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Growth Energy Rallies Biofuel Champions at D.C. Summit

Pictured above: Biofuels Summit participants visit with Rep. Abby Finkenauer (D-Iowa).

Advocates and experts have converged in Washington, D.C. this week for Growth Energy’s annual Biofuels Summit to advocate for biofuels in our nation’s capital. Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor kicked off this year’s all-virtual event with opening remarks and a fireside chat on industry priorities with Growth Energy Chairman of the Board and Front Range Energy Vice President, Dan Sanders, Jr.

“We have 50 days to make our voices heard before elected officials face the voters in November, and that’s exactly what we are doing,” said Skor.

“In managing the crisis, industry has shown its ingenuity and resilience. We pivot, we remain agile, we seize those opportunities that emerge — planned or unplanned — but we also we stay the course. We approach this decade through the lens of what will drive demand for ethanol and propel this industry forward,” she added, before sharing a video montage of Growth Energy’s "Conversations with Biofuels Champions" summer video series.

Pictured above: Board Chairman Dan Sanders and CEO Emily Skor have a fireside chat on the industry's priorities.

From September 14 to 17, over 150 participants heard from Growth Energy experts and guest speakers in preparation for meetings with legislators and congressional staff in 87 offices representing 15 states. Attendees also helped honor 44 lawmakers with the 2020 Fueling Growth Award, which is given annually to outstanding champions with an exceptional record of support for the biofuels industry.

Updates on the retail, trade, legal, and policy landscape were offered by Mike O’Brien, Vice President of Market Development; Craig Willis, Senior Vice President of Global Markets; Joe Kakesh, General Counsel; John Fuher, Vice President of Government Affairs; and Zach Martin, Director of Government Affairs. In addition, guest speaker David Wasserman from the Cook Political Report offered an election-year update on the political outlook for November.

Armed with this knowledge, attendees met with legislators on the industry’s top priorities, including ongoing COVID-19 recovery efforts, lifting trade barriers, promoting climate-friendly ethanol, securing strong 2021 biofuel targets, halting improper exemptions from Renewable Fuel Standard obligations, and breaking down regulatory and infrastructure barriers to the sale of higher ethanol blends like E15.

This year’s summit was sponsored by DuPont, Novozymes, BASF, Lallemand Biofuels & Distilled Spirits, CTE Global, Inc., Hydrite Chemical Co., and Phibro, along with Growth Energy media partner Ethanol Producer Magazine. For photos and posts about Fueling Growth Award winners, check out the Growth Energy Twitter feed linked here. 

For more details, contact Vice President of Government Affairs John Fuher.

IN GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS

EPA Rejects 54 "Gap Year" Exemption Requests

On Monday, September 14, the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) announced its decision to reject so-called ‘gap-year’ exemptions from the nation’s biofuel laws. In total, the agency had received 68 retroactive exemption requests from petroleum refiners seeking to skirt obligations under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) and Monday's move denied the majority of pending requests: 54 in total.

Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor said that Monday's “action lifts a cloud of uncertainty that has been hanging over America’s farmers and biofuel producers since June. We’re grateful to farm state champions like Senator Ernst, who has led a bipartisan coalition of lawmakers in the House and Senate and governors across the heartland in speaking out against oil-backed efforts to dodge the law, circumvent the courts, and upend markets.

“Growth Energy looks forward to continuing our work with the White House and leaders in Congress to ensure that we restore integrity to our nation’s biofuel targets and that rural communities have the support they need to revitalize growth in the months ahead.”

We will continue to keep you up to date on the remaining gap year and pending SRE requests for 2019 and 2020 in the weeks ahead.

For more details, contact Vice President of Government Affairs John Fuher.

