The California agency responsible for protecting air quality says it will appeal a decision by a court that blocks enforcement of rules designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and encourage alternative fuel technologies.
Ethanol producers complained that the rules favor in-state producers and refiners because they take into consideration the carbon footprint impact of the transportation of, as well as … Read more
After years of delays, biotech company Mascoma appears to have the funding to build a wood chip-to-ethanol plant.
The company today said that fuel refiner and investor Valero Energy will create a joint venture to build a $232 million plant in Kinross, Mich. The plant will convert lumber used for paper into ethanol using Mascoma's streamlined production process.
The companies said that the plant will be able to produce 20 million gallons of cellulosic ethanol a year, which can be expanded to double that. Construction is expected to start in the next six months and be completed by the … Read more
Range Fuels, a government-backed company that represented high hopes for biofuels, will have to sell off its assets after failing to produce fuel, according to a report.
Bloomberg on Friday reported that the company is being forced to foreclose by the Department of Agriculture and sell equipment from its biofuel plant in Soperton, Georgia. The company had stopped operating in January after failing to meet technical goals.
The Colorado-based company had received funding from the Departments of Agriculture and Energy as well as venture capital investors, including Vinod Khosla.
The Georgia plant was designed to take wood chips from the … Read more
The United States will likely fail to reach its long-term mandate for making advanced ethanol from trees, grasses, and crop waste unless producers innovate significantly, a scientific advisory group said yesterday.
The National Research Council's comments are the latest sign that backers of alternative fuels must wait longer for "next-generation" ethanol. Touted as the motor fuel of the future, it has struggled with high production costs and other setbacks.
"Absent major technological innovation or policy changes, the...mandated consumption of 16 billion gallons of ethanol-equivalent cellulosic biofuels is unlikely to be met in 2022," a … Read more
Chrysler and ZeaChem today announced a deal meant to promote cellulosic ethanol and spiff up the automaker's green credentials.
The two companies have a memorandum of understanding to accelerate development of ethanol made from non-food sources. Through a partnership, Chrysler intends to "strengthen the credibility" of cellulosic ethanol with regulators, according to a statement.
Automakers are expected to announce more stringent fuel economy standards with better engine efficiency, hybrids, and electric vehicles. But biofuels remain part of the country's efforts to reduce dependence on oil.
The great promise of a car fuel made from cheap, clean-burning prairie grass or wood chips--and not from expensive corn that feeds the world--is more mirage than reality.
Despite years of research, testing, and some hype, the next-generation ethanol industry is far from the commercial success envisioned by President George W. Bush in 2006, when he pledged so-called cellulosic biofuels would be "practical and competitive" by 2012.
Instead the only real alternative to traditional gasoline is ethanol made from corn, a fuel environmentalists say is not green at all because of the energy-intensive nature of modern farming.
Three senators reached a deal on Thursday to repeal the $6 billion-per-year ethanol tax credit by the end of July, an agreement that must still be passed by Congress.
The loss of the subsidy could add extra costs for ethanol blenders such as Valero Energy and Marathon Oil, but it is unlikely to reduce demand for corn.
"This agreement is the best chance to repeal the ethanol subsidy, and it's the best chance to achieve real deficit reduction," said Sen. Dianne Feinstein from California, who made the deal with Sens. John Thune from South Dakota and Amy Klobuchar from Minnesota.
Government mandates require increasing amounts of the corn-based fuel until 2015. The ethanol industry uses some 40 percent of the U.S. corn crop to make the alternative motor fuel.
The deal would reduce the federal deficit this year by $1.33 billion and direct $668 million to extend tax breaks for technologies to help alternative motor fuels including biofuels get to market, Feinstein said.
Model for other tax credit cuts? The call on Capitol Hill to reduce tax breaks for ethanol and other industries has increased as President Barack Obama and Republicans in Congress search for ways to break the budget deadlock.
The path for the deal to become law is still uncertain. It could be attached to a standalone tax bill or become part of a wider measure to raise the federal debt limit. … Read more
The Senate voted overwhelmingly today to eliminate billions of dollars in support for the U.S. ethanol industry, sending a strong message that the era of big taxpayer support for biofuels is ending.
The 73-27 vote may ultimately be symbolic since the White House has vowed not to repeal ethanol subsidies fully and the bill the repeal language is attached to is not expected to make it into law. But it underscores the growing desperation to find savings in a budget crisis that is forcing both sides of the aisle to consider sacrificing once-sacred government programs.
"Ending this wasteful handout would ensure taxpayers no longer subsidize the already profitable corn ethanol industry," Democratic Sen. Frank Lautenberg said.
The increasingly hostile attitude toward federal ethanol support has added fuel to a steep fall this week in the price of corn, from which most U.S. ethanol is made.
The Senate vote shows the odds are diminishing that the 45-cent-a-gallon subsidy the government gives refiners and the 54-cent-per-gallon tariff on imported ethanol--both targeted in today's vote--will be extended at current rates beyond their scheduled expiration at the end of this year. … Read more
Enerkem today said that it raised $60 million from fuel refiner Valero and others to build plants that convert municipal waste to biofuels.
The company said that investment from Valero could lead to a commercial agreement between them. Other companies to invest include existing investor Waste Management, Rho Ventures, Braemar Energy Ventures, and Cycle Capital.
General Motors announced on Monday that the 2011 Buick Regal Turbo will be the first direct-injected turbocharged production car that is flex-fuel-capable. With a new turbocharged Ecotec 2.0-liter in-line four-cylinder engine, the Regal will be able to run on "any blend of gasoline or E85 ethanol."
The announcement was made at the National Ethanol Conference, where participants were given a chance to test-drive the Regal and the flex-fuel GMC Terrain.
The new Regal will offer increased power as well as better fuel economy. "A sensor in the fuel system measures the blend in real time," … Read more
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