint statement, Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen and Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis said: “The state of California overreached in creating its low carbon fuel standard by making it unconstitutionally punitive for farmers and ethanol producers outside of the state’s border. With this ruling, it is our hope that the California regulators will come back to the table to work on a thoughtful, fair, and ultimately achievable strategy for improving our environment by incenting the growth and evolution of American renewable fuels.”

On this claim the Court found that the LCFS discriminates against out-of-state corn-derived ethanol and impermissibly regulates extraterritorial conduct. As a result, the Court issued an injunction. Judge O’Neill also ruled that CARB failed to establish that there are no alternative methods to advance its goals of reducing GHG emissions to combat global warming.

The ruling allows California to immediately appeal the decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit and the ethanol industry is prepared to defend the decision that the LCFS is unconstitutional in any appeal that may be filed.

Three new pumps that can dispense a range of ethanol blended fuel were officially opened in Princeton, Illinois last week.

Growth Energy, Horizon Fuels, the American Lung Association and Marquis Energy partnered to help with the promotions and labeling for the three new Flex Fuel pumps at the Princeton Fast Stop. “It was time to upgrade our gasoline pumps, so we went with Flex Fuel pumps that will give our customers a choice between E85, E30 and E20,” said Bob Sandhu, owner of Princeton Fast stop and the CEO and President of the MGS Petro Inc. Princeton Fast Stop celebrated the opening of the pumps last Friday, December 16, with special deals on ethanol blends and other promotions. Sandhu is picture here at one of the new pumps with Mark Orr, general manager of Ag View FS in Princeton, a local farmers cooperative that is part of the GROWMARK system.

“By giving consumers more choices at the pump that include higher blends of clean, green homegrown ethanol, we’re not only helping decrease our dependence on foreign oil, but also supporting our local farmers,” said Growth Energy Market Development Vice President Mike O’Brien.

Marquis Energy has a 140 million gallon per year ethanol production facility located just southeast of Princeton in Hennepin, Illinois. “We want consumers right here at home to understand that and now they have the chance to choose for themselves. Marquis is glad people in our local community will be able to use clean burning, renewable fuel that is made just 30 miles away,” said Director of Public Relations of Marquis Energy, Dana Gustafson.

Marquis Energy has contracted with Horizon Fuels to develop opportunities to install Flex Fuel pumps at area retail gas stations and then manage the project scope, equipment installation and promotional efforts for each.

A number of ethanol supporting organizations recently sent a letter to the chairman and ranking members of the U.S. Senate and House Appropriations Committees urguing them to oppose a proposal by Reps. John Sullivan (R-Okla.) and Gary Peters (D-Mich.) that would delay commercialization of next generation ethanol.

The groups, which includ Growth Energy, the Renewable Fuels Association, the American Coalition for Ethanol and the National Corn Growers Association, oppose a proposal by Sullivan and Peters to include language in the FY12 omnibus appropriations package that would prohibit the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from using any appropriated funds to implement the E15 waiver.

The Sullivan-Peters proposed language — which did not receive a vote during this year’s appropriations process or a hearing in the Energy and Commerce Committee — is aimed at derailing and altering the long-standing process by which new fuel blends are brought into the marketplace. The EPA approved E15 after a more exhaustive study and data collection than any other of the 11 previously-approved fuel waiver petitions.

The letter from the organizations noted that “preventing the EPA from implementing the use of E15 for cars, pickups and SUVs made in model year 2001 and newer, further contributes to our nation’s reliance on foreign oil. Extensive testing has been done on E15 and it has been found to be a safe and effective fuel for use in the vehicles approved in the waiver. There has been no evidence to the contrary that would indicate problems in any vehicle regardless of vintage.”

Further, the EPA’s decision does not make E15 mandatory. Consumers are not required to use E15. Gas stations will not be required to sell E15. And the EPA will require a fuel label that clearly delineates that using E15 in model year 2000 vehicles, small engines and marine engines is illegal.

