Tag Archives: biofuel blending

Relax biofuel laws to help ease the food crisis, World Bank says

April 15, 2011   Karl   No comments
world bank biofuel

Relax biofuel laws to help ease the food crisis, World Bank says

The World Bank has called for the relaxation of laws requiring crops to be blended into petrol, saying that they are contributing to the global food price crisis.

Robert Zoellick, the President of the Bank, said that a “toxic brew” of higher food and fuel costs was heightening popular unrest in regions such as the Middle East and North Africa and condemning millions more people to poverty.

Among the many causes of high food prices are rules in countries, such as the United States, that require a certain percentage of petrol to come from corn-based ethanol.

Some 31 per cent of the corn produced in the US in 2008 was turned into ethanol, and government forecasts show that this will hit 40 per cent this year.

Biofuels have been a cornerstone of American attempts to reduce its dependency on imports of oil from the Middle East and elsewhere.

Hassan Zaman, a World Bank economist, said that although the Bank was not advocating the abolition of these laws, it believes that they should be relaxed when food prices surge beyond certain thresholds.

The World Bank also urged governments to spurn restrictions on exports of grains, bolster supplies of information on food stocks and build on the $US7 billion ($6.6bn) a year that the Bank is investing in agricultural production and irrigation.

An increase of only 10 per cent in the World Bank’s food prices index could propel another ten million people into “extreme poverty”, where they live on less than $US1.25 a day, Mr Zoellick said as he opened at the latest meetings of the Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

He added: “Mix in price gyrations and then stir in higher fuel costs, and you get a toxic brew causing real pain and contributing to social unrest.”

Luc Lampriere, of Oxfam, said: “Immediate action must be taken to address underlying factors driving food prices and volatility, which are excessive speculation and demand for biofuels.”

 

Read More

Auto industry sues EPA over biofuel blend ruling

December 22, 2010   Karl   1 Comment

Auto industry sues EPA over biofuel blend ruling

Car and boat manufacturers launch legal action challenging EPA decision allowing higher blends of ethanol

The roster of court cases faced by the US Environmental Protection Agency was extended again yesterday, when a group of auto and engine manufacturers launched legal action against the watchdog over its decision to allow higher blends of ethanol for use in cars built after 2007.

The EPA ruled in October that cars with a model year of 2007 or later could safely use fuel containing up to 15 per cent ethanol, so-called E15, a richer blend than current ethanol blends that contain no more than 10 per cent biofuel.

The decision was made in response to federal mandates requiring increasing levels of ethanol to be used in the US. The EPA is also currently weighing whether to allow older cars built since 2001 to similarly use richer blends of ethanol – a decision that has been delayed until next year.

However, many car makers remain opposed to the use of E15 and a new coalition, dubbed the Engine Products Group (EPG), yesterday filed a suit against the EPA alleging that the decision would confuse customers and lead to engine damage if the fuel is used in older engines.

The petition, which was filed in the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, requests that the EPA reconsider the decision and calls for a judicial review of the E15 ruling. It also alleges that the EPA does not have the authority under the Clean Air Act to grant a partial waiver for some ethanol blends and not others.

The group claims to represent 400 million engine products and brings together the Alliance of Automobile Manufactures, the Association of International Automobile Manufacturers, the National Marine Manufacturers Association, and the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute.

Kris Kiser, an executive with the outdoor equipment group, told the influential Washington-based Hill blog that the group was concerned that the ruling would result in customers putting the wrong fuel in the wrong engine.

“While all members of the EPG have and continue to support the development and use of safe and sustainable alternative fuels, the action EPA has taken to permit E15 to be sold as a legal fuel, even if limited only to certain products, will have adverse consequences for the environment and consumers,” he said. “A partial waiver, by its nature, necessarily will result in the misfueling of products not designed or tested for E15 use.”

The ethanol and biofuels industry maintains E15 is safe for all engines and is pushing for the EPA to combat customer confusion by authorising the richer blend for use by all vehicles.

The EPA is currently carrying out tests on older vehicles and could reach a decision on whether to allow E15 for use in older vehicles as early as next month.

