Monthly Archives: February 2017

In New Jersey, the defense attorney for a man charged with participating in a $50 million biofuel tax credit scam says charges should be dropped because his client was given bad legal advice by his previous attorney, claiming conflict of … Continue reading →

In Delaware, Coastal Zone Industrial Control Board voted against the appeal brought forward by the Audubon Society and League of Women Voters against a planned ethanol distribution hub before the appeal hearing even began. The board voted 5-1 against the … Continue reading →

In North Dakota, Minnesota Soybean Processors (MnSP) and its subsidiary North Dakota Soybean Processors (NDSP) announced that MnSP is taking steps toward construction of a $240 million soybean processing plant – the first of its kind in North Dakota – … Continue reading →

In Iowa, the Iowa Biodiesel Board announced the state’s capacity to produce biodiesel is on the rise by nearly 20 percent, from 334 MMgy to almost 400 MMgy. Expansion projects currently underway or recently completed led to the boost. Biodiesel … Continue reading →

In Georgia, SYNLawn is paving the way for the future by introducing a new biobased and environmentally renewable polyethylene (PE) product made from Brazilian sugar cane that is sustainably grown under some of the strictest environmental, social, and industrial practices … Continue reading →

In India, while the biodiesel industry waits for the renewable energy ministry to develop a policy that would promote biodiesel rather than the 2009 law that doesn’t provide sufficient price support, it must instead return every year to the finance … Continue reading →

In Japan, scientists from Tokyo Institute of Technology lead by Professor Hiroyuki Ohta have made breakthroughs in understanding the mechanisms underlying microalgae’s oleaginous trait by investigating lipid metabolism in Nannochloropsis oceanica. TAGs are synthesized in the extraplastidic Kennedy pathway through … Continue reading →

In Washington, a representative of the Trump Administration told the head of the Renewable Fuels Association that a non-negotiable executive order shifting the point of obligation under the Renewable Fuels Standard was in the works, so the RFA responded that … Continue reading →

In Washington, as the advanced bioeconomy’s leadership headed into town for the annual Advanced Bioeconomy Leadership Conference, rumors of a deal surfaced between the Renewable Fuels Association and Carl Icahn, shifting renewable fuel obligations away from oil refiners, in return for Icahn’s … Continue reading →

In Minnesota, the ethanol industry continued to boost Minnesota’s economy in 2016, contributing $1.98 billion to the state’s gross domestic product (GDP). A new study released by ABF Economics, which was commissioned by the Minnesota Bio-Fuels Association, said Minnesota’s ethanol … Continue reading →

In Washington, the Sierra Club filed a notice of intent to sue the Environmental Protection Agency for failure to conduct triennial reports to congress on environmental and conservation impacts of the renewable fuel standard and failure to conduct anti-backsliding analysis … Continue reading →

In the Philippines, local authorities have confirmed reports received by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources that the rivers of Pontevedra have suffered a fishkill caused by wastewater discharged from the Roxol Bioenergy plant in La Carlota City. Discharge … Continue reading →

In China, ethanol imports fell 98% between December and January to just 2,415 cubic meters, the lowest volume in three months due to the implementation of the 30% import tariff. The tariff had been 5% since 2010. Platts reported seven … Continue reading →

In Vietnam, implementation of the E5 switch over, phasing out non-ethanol blended fuel availability, has been postponed to January 1, 2018 following continued challenges, including lack of consumer confidence in the fuel. Petrol companies have been told to have blending … Continue reading →

In Australia, the South Australian government will back a plan to allow hemp growing for industrial uses including for biofuel. Victoria was the first state to allow hemp production in 1998, followed but all other states except for South Australia … Continue reading →

In Minnesota, a team of scientists from the University of Minnesota; the U.S. Forest Products Laboratory; the University of Wisconsin, Madison; Gyeongsangnam-do Agricultural Research and Extension Services, Republic of Korea; and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory found evidence that brown rot … Continue reading →