Ethanol Week - April 8, 2013

Corn prices fall responding to inventory report, spring prospects In a welcome move for corn buyers, the U.S. corn market dropped dramatically in recent days on news of higher-than-expected corn inventories. The corn market took off nearly $1 a bushel since the March 28 USDA Grain Stocks report. READ MORE SHARE
USDA opens funding opportunity for REAP The USDA has published a notice of funding availability for the Rural Energy for America Program for fiscal year 2013. The program provides financial assistance in the form of grants and guaranteed loans for renewable energy projects. READ MORE SHARE
	DOE funds Bioenergy Research Centers for additional 5 years The U.S. DOE has announced it will fund its three Bioenergy Research Centers for an additional five-year period, subject to continued congressional appropriations. The centers were established by the department's Office of Science in 2007. READ MORE SHARE
EPA Tier 3 rules lower sulfur content, assume E15 to replace E10 The U.S. EPA has proposed Tier 3 emission standards for cars and gasoline. The rulemaking sets new goals for lower sulfur content gasoline. It also assumes that E15 will become the norm, calling for its use in emissions testing. READ MORE SHARE
Group supports EPA reconsideration of the 2011 cellulosic volume The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ordered the U.S. EPA to reconsider the 2012 renewable fuel standard (RFS) obligation for cellulosic biofuels in January. EPA is now voluntarily reconsidering the 2011 obligation for cellulosic biofuels. READ MORE SHARE
RFA issues letter to House committee on overcoming the blend wall The Renewable Fuels Association has responded to the questions posed by the U.S. House of Representatives' Committee on Energy and Commerce in a white paper entitled, "Examining 'Blend Wall' Challenges." READ MORE SHARE
DECC: 2012 was a record year for U.K. ethanol consumption The U.K. Department of Energy & Climate Change recently released an updated set of statistics on energy trends and prices. According to the release, ethanol accounted for 55 percent of the biofuels consumed in the U.K. during 2012. READ MORE SHARE
ZeaChem lays off some employees after not securing bridge loan An undisclosed number of ZeaChem Inc. employees have been laid off after the company was unable to secure a bridge loan that was intended to carry it into the next funding round. The company is working to secure additional capital investment. READ MORE SHARE
Lee Enterprises Consulting forms strategic alliance with ICM Lee Enterprises Consulting of Little Rock, Ark., the world's largest alternative and renewable fuel consulting group, is pleased to announce the formation of a strategic alliance with ICM Inc. of Colwich, Kan. READ MORE SHARE
Iowa gets new E15 location The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association has announced that Iowa's newest station offering E15 as a registered fuel is Popke's Inc. in Rock Rapids. The location is the state's fifth registered E15 retailer. READ MORE SHARE
FarmDocDaily post address cost of RFS compliance In a new FarmDocDaily post University of Illinois professors Scott Irwin and Darrel Good discuss the on-going cost of renewable fuel standard (RFS) compliance and the price of gasoline. READ MORE SHARE
USGC releases export cargo report, indicates good corn quality The USGC Corn Export Cargo Quality Report indicates that despite the severe drought in 2012 that seriously reduced the size of the U.S. corn crop, testing indicated the 2012 crop was superior to the 2011 crop across a number of key variables. READ MORE SHARE
Online DOE training seminar offers details about cogeneration Ethanol producers interested in learning more about combined-heat-and-power (CHP) may want to check out an archived U.S. DOE training seminar. The information complements "Feeling the Heat," a story recently published in Ethanol Producer Magazine. READ MORE SHARE
EPA publishes ethanol RIN data for January The U.S. EPA recently published data on renewable identification numbers (RINs) generated under the renewable fuel standard (RFS) during January 2013. Ethanol accounted for nearly 43.66 million D5 advanced biofuel RINs during the month. READ MORE SHARE
ePURE calls for modeling European biofuels policy after the RFS ePURE has released results of a study that determined the double counting mechanism proposed by the European Commission to spur production of advanced biofuels is ineffective. Rather, the organization is called for a dedicated sub-targets. READ MORE SHARE
REX American Resources reports increasing profitability REX American Resources Corp. has released financial results for its fiscal 2012 fourth quarter and the year ended Jan. 31, 2013. The company currently holds ownership interest in seven ethanol plants throughout the Midwest. READ MORE SHARE
Pacific Ethanol increases ownership, releases financial results Pacific Ethanol Inc. recently announced that it bumped up its plant ownership to more than 83 percent and released its latest financial results. The company operates and manages three operating ethanol plants and one idle facility. READ MORE SHARE