Ethanol Plant Celebrations

Two RFA members are holding ethanol plant celebrations this week.

Officials with Verenium Corporation is holding a dedication ceremony Thursday for a new demonstration-scale cellulosic ethanol facility in Jennings, Louisiana.

Verenium president Carlos Riva says, “This is a first for the U.S. and as we take the next step toward commercialization, we are breaking new ground and setting new standards for our industry.”

RFA president Bob Dinneen says the opening is significant for the nation. “By opening the first cellulosic ethanol R&D facility, Louisianans and Verenium are taking a leading role in providing America with a more sustainable alternative to increasingly expensive petroleum.

Also on Thursday, VeraSun Energy will hold a ribbon cutting ceremony and open house for its 110 million-gallon-per year biorefinery in Albion, Nebraska.

The plant began operation in October 2007 and VeraSun announced it would acquire the facility from ASAlliances in July 2007. The plant is one of 11 VeraSun ethanol production facilities currently in operation.

According to VeraSun officials, the ribbon cutting, which will be held at the Boone County Fairgrounds, “will focus on the power of partnership™, recognizing those who contributed to the success of project and are leaving a legacy of creating energy diversity and economic benefits for the communities of Boone County.” Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman will be making the keynote address at the event.

“Nebraska’s residents have long understood the economic, environmental and security benefits of a strong domestic ethanol industry, and their legislators have helped set the stage for ethanol and other biofuels to contribute to our nation’s energy security,” said Dinneen.

Ethanol Industry Getting Even Greener

A new analysis of America’s ethanol industry shows dramatic efficiency gains in ethanol production have been made in the last five years.

According to an analysis conducted by the Argonne National Laboratory, American ethanol facilities are using less energy and water than just five years ago while producing more ethanol. Water consumption is down 26.6 percent, grid electricity use down almost 16 percent and total energy use almost 22 percent lower. (Read the full report from Argonne in pdf form here)

The Argonne analysis compares ethanol industry data from 2001 to 2006. In 2001, U.S. ethanol production was 1.77 billion gallons. In 2006, U.S. ethanol production was 4.9 billion gallons, an increase of 276%.

“This is not your father’s ethanol industry anymore,” said Renewable Fuels Association president Bob Dinneen. “As the industry has grown over the past several years, we have adopted new technologies, we are looking at new feedstocks, we are becoming more efficient every day. The ethanol industry takes its responsibility as stewards of the environment very seriously.”

The Argonne analysis also found key trends that are making ethanol more efficient and environmentally friendly. Nearly 25% of ethanol producers today are capturing their carbon dioxide emissions for use in dry ice production and carbonated beverage bottling. In addition, 37% of distillers grains – the high protein livestock feed co-product of ethanol production – are now sold in the wet form, reducing the energy needed to dry and transport the product.

The improvements being made in ethanol production today signal the greener direction in which this industry is moving. The development and implementation of new technologies that improve efficiencies and expand the basket of feedstocks available for ethanol production is occurring rapidly, as the Argonne analysis indicates.

Conversely, the petroleum industry is moving in the opposite direction. As all of the ‘easy’ reserves of oil have been exploited, oil producers are having to drill deeper and go further into environmentally sensitive lands in pursuit of crude. The environmental impacts of these activities are far greater than even today’s petroleum production.

Ethanol Report on Plant Efficiency and Food Prices

This “Ethanol Report” podcast features comments from RFA President Bob Dinneen on a new report from Argonne National Laboratory about the increased efficiency of U.S. ethanol plants, as well as how higher oil prices are the real cause of food price inflation.

You can subscribe to “The Ethanol Report” by following this link.

Or you can listen to it on-line here: Ethanol Report 10 (7:00 MP3 file)

Groundbreaking Move in Petroleum Birthplace

The state that started the move toward petroleum is now joining the movement to help reduce our nation’s addiction to oil. With the cooperation of the state of Pennsylvania and the full-throated support of Governor Ed Rendell, BioEnergy International is breaking ground on the state’s first ethanol biorefinery.