IN GLOBAL MARKETS

Brazil TRQ Extended for 90 Days While Negotiations Continue

After expiring on August 31 and a 20 percent tariff was temporarily applied to all U.S. ethanol, Brazil’s tariff rate quota (TRQ) has been extended for a further 90 days starting on Sept. 14. The following is a joint statement from Emily Skor, CEO, Growth Energy; Ryan LeGrand, President and CEO, U.S. Grains Council; Jon Doggett, CEO of the National Corn Growers Association; and Geoff Cooper, President and CEO, Renewable Fuels Association:

“Growth Energy, the U.S. Grains Council, the Renewable Fuels Association and the National Corn Growers Association believe the 90-day extension of the TRQ serves neither Brazil’s consumers nor the Brazilian government’s own decarbonization goals, especially while Brazil’s ethanol producers continue to be afforded virtually tariff-free access to the U.S. market. The extension falls during Brazil’s annual inter-harvest period when U.S. ethanol exports to Brazil are traditionally low, causing greater uncertainty for U.S. exporters looking to make selling decisions now for the traditionally higher Brazilian demand in the winter months. While the Brazilian ethanol market has not been fully reopened to imports, we appreciate the continued support and efforts of the U.S. government as we use this 90-day period to aggressively pursue an open and mutually beneficial ethanol trading relationship with Brazil.

“The U.S. ethanol industry actively sought, through repeated dialogue with local industry and government, to illustrate the negative impacts of tariffs on Brazilian consumers and the Brazilian government’s own decarbonization goals. However, it seems Brazil’s government has left its own consumers to pay the price through higher fuel costs once again. While we would have preferred Brazil abandon its ethanol import tariffs entirely and resume its free trade posture on ethanol, which it held for several years before the TRQ, we view its decision to temporarily extend the TRQ on ethanol at the current level as an opportunity to continue discussions toward that end.

“The U.S. ethanol industry remains focused on expanding the global use of low-carbon ethanol, reducing barriers to trade and elevating its prominence in energy discussions. We remain eager to collaborate and cooperate with other nations that share in the vision of a free and open global ethanol market.”

For more details, contact Senior Vice President of Global Markets Craig Willis.

IN COMMUNICATIONS

In her keynote address at the 36th Annual International Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo (FEW), Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor provided an update on the industry’s recovery amid COVID-19 and offered an exciting vision for growth in the months and years ahead.

“We approach this decade through the lens of what will drive demand for American Ethanol and propel this industry forward,” Skor said.

“Because we all envision a future without barriers in the marketplace; where E15, not E10, is the new normal and the floor for growth; where infrastructure nationwide supports — and pumps — all ethanol blends; where policymakers globally lean in on ethanol, embracing it as a solution to climate change; and where consumer confidence in ethanol soars to new heights. This vision must carry us through global pandemics and beyond.”

Also during this year’s FEW, Growth Energy leadership spoke on two additional panels, offering a roadmap for driving the industry forward through unprecedented times and sharing fresh ideas on best business practices and new ways to uphold the integrity of the Renewable Fuel Standard. These include:

• Growth Energy Senior Vice President of Regulatory Affairs, Chris Bliley – “Association Roundtable: Balancing Our Here and Now Sector Challenges with the Need to Drive Toward Long-Term Goals” – Wednesday, September 16, 9:30am CST
• Growth Energy Chairman of the Board and Vice President at Front Range Energy, Dan Sanders, Jr. – “Operating an Ethanol Production Facility in an Era of Unprecedented Disruption” – Wednesday, September 16, 10:15am CST

Watch Skor's remarks here or by clicking the image above.

During the Biofuels Summit general session, Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor played the highlight reel of our video series, "Conversations with Biofuels Champions". The ten-week series was a lead up to our member meetings at the Biofuels Summit, where our champions shared why hearing from our members is so important to them. 

For more details, contact Vice President of Communications Elizabeth Funderburk.

IN MARKET DEVELOPMENT

Growth Energy, CSP Host Retail Webinar 

Last week, Growth Energy and CSP, the leading source for convenience store news hosted an interactive virtual E15 workshop for retailers, where more than 800 retail sites were represented. The workshop included full agenda covering everything retailers would need to know to adopt E15.

During the workshop, Growth Energy’s Vice President of Market Development Mike O’Brien shared expertise and best practices on navigating the E15 landscape, setting up the right fuel infrastructure, the best marketing practices for E15. Other speakers discussed regulatory landscape, supply and demand. Additionally, prospective retailers heard from early adopters, Minnoco, who shared their experience and how they have maximized their competitive advantage with high-octane fuel options like Unleaded 88 and E85.

