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There are ways to boost a plant’s bottom line without intense capital investment. EPM takes a look at the options available for ethanol producers to do just that.

Market gyrations can temporarily obscure the fundamentals. Although corn prices dipped in response to the flagging stock market, demand for corn should continue to pressure supplies. Ethanol producers also need to track crude oil prices as they have an increasingly important impact on prices. EPM talks to Iowa State University economists who have been plotting the numbers.

Federal support for ethanol has been crucial for the growth of the ethanol industry as it expanded from a regional specialty fuel to an energy source of national importance. As the transition begins from first-generation to second-generation fuels, the government has created a plan to continue to help the industry develop new feedstocks and technologies to fulfill the new renewable fuels standard.

Chances are the United States will bring into play a mandatory carbon emissions reduction program sooner rather than later. In the second of a two-part series, EPM explores the domestic carbon trading market and what the future could hold for ethanol producers.

2009 could be a big year for midlevel ethanol blends. UL certified E85 fuel dispensers and blender pumps should be available by the first half of the year. In addition, Congress is expected to address tax legislation that limits fuel retailers’ ability to claim credits for blender pumps distributing E85.
Testing of midlevel blends will continue, and an E20 fuel waiver request could be submitted to the U.S. EPA before the end of the year.

Automakers are expected to produce nearly 50 2009 flexible-fuel vehicle models, doubling their offerings from 2008. EPM examines the future of the flexible-fuel vehicle infrastructure and what each of these companies has to offer consumers who want to use ethanol blends.

Europe has an appetite for sustainable ethanol. Brazil is hungry to supply the demand.

If the noise coming out of the Capitol in Washington, D.C., in late 2008 is any indication, the tariff on imported ethanol appears to be in danger, or at least subject to significant modification.

The food-versus-fuel debate, high corn prices and the country’s economic crisis have taken a toll on the corn-based ethanol industry. Despite its difficulties, the development of cellulosic ethanol wouldn’t be where it is without its predecessor. Now it’s just a matter of getting the necessary financing to commercialize the industry.