Category: Policy

House Appropriators Shortchange Rural America on Jobs and Economic Growth, AgEC Says

June 21, 2015 | Jim Lane

In Washington, the House Appropriations Committee’s Fiscal Year 2016 Agriculture Appropriations Bill would reduce mandatory spending levels for important Energy Title programs, including the Renewable Energy for America Program, Biomass Crop Assistance Program, and the Biorefinery, Renewable Chemical and Biobased Product Manufacturing Assistance Program (Section 9003). The Agriculture Energy Coalition vowed to fight the changes […]

Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee goes after RFS

June 18, 2015 | Meghan Sapp

In Washington, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee’s regulatory affairs subcommittee is looking at how the RFS can be reformed or repealed after repeated attempts to balance policy with supply availabilities. EPA assistant administrator Janet McCabe testified in front of the committee Thursday in what some see as a win for the anti-RFS […]

Louisiana Senator introduces bill to repeal the RFS

June 17, 2015 | Meghan Sapp

In Washington, Sen. Bill Cassidy (R. La.) has introduced a bill that would completely repeal the RFS. He uses the food vs fuel argument and higher prices at the pump due to ethanol as his main arguments for the bill. American Energy Alliance, American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers, American Sportfishing Association, Milk Producers Council and […]

USDA sets July 15 as deadline for $100 million blender pump grant applications

June 16, 2015 | Meghan Sapp

In Washington, following an announcement by USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack on May 29, the Commodity Credit Corporation announced June 12 that all 50 states, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C., may now apply for up to $100 million in grants under the Biofuels Infrastructure Partnership. The funding is to support the infrastructure needed to […]

EPA releases memo showing oil companies don’t lose with high RIN prices

June 15, 2015 | Meghan Sapp

In Washington, the EPA released a memo last week that says oil companies do not in fact lose money as a result of RINs, nor do the pass on higher RIN prices to customers at the pump. Instead, oil companies typically recover those costs in their petroleum blendstocks rather than eating the losses or passing […]

DOE focuses in on “Opportunities in a Changing Energy Landscape” at Bioenergy 2015

June 15, 2015 | Jim Lane

In Washington, on this June 23–24 the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) will host its eighth annual conference—Bioenergy 2015: Opportunities in a Changing Energy Landscape. Co-hosted with the Clean Energy Research and Education Foundation (CEREF), this year’s conference will focus on opportunities and challenges in our current highly dynamic energy ecosystem. […]

Paraguay goes all in for flex-fuel with new law to promote fuel use and access

June 11, 2015 | Meghan Sapp

In Paraguay, the Senate has approved amendments proposed by the lower house of Congress for the ethanol law, leaving the president to sign or veto the bill before it comes into law. The new law is meant to facilitate fuel supplies for the growing number of flex-fuel vehicles in the country but supporting more E85 […]

EPA working with ICAO to regulate GHG emissions in aviation

June 10, 2015 | Meghan Sapp

In Washington, the EPA announced it is working with the International Civil Aviation Organization to develop regulations for the greenhouse gas emissions from aviation. The agency will hold a public hearing on the issue on Aug. 11 and will open a 60-day public comment period. A new standard could only be ready as soon as […]

Oil companies in Argentina must pay $1 a liter for sugarcane ethanol in June

June 9, 2015 | Meghan Sapp

In Argentina, the country’s energy ministry says oil marketing companies must pay $1 per liter for sugarcane-based ethanol in June, up 5% over May. Prices for corn ethanol also went up but only about 1%. Ethanol prices rises are capped at 5% per month in order to ease inflation impacts.

Malaysia to implement B10 by October, boosting palm oil prices and vexing BMW

June 8, 2015 | Meghan Sapp

In Malaysia, the country’s B10 policy is expected to come online in October, up from the current 7% blending mandate. Total crude palm oil consumption should reach about 1 million metric tons annually with the higher blend, compared to about 700,000 tons now. Palm oil futures prices rose to a 3-month high on the news. […]

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