Today, E15 is sold at more than 2,200 retail sites in 30 states. For more resources for fuel retailers, head to Growth Energy’s Retailer Hub.

For more details, contact Vice President of Market Development Mike O'Brien.

IN OUR ASSOCIATION

Lallemand BDS Announces the Launch of a New Fermentation Technology for Biofuels Production

This week, Growth Energy member Lallemand Biofuels & Distilled Spirits (LBDS), a global supplier of innovative fermentation ingredients, announced the introduction of their next generation advanced yeast and enzyme platform called Convergence™.

The Convergence™ platform has been developed to generate increased profitability for North American biofuel producers by providing a step change improvement in ethanol production cost economics. The platform combines a new yeast that generates virtually all the glucoamylase (GA) required for fermentation combined with a small amount of complementary exogenous enzyme.

Convergence™ has been created through the development of new biotechnology that enables yeast strains to express much higher levels of GA than was previously possible. Now all of the enzymes required for fermentation can be delivered through two components:

• TransFerm® CV5 is a genetically modified yeast strain that combines best in industry yield enhancement technology with extraordinary levels of glucoamylase and trehalase expression. This yeast generates between 80% and 100% of the enzymes required in fermentation.
• Alcolase® 146 is a high-performance glucoamylase blend developed to maximize the fermentation performance of TransFerm® CV5. This product provides optimal results at a significantly lower dose than other commercial enzyme blends. When used with TransFerm® CV5 it is supplied at no extra charge.

“We are very excited to introduce the Convergence platform this week. Ethanol producers now have an alternative to purchasing expensive exogenous fermentation enzymes from traditional enzyme suppliers” says Angus Ballard, President of LBDS. “TransFerm® CV5 continues our tradition of developing innovative solutions that generate real value for our customers. We look forward to continuing this approach in the years ahead.

For additional information on the Convergence™ line of products, please see the Lallemand Biofuels web site at www.lbds.com or contact your local sales or technical presentative.

Updated COVID-19-Related Employer Guidance

On Friday, September 11, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued revised regulations on the Families First Coronavirus Response Act’s (FFCRA’s) paid-sick-leave and paid-family-leave provisions, clarifying when leave is available and when employees must seek approval to take leave. According to the agency, the revisions, which take effect immediately upon publication in The Federal Register on Sept. 16, do the following:

• Reaffirm that employees may take FFCRA leave only when work is actually available to them.
• Reaffirm that employees must have their employer's approval to take intermittent FFCRA leave.
• Revise the definition of "health care provider" to include "only employees who meet the definition of that term under the Family and Medical Leave Act regulations or who are employed to provide diagnostic services, preventative services, treatment services or other services that are integrated with and necessary to the provision of patient care which, if not provided, would adversely impact patient care."
• Clarify that employees must provide employers with documentation as soon as possible supporting their need for FFCRA leave.
• Correct an inconsistency on when employees may be required to provide employers notice of their need to take expanded family and medical leave.
   

The DOL also released additional questions and answers related to school schedules and paid leave under the FFCRA on August 27. For example, if a child’s school provided a choice of attending in person or participating in a remote learning program, and the remote learning option was chosen, the employee would not be eligible for FFCRA because the child’s school is not “closed” due to COVID-19 related reasons. However, if the school is on a hybrid schedule where the child cannot attend school in person on specific days, the employee would be eligible for FFCRA on days when the child is not permitted to attend school in person and must instead engage in remote learning, as long as the employee needs the leave to actually care for the child during that time and only if no other suitable person is available to do so. View the DOL’s FAQs for more information.

Additionally, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released updated guidance on Sept. 8 clarifying that employers can screen workers for COVID-19 without violating the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) if they follow guidelines from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other authorities. "Consistent with the ADA standard, employers should ensure that the tests are considered accurate and reliable," the EEOC said. The CDC and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration may revise their recommendations based on new information, the EEOC noted, so employers may want to periodically check agency websites for new information.

For more details, contact Vice President of Membership Kelly Manning.

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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