Lastly, the Sullivan-Peters language would inhibit new and innovative alternatives to fossil fuels. We are looking toward cutting-edge innovation to move to new ethanol feedstocks, like plant wastes, wood chips and switchgrass. The Sullivan-Peters language would solidify the status quo-a 90 percent mandate of our fuel supply from oil and would prevent American-made ethanol from being made available to consumers.

Mike O’Brien has joined Growth Energy as vice president of marketing development. He will help develop the ethanol market by assisting fuel retailers with delivering higher blends of ethanol to consumers through increased flex fuel pumps.

Growth Energy continues to advocate for opening the fuels market to ethanol through infrastructure investment. Their market development team will educate consumers about the benefits of ethanol and help retailers install flex fuel pumps capable of dispensing mid- to high-level blends of ethanol.

Before joining Growth Energy, O’Brien was global director of marketing and communications for Draka Oil & Gas. O’Brien also served in global communications for Cargill Dow/NatureWorks focusing on food retail adoption of the first commercial scale bio-polymer made entirely from corn.

The partnership between NASCAR and ethanol is officially one year old and it has been a great year for racing on the renewable fuel.

It was one year ago last week at the NASCAR Champions Week in Las Vegas that American Ethanol was announced, a partnership that includes Growth Energy and the National Corn Growers Association.

Throughout the 2011 NASCAR season, every race car and truck in the Sprint, Nationwide and Camping World Truck series ran on Sunoco Green E15 as part of the American Ethanol partnership. And every race weekend, NASCAR’s newest special award, the American Ethanol Green Flag Restart Award was given to the participating driver who recorded the fastest average speed on restarts and who finished the race on the lead lap – a reminder of American Ethanol’s dedication to NASCAR’s green initiatives.

At this year’s Champions Week in Las Vegas, Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis gave an overall award to No. 17 driver Matt Kenseth for winning the Green Flag the most times in the 2011 season.

“I appreciate American Ethanol and Growth Energy and Sunoco for making such a great fuel this year,” Kenseth said when he accepted the award. “It worked great, it’s been good for the environment, it’s been good for NASCAR and we appreciated being a part of it.”

According to NASCAR officials and drivers, the E15 fuel blend has met and surpassed expectations – providing increased horsepower with minimal decrease in mileage. In fact, NASCAR’s 2011 Million Mile Report, proved that NASCAR racing vehicles accumulated more than a million miles of practice, qualifying and racing laps on E15 without any problems.

According to the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF), the retail cost of menu items for a classic Thanksgiving dinner including turkey, stuffing, cranberries, pumpkin pie and all the basic trimmings increased about 13 percent this year. That’s still less than $50 to feed ten people – not even $5 per person.

The turkey itself is what gobbled up most of the price increase this year. According to AFBF, a 16-pound turkey will cost about $21.57 this year at $1.35 per pound, an increase of about 25 cents per pound over last year. That triggered some misinformed columnists to start crying fowl and place the blame for the higher price on ethanol, as pointed out in a blog post from Growth Energy.

“Our biofuels policies are a big cause of the rising cost of food in recent years, and it just feels wrong to use food for fuel with so many families struggling to feed their families,” wrote Marie Brill of ActionAid in the Huffington Post, adding that “federal ethanol subsidies … are driving up the price of everything from eggs to milk to — yes, turkeys — and undoubtedly, some families will just have to go without.”

However, AFBF economist John Anderson says it’s more a case of basic economics – supply and demand. “Turkey prices are higher this year primarily due to strong consumer demand both here in the U.S. and globally,” said Anderson.

A more well-rounded and less emotional look at the cost of turkey comes from New York Times’ Wealth Matters columnist Paul Sullivan. “It turns out that turkey pricing is not much tied to commodities prices. Instead, other factors, like tight margins for farmers and perceptions of value, play a much bigger role,” he explains. “For most of us, the price we pay for our turkey bears little relation to what it costs to raise it.”

Read “Let’s Talk Turkey” from Growth Energy.

The U.S. Supreme Court will not hear a case brought by petroleum interests against the Environmental Protection Agency over the expanded Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS2).

