Monday, April 12, 2010

Volume 1, Issue 8

Please let us know if there is anything that you think you should be included in this newsletter. You can email the Growth Energy Market Development office at marketdevelopment@growthenergy.org

Growth Energy Market Development Grants Available

Don't forget! Growth Energy's Market Development team is now offering funding to retailers to assist in ethanol blender pump infrastructure. Grants of $2,500 and $5,000 are now available on a first come, first serve basis to vendors who wish to install new or convert existing equipment for ethanol fueling. We are focusing on areas that are outside the Mid-west that have no additional state grants available.

We are providing a $5,000 grant for a blender pump that dispenses E30 and E85 and up to $2,500 for an E85 dispenser. You can find the two page OUTLINE of the Infrastructure Development Program by clicking here. To review the APPLICATION for the funding, click here. For questions regarding the program, please contact the Market Development office at (573) 635-8445.

Growth Energy Offering $15,000 grants in Virginia and Washington State:

As part of our program working with the U.S. Dept. of Energy (DOE), Growth Energy is offering grants of up to $15,000 to install blender pumps in the Norfolk-Virginia Beach-Newport News area of Virginia and in the Seattle-Everett area of Washington State.

Growth Energy has received $200,000 from the U.S. Dept. of Energy to install blender pumps in these two areas and our Market Development program has added an additional $100,000. We expect to award 10 grants in each area of up to $15,000 per site. The programs are generally being concentrated in the Norfolk, Va. and Seattle, Wa. areas.

Read Growth Energy's blog posts on RenewableEnergyWorld.com

Featured Links

• See if Your Vehicle is Ethanol Blend Compatible
• Find an Flex Fuel Station in Your Area

U.S. Ethanol Industry To Launch First-Ever National TV Ad Campaign

America's ethanol supporters launched the industry's first national TV ad campaign today to promote the only renewable, domestic fuel that is an alternative to imported oil, which makes up nearly 60 percent of the nation's fuel supply.

"Ethanol is America's fuel: it's made here in the U.S., it creates U.S. jobs, and it contributes to America's national and economic security. This ad campaign is designed to reach beyond the Beltway to communicate those facts about ethanol to the broader American public — people who until now have only heard one side of the story," said (Ret.) Gen. Wesley K. Clark, Co-Chairman of Growth Energy, the coalition of U.S. ethanol supporters that is airing the "America's Fuel" campaign.

Read more about the ads, watch the spots and see a webcast from the launch event at GrowthEnergy.org.

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Tennessee DOT Offering E85 Grants — Deadline is Fast Approaching

The Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) is now accepting applications for the next round of Green Island Biofuel Corridor Network grants. The deadline to apply for the grants is April 30, 2010.

The Green Island grant program is a competitive funding opportunity available to retail fuel station owners and farmer co-ops interested in promoting and selling two biofuel blends, E85 (ethanol) and B20 (biodiesel). The goal of the Green Island grant program is to establish a statewide network of publicly accessible B20 and E85 refueling stations, particularly along interstates and major highways and in major population centers.

"Green Island grants encourage and help expand the commercial availability of biofuels in Tennessee, giving motorists more options at the pump and reducing harmful vehicle emissions," said Gov. Phil Bredesen in a written press statement. "This program is a vital piece of the state's efforts to make biofuels a real option for Tennesseans."

TDOT Commissioner Gerald Nicely says now that 65 biofuel pumps are serving Tennesseans across the state, this round of Green Island Grants focuses on completing the development of the Green Island Corridors.

"We want to identify partner retail fuel stations in areas along our major corridors where biofuel stations are not currently in place, particularly in the Chattanooga and Memphis areas," Nicely also said in a written statement.

The Green Island grant program assists a limited number of retail fuel stations with the capital costs of converting or installing fuel storage tanks and dispensing equipment for B20 and/or E85. The maximum grant award is $45,000 per E85 or B20 fuel system ($90,000 for both fuels). Retail station owners must provide at least 20 percent of the total project costs. To learn more about this grant and to download an application, go tohttp://www.tn.gov/tdot/biofuel/application.htm.

The Tennessee Department of Agriculture is sponsoring a Ethanol Workshop in Nashville on April 28 to discuss installing ethanol infrastructure and grants available. A member from Growth Energy Market Development team will be available at the event to discuss our own grant opportunities. To learn more about the workshop or to register, contact Ed Coleman at (615) 837-5150.

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South Dakota Ethanol Blender Pump Incentive Program Underway

On April 1, 2010 the state of South Dakota began accepting applications from retailers who wish to install ethanol blender pumps. Up to $10,000 per site is available and retailers must comply with the regulations established by the state of South Dakota. A total of $1,000,000 has been allocated for the program and applications must be received by May 30, 2010. Click here for more information.

A series of information meetings begins on April 13 in Rapid City and we encourage all South Dakota retailers to participate. For a complete list of the information meetings, click here.

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North Dakota Ethanol Blender Pump Incentive Program Underway

The state of North Dakota is also providing grant funds of up to $5,000 per pump, limited to $40,000 per station to install blender pumps that dispense E10, E85, and any ethanol blend exceeding 20% alcohol. Click here for more information.

Applicants may also be eligible to receive an additional $2,500 grant from the North Dakota Corn Council. To review that application, click here.

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Federal Funding Sought for Ethanol Pipeline