Located in Clearfield, the facility, once completed, will produce 110 million gallons of ethanol annually. Beginning as a corn-based ethanol production facility, BioEnergy will also conduct onsite research and testing to integrate cellulosic ethanol production technology into its operations. Cellulosic ethanol production is the conversion of nonfood biomass materials such as switchgrass, corn stalks, wood chips and other agricultural waste materials into fuel ethanol.

“It is apropos that the state that gave birth to the petroleum industry is now front and center in our nation’s efforts to reduce our dependence on imported oil,” said RFA President Bob Dinneen. “Led by Governor Rendell and the forward-thinking leaders of the state, Pennsylvania is poised to capitalize on the productivity of its farmers to supply a wide range of feedstocks for an ever-evolving domestic ethanol industry. As a result, rural Pennsylvania will see the kind of economic opportunities witnessed by countless small communities across the country and our nation will be another step closer toward energy self-sufficiency. I congratulate Governor Rendell, the people of Pennsylvania, and BioEnergy International for working constructively together to bring the benefits of ethanol production to mid-Atlantic.”

White Energy Grand Opening

RFA congratulates White Energy on the celebration of the grand opening of their 100 million gallon per year ethanol biorefinery near Hereford, Texas Saturday. The facility will employ 40 full-time employees and use 36 million bushels of corn and milo per year, almost all of it grown locally.

“Expanding ethanol production outside the traditional areas is critical to the continued growth of this industry,” said RFA President Bob Dinneen. “No longer are Midwesterners the only Americans to realize the benefits of renewable fuels. Texas is now moving beyond the petroleum industry towards a more sustainable energy future. Congratulations to White Energy and the people of Texas on beginning production at this new facility and for their commitment to helping set America on a path toward greater energy independence.”

The more than two million head of livestock in the area will also benefit from the ethanol plant. The plant produces more than 830,000 tons of distillers wet grain, a co-product of the ethanol process. Distillers grains are a nutrient-rich animal feed returning value and supply back into the feed markets.

In addition to this newest plant, White Energy owns and operates two ethanol production plants: a 50-million-gallon plant in Russell, Kansas and a 110-million-gallon plant scheduled to begin operation in 2008 in Plainview, Texas.

First Ohio Ethanol Plant Opens

The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) today congratulated POET Energy on the grand opening of their newest ethanol plant in Leipsic, Ohio. POET Biorefining - Leipsic will produce 65 million gallons of ethanol per year from more than 22 million bushels of corn from the area.

“This is an historic moment for the state of Ohio, the community of Leipsic, and the U.S. ethanol industry,” said Bob Dinneen, RFA president. “With the recent passage of the energy bill, Congress has put this country on a clear path to greater energy stability. By opening the first commercial-scale ethanol biorefinery in the state, Ohioans and POET are taking a leading role in providing America with a more sustainable alternative to foreign oil. On behalf of the more than 300 member companies of the RFA, I want to congratulate POET Biorefining - Leipsic and the entire Leipsic community on this exciting event.”

POET Biorefining - Leipsic is the first ethanol production facility in the state of Ohio and the 22nd POET production facility. A crowd of more than 3,000 people showed up for the grand opening of POET Biorefining - Leipsic. The facility is the first ethanol plant in the state of Ohio. Speakers at the event included Governor Ted Strickland, Ohio Congressman Bob Latta and Mike Wagner, Executive Director for the Buckeye Renewable Fuels Association.

“The State of Ohio is excited to partner with POET to bring about a transformation in how we as Americans produce and consume energy,” Governor Strickland said. “POET has demonstrated its commitment to expanding an important home-grown energy source. This increased production of ethanol in Ohio replaces millions of barrels of imported oil with domestic renewable energy. It is crucial that Ohio foster advanced, reliable, and affordable energy sources – for our economy, our pocketbooks, and our environment.”