The petition made by the National Petrochemical Refiners Association (NPRA) and the American Petroleum Institute (API) was rejected by the District Court of Appeals in December 2010. The petition filed in March 2010 claims that the RFS2 “violated the statutory requirements setting separate biomass-based diesel volume requirements for 2009 and 2010, that it was inappropriately retroactive without proper lead time and compliance provisions.”

National Biodiesel Board vice president of federal affairs Anne Steckel says they are happy with the court decision.

“The RFS program is working just as Congress intended. It’s creating jobs across the country. It’s breaking our addiction to oil. It’s helping clean our air, and it’s reducing greenhouse gases,” said Steckel. “This year alone, the biodiesel industry is on pace to produce at least 800 million gallons of advanced biofuel while supporting more than 31,000 jobs. We’re pleased to see the Supreme Court put an end to this litigation as we continue building a strong U.S. biodiesel industry.”

Ethanol industry group Growth Energy was also pleased with the decision which mainly impacts biodiesel producers as they had intervened in the court case to defend the mandated volumes and make sure that the volumetric levels were retroactive as of Jan 2010. “The intent of Congress was clear when it passed the Energy Independence and Security Act – domestically-produced biofuels do strengthen our national defense and help support our economy. We welcome the Supreme Court’s decision as the right decision,” said Tom Buis, CEO of Growth Energy.

The House Committee on Science, Space and Technology’s Subcommittee on Energy and Environment is holding a hearing today on “Conflicts and Unintended Consequences of Motor Fuel Standards” with a witness list that the ethanol industry claims is biased against biofuels.

“This is the second time this year that this subcommittee has held a hearing on ethanol without bothering to include a witness from the ethanol industry. A hearing whose witness list is comprised overwhelmingly of anti-ethanol critics can hardly be considered fair and balanced,” said Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis.

Since ethanol advocates were excluded from presenting testimony, the Advanced Ethanol Council (AEC) wrote a letter to subcommittee Chair Andy Harris(R-MD) and Ranking Member Brad Miller (D-NC) to re-emphasize the advanced ethanol industry’s commitment to the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) and efforts to grow the market for ethanol blended fuels.

AEC Executive Director Brooke Coleman wrote that the industry is concerned that the testifying witnessesmay not be “interested in discussing the true value of the federal RFS.”

“First and foremost, the federal RFS is the single-most effective policy ever enacted to reduce our dependence on foreign oil. It is the cornerstone of a bioenergy economy that emerged in rural America in stark contrast to economic trends in which our country lost incredible wealth to China and OPEC,” Coleman said, noting that advanced ethanol industry is currently engaged in developing commercial advanced ethanol biorefineries in several states from California to Kansas to Mississippi.

“Weakening or walking away from the RFS would greatly impede efforts to develop the next generation of biofuel technologies and further embed America’s dependence on foreign oil,” wrote Coleman.

Read the letter here.

Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis is looking forward to seeing black, silver and green Sunday at the Martinsville (Virginia) Speedway NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race. The No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet race car will feature the American Ethanol paint design and Clint Bowyer, just coming off a win last weekend at Talladega, will be at the wheel.

“Glad to see him in the American Ethanol paint out for the second time this year,” said Buis, pictured here with Bowyer at the Sprint Cup Series STP 400 race in June at the Kansas Speedway.

Under the American Ethanol partnership between NASCAR, Growth Energy, and the National Corn Growers Association all NASCAR series races this year have been powered by 15% ethanol. “These cars can go around for several hours at speeds around 200 miles per hour and they haven’t had any problems with the fuel,” Buis said. “NASCAR is a third party validator to those legions of NASCAR fans who’ve heard all the misinformation about ethanol. Every week, in all three NASCAR series, the winning car in victory lane got there successfully with E15 in their tank.”

The Martinsville Speedway Sprint Cup Series race will be on ESPN beginning at 1:30 Eastern at Martinsville (Virginia) Speedway.’

Listen to an interview with Tom Buis where we talk about not only the upcoming race this weekend, but other issues facing the ethanol industry – everything from getting the E15 waiver implemented to whether there will be an energy title in the next farm bill. Tom Buis Interview