In Spain, the government has published in its national journal the biofuel blending target for 2011 at 6.2% and 6.5% for 2012 and 2013, bringing the new law into force. Minimum blending targets for biodiesel specifically are 6%, moving up to 7% for 2012. More on the story.
In Washington, the USDA says it expects ethanol refineries to be co-located near feedstock sources as new non-corn based technologies become commercially available, helping to break the concentration of ethanol production and availability in the corn belt. At the same time, the Des Moines Register is reporting that Sen. Jeff Bingaman, chairman of the Senate […]
In Washington, National Clean Fleets Partnership announced that five of its charter members: AT&T, FedEx, PepsiCo, UPS and Verizon, who represent five of the nation’s 10 largest national fleets and collectively own and operate more than 275,000 vehicles, have committed to reducing their petroleum consumption. Their planned current and near-term petroleum reduction strategies will account […]
In Belgium, the US’s National Biodiesel Board is lashing back at the European Commission’s recent decision to expand punitive tariffs against US and some Canadian biodiesel imports. The NBB is waiting on legal advice as to whether the move goes against current EU trade rules but it seems the EU diplomats didn’t think there would […]
In Washington, BIO announced that Sarah Thornton joins as director of biofuels and biomass policy and Miguel Suazo as manager of policy within the Industrial & Environmental Section. UNICA announced the appointment of David Thomas as its new Chief Lobbyist and Leticia Phillips as the organization’s Representative for North America, both based at UNICA’s Washington, […]
In Washington, Senator Tom Coburn from Oklahoma has withdrawn his attempt to end VEETC, an amendment he had added on to the Small Business Bill. He made the move after Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley and other Senators from the corn-growing region blocked a vote on the amendment but Coburn has vowed to not give up. […]
In the Philippines, the country’s Tariff Commission says the impasse over ethanol tariffs has delayed the issuance of an executive order laying down the country’s Most Friendly Nation tariff structure for the period 2011 to 2015, but that a decision should be made as soon as the national congress goes to recess in the next […]
In France, Airbus announced that the Spanish government, Iberia Airlines and Airbus have signed an agreement to develop a complete Spanish ‘value chain’ for sustainable and renewable aviation bio-fuel for commercial use. Other key members are expected to join the agreement shortly. The agreement promotes and backs initiatives to develop a complete bio-fuel production chain […]
We meet here at a tumultuous time for the world. In a matter of months, we’ve seen regimes toppled and democracy take root across North Africa and the Middle East. We’ve witnessed a terrible earthquake, catastrophic tsunami and nuclear emergency batter a strong ally and the world’s third largest economy. And we’ve led an international […]
In Washington, the DOE announced that it will be accepting applications for $12 million in funding for laboratory or small pilot-scale projects that support the development of refinery feedstocks, or drop-in renewable gasoline, diesel, or jet fuels. The funding opportunity will provide up to $12 million over the next three to four years to support […]