Wider use of E15 is widely regarded as essential for the take-up of the fuel as currently many filling stations are reluctant to invest in new pumps given only part of the US fleet are authorised to use the fuel.

The EPG suit is the second to target the E15 ruling and comes just weeks after the Grocery Manufacturers Association filed a similar suit challenging the EPA decision on the grounds it could push up food prices by increasing demand for corn.

Read More

Germany to raise it’s bioethanol blending in gasoline

October 26, 2010   Karl

Germany to raise bioethanol blending in gasoline

The German cabinet will vote on Wednesday on a proposal to raise the maximum level of bioethanol allowed in blended gasoline to 10 percent in January 2011 from 5 percent now, the country’s environment ministry said on Monday.

The move is part of Germany’s efforts to meet European Union plans to raise biofuel use to protect the environment, it said.

Analysts said the increase would help boost demand for grain next year, but there also would be tough competition from sugar and imported bioethanol.

“Currently sugar is looking most competitive for bioethanol output after the sharp rise in grain prices this year,” one analyst said. “But overall there is likely to be increased demand for both grains and sugar, so more blending will be positive news for producers.”

Introduction of fuels with higher bioethanol content has in the past been controversial because of fears of engine damage to older cars.

The ministry said about 90 percent of German automobiles would be capable of using fuels with the higher blend level, which will be clearly labeled at petrol stations.

Germany’s large bioethanol industry, which mostly uses grain and sugar as feedstock, has been hoping for the change for some time.

Grains futures surged to two-year highs in early August, almost doubling from June lows as a drought devastated Russia‘s harvest and the country announced a grain export ban.

Germany consumed about 1.2 million tonnes of grain for bioethanol output in 2009, the German state alcohol production supervision agency BMB said. This compared with a German 2009 grain crop of 43.7 million tonnes.

Read More

Nascar to use B15 Biofuel Blend

October 18, 2010   Karl
Nascar to use B15 Biofuel Blend

Nascar to use B15 Biofuel Blend

NASCAR confirmed earlier reports that it will begin using E15 ethanol provided by Sunoco in its three national series — Sprint Cup, Nationwide and Trucks.

NASCAR chairman Brian France was quoted as saying “while fueling the same close, door-to-door racing that thrills our fans, American ethanol creates jobs in the United States, helps foster energy independence and continues the greening of our sport.”

NASCAR will holds its K&N and Nationwide series events at Newton next May 21-22. The Indy Car Circuit Iowa Corn 250 will be held at Newton next June 25.

The Indy Car circuit, which includes the Iowa Speedway race in Newton each year, hit a rocky bump last year when the series announced a deal with Brazilian ethanol promoter Unica. American corn grown organizations protested and Indy Car went out of its way to assure that the fuel used at the Newton race in the middle of Iowa corn country would be 100 percent American-produced ethanol.

NASCAR’s announcement comes at the end of a week in which federal regulators approved an extension of the current 10 percent ethanol blend limit for vehicles 2007 model year and newer, which it said accounts for about 30 percent of all gas old in the U.S.

Read More

Malaysian start-up fund for biodiesel programmes

October 07, 2010   Karl

Start-up fund for biodiesel programme

Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas), Shell, BHP, ExxonMobil and Chevron have been allocated with a start-up fund worth RM1mil each by the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) to set up infrastructure for B5 biodiesel blending facilities.

Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Tan Sri Bernard Dompok said the initial incentive given to the five petroleum companies reflected the Government’s intention to fully implement the mandatory B5 biodiesel programme by the middle of next year.

B5 is the blending of 5% biodiesel with 95% fossil fuel diesel. The much delayed B5 programme was initially slotted for launch in January this year.

Tan Sri Bernard Dompok (right) and Datuk Lee Yeow Chor at the briefing.

“We are on target for the B5 biodiesel implementation by June 2011,” Dompok told a briefing after opening the 3rd International Palm Oil Trade and Seminar (POTS) organised by MPOB yesterday.

Read More

  • Navigation


  • BioFuel Tweets!