| No. 256, December 22, 2022 |
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Growth Energy Calls on EPA to Hold Midwest Hearing for Rural Biofuel Stakeholders |
Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor recently wrote to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael S. Regan requesting the agency return to the Midwest for an in-person hearing on the agency’s 2023-2025 plan for biofuels under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).
“Given the profound implications of this year’s ‘Set’ rulemaking, there has never been a more important time for EPA officials to hear directly from stakeholders in the Midwest who will be most directly impacted by the agency’s decisions,” wrote Skor, who also noted that the agency's last in-person field hearing took place all the way back in July 2019. Read more here.
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Last week, domestic ethanol demand was 13.5 BGY, up 5.6% compared to a week ago. The EIA-reported gas demand was up 5.6% from last week, at 133.6 BGY. The 4-week average ethanol and gas demand are 13.0 and 128.9 BGY and may be a better indication of current demand than the weekly snapshot due weekly data volatility.
Ethanol production was 15.8 BGY last week, down 3.0% versus the week before, and 3.3% less than the 4-week average in 2019. Midwest production was down 2.6% (-7.6 MG) versus a week ago, and average production in the other regions was down 10.0% (-1.8 MG). Capacity utilization of plants online was 91.3% overall, 92.5% in the Midwest, and 74.4% on average, elsewhere, excluding 1,373 MGY of capacity shutdown at 28 ethanol plants for other than maintenance. On an installed capacity basis, utilization was 85.5% overall, 90.0% in the Midwest and 44.8% in the other regions.
Exports were an estimated 31.6 MG last week based on 140 MG forecast for December. The EIA reported no ethanol imports last week.
Overall inventory was up 7.6 MG last week. EIA-counted stocks decreased 14.4 MG, and regional changes were: East (+2 MG), Gulf (-2 MG) and West (-7 MG) Coasts and the Midwest (-7 MG). In-transit inventory increased 22.0 MG.
Based on the total inventory of 1,805 MG on December 16th and the 4-week avg. domestic demand, there were 49.6 days of supply, up 0.1 days versus a week ago. Including the 4-week avg. of net exports, there were 44.8 days of supply, up 0.1 days versus a week ago. |
For more information, please contact Vice President of Market Development Jake Comer. |
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Growth Energy Flags Twisted Facts from Reuters, Again |
New USDA Memo Debunks Anti-Biofuel Claims from Lark Study (Again) |
Senate Confirms Alexis Taylor as USDA Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs |
Growth Energy Cheers Big Holiday Discounts from Kum & Go on E15 |
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Growth Energy Flags Twisted Facts from Reuters, Again
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Growth Energy responded to a recently published, highly misleading article from Reuters about ethanol’s climate benefits. The story recycled the same “flawed interpretation of data” the outlet admitted to publishing this September before withdrawing the report.
“It’s astonishing that the editors at Reuters would allow this to slip by after the same reporter revealed the same shocking bias just a few short months ago,” said Emily Skor, CEO of Growth Energy. “The author misrepresented Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) data to suggest that we should only focus on immediate emissions from producing biofuel, rather than emissions reductions from using biofuels to replace petroleum over time. By that logic, we’d never build windmills or solar panels either." Read the full statement here.
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New USDA Memo Debunks Anti-Biofuel Claims from Lark Study (Again) |
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued a technical memorandum last week that outlined the agency's objections to the Lark study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences back in February.
In the memo, the USDA explains its objections to the Lark study's methodology, and undermines the study's central anti-biofuel claims. It concludes by saying "The findings of Lark cannot be corroborated with USDA site level, modeled, or national datasets. On the contrary, our review concludes that the Lark et al. 2022 significantly overestimated soil carbon losses associated with biofuel production and did not clearly demonstrate a link to the RFS." Read the full memo here.
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For more information, please contact Senior Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Chris Bliley. |
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Senate Confirms Alexis Taylor as USDA Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs |
Yesterday the Senate officially confirmed Alexis Taylor as the USDA's new Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack nominated Taylor to the position in May and she immediately garnered the endorsement of a broad swath of the American agricultural community, including from Growth Energy. We applaud her confirmation and look forward to working with her directly on issues facing the biofuels industry in the future.
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For more information, please contact Vice President of Government Affairs John Fuher. |
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Growth Energy Cheers Big Holiday Discounts from Kum & Go on E15 |
Growth Energy recently urged drivers to take advantage of big holiday savings on higher-ethanol fuel blends, including a special discounted price on E15 of $1.99 per gallon being offered by Kum & Go.
“Ethanol blends have been America’s best shield against skyrocketing fuel prices all year long, and thanks to our retail partners at Kum & Go, those savings could make an even bigger difference this holiday season,” said Jake Comer, Growth Energy’s vice president of Market Development. “Now is a great time to take advantage of deep discounts on E15, which has already fueled more than 30 billion miles on the road for American drivers. We applaud Kum & Go’s leadership in offering consumers access to higher biofuel blends like E15, and for giving back to their guests with this incredible promotion.”
Kum & Go’s holiday special offers drivers E15 for $1.99 per gallon, a discount of more than a dollar per gallon compared to standard gasoline. The promotion is slated to run from December 23 to December 26. Read more here. |
For more information, please contact Vice President of Market Development Jake Comer. |
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ELC 2023 will be held at one of Southern California's most picturesque hotels – the Waldorf Astoria Monarch Beach Resort & Club in Dana Point, California. Make plans now to participate: Wednesday, March 15 – Saturday, March 18, 2023. Check your inbox for your invitation. |
For more information, please contact Senior Vice President of Development Kelly Manning. |
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The Weekly Rundown is the weekly newsletter for Growth Energy's members. It is published weekly by the communications staff at Growth Energy. For more information, email team@growthenergy.org or visit our website GrowthEnergy.org.
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