In Nigeria, the governor of Oyo has paid compensation to 77 families who have given up their land for a new cassava-based ethanol plant that will source cassava from 4,000 farmers. The ethanol plant is expected to come online in the next two years. Local authorities have lauded the governor for prompt compensation to the […]
In Indonesia, the Jakarta Post reports that the government plans to encourage the mining and rail sectors to adopt biodiesel in an attempt to boost overall domestic biodiesel consumption to 3.5 billion liters. About 90% of the proposed 400 million liters of increased demand is expected to come from the mining sector for use in […]
In the Philippines, Platts reports that the reference price for domestic ethanol rose another 5% in February to $965/cu m compared to the average CIF Philippines price for the month of $489.95/cu m. Domestic producers are discounting their prices by almost 10% in an effort to attract demand in light of imported ethanol costing about […]
In Italy, the European Commission’s Joint Research Center released two new Certified Reference Materials (CRMs) for automotive diesel fuel containing 7 % biodiesel, so-called ‘diesel (B7)’. These CRMs will support fuel producers and fuel testing laboratories in assuring the quality of their measurements, thus improving trust in the regulatory compliance of this product on the market. […]
In Washington, the spending bill proposed by Congress this week that aims to avert yet another government shutdown includes a fix to the “grain problem” where a law passed last year provided lucrative tax benefits to farmers selling corn to cooperatives instead of grain companies. Cargill and many ethanol industry players have complained while some […]
In Iowa, POET CEO Jeff Broin told delegates at the Iowa Partnering for Growth meeting in Ankeny, Iowa today that there is still a deal on the table to provide year-round E15 approval for the biofuels industry and that may offer some relief to small merchant oil refiners. He said that it was possible that […]
In Washington, Reuters reports that the Secretary of Agriculture believes President Trump may back away from trying to broker an agreement between oil and corn states on reforming the Renewable Fuel Standard and instead leave the difficult negotiations to lawmakers themselves. The Environmental Protection Agency administrator has sent a list of potential options to the […]
In the UK, facilities management company Vertas Group has purchased waste management company MMB Environmental with an eye on using the used cooking oil biodiesel produced by MMB almost entirely within the group to power grounds maintenance equipment such as lawnmowers and hedge trimmers. MMB has been collecting UCO from Vertas’ school catering services unit […]
In Washington, the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) applauded USDA’s release of a new report, “Indicators of the U.S. Biobased Economy.” The report measures substantial economic growth, job creation, and household income for the agricultural sector from biofuel and bioenergy production. Moreover, it indicates great potential for additional prosperity from future growth in renewable chemicals and […]
In China, Reuters reports that three independent refiners are jumping into the ethanol blending game ahead of the government’s E10 blending mandate set to begin in 2020. Shandong Wonfull Petrochemical Group and Henan Fengli Petrochemical Co have applied for permission to blend while Dongming Petrochemical plans to begin importing ethanol through its trading arm, but […]
