GoodFuels

Schafer to Braley: ethanol does not raise food prices

Ed Schafer, USDA Secretary of Agriculture, wrote a letter early last week to Iowa Congressman Bruce Braley to express how much Schafer appreciates Braley’s support on ethanol issues.

All of us recognize that high gasoline prices and rising food prices are important “pocketbook” issues for American consumers. We also recognize the national and economic secutiry importance of reducing our dependence on imported oil as well as the urgency of developing new, cleaner fuels to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The Administration’s biofuels policy makes important contributions to each of these goals.

The letter also included a state-by-state comparison showing what ethanol saves consumers in any given state.

On July 11, 2008, the Department of Energy estimated that gasoline prices would be 20-35 cents per gallon higher without ethanol. For a typical household, this means saving about $150 to $300 a year. Nationwide, this means a reduction in gas expenditures of $20 billion to $40 billion based on annual gas consumption of roughly 140 billion gallons.

Read the entire letter here (along with the state-by-state benefit analysis).

Photo by Unhindered by Talent via Creative Commons license.

eBIO supports biofuels section of draft of EU’s Renewable Energy Cources Directive

eBIO, The European Bioethanol Fuel Association, has congratulated the EU Council of Ministers and the European Parliament on the biofuels section of the draft Renewable Energy Sources Directive.

The section would require 10% of motor fuel used in the EU to come from a renewable source:

The decision to maintain the binding 10% objective and to introduce reasonable greenhouse gas saving thresholds is an important signal to the European industry. The new legislation will safeguard the current production capacity that required capital investments of over € 5 billion as well as thousands of jobs that are indispensable in this time of global economic crisis. Moreover, this mandate will set the scene for new investments to further improve the technological profile of the European ethanol production.

Land-use change (ILUC) is also addressed in eBIO’s press release:

Penalising biofuels producers across the board without studying ILUC first would have been senseless. eBIO is confident that the positive impact of European bioethanol production on ILUC due to its animal feed co-product, as well as the use of vast set aside areas and strong crop yield increases will be eventually recognised.

The EU will be voting on the draft soon. Be sure to check right here on GoodFuels for updates. In the meantime, here is eBIO’s press release for download.

Land Use is Hot Topic in Florida

It’s all about land use - especially indirect land use - here at the Cellulosic Ethanol Summit in south Florida. It came up on every panel that I had the chance to hear.

I got the opportunity to chat with Nathanael Greene, Senior Policy Analyst with the Natural Resources Defense Council about the issue, who confirmed that it is a complex issue.

“I think it’s really one of the biggest challenges the industry faces,” Greene said. “There’s a lot of complexity and uncertainty surrounding the calculation of it.” He called the report released by the Renewable Fuels Association last week “a valuable addition to the discussion” noting that it shows “how important yield trends have been over time and how that really has almost shrunk the amount of land we need in the world.”

You can listen to my interview with Greene here:

I-65 first “biofuel corridor”

Last week, Interstate 65, which runs from Gary, IN to Mobile, AL was officially dubbed the nation’s first biofuel corridor, meaning that those who wish to fill up their flex fuel vehicles with E-85 may do so the entire length of the 866-mile long interstate at any of the 31 stations where E-85 is available.

According to the Chicago Post-Tribune:

Thanks to a $3.1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, 31 gas stations along I-65 have at least one pump that carries the alternative fuel, and 19 of those stations are in Indiana. The idea is to be no more than a quarter tank away from an E85 station.

New signs will debut in a couple weeks, Dorman said, pointing out to motorists which stations carry the E85 blend and where they are.

The more widely available ethanol is, the better. Several states have held grand opening ceremonies as well, which helps to attract more attention to this amazing accomplishment. From Athens, Alabama’s News Courier:  

Officials with the Alabama Clean Fuels Coalition and the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs Energy Division, as well as an Indiana official, joined to cut the ribbon at the site of the Athens station on U.S. 72 East.

Officials likened the importance of the opening of the corridor to modern transportation to the 1869 opening of the Transcontinental Railroad. They said it also shows the U.S. moving away from dependence on foreign oil.

NSF’s plan for biofuel development center

The Argus Leader ran a story this morning on the National Science Foundation’s plans to create a Center for Bioenergy and Development at South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, along with the support of several other universities, including Kansas State University and North Carolina State University.

The goal of the center, says the Leader, is to refine current biofuel technology while researching and developing next-generation ethanol.

“South Dakota has a long track record of leadership in biofuels, dating back to the late 1970s, when we operated the first corn ethanol research facility,” SDSU professor Bill Gibbons told the Leader. “The Research in the  CenterBioenergy will focus on creating similar breakthroughs in converting lignocellulosic biomass into ethanol.”

The membership fee ranges from $20,000 to $50,000, and each university is required to recruit five governmental or industry companies to the center.

 Check out the Leader’s website here for more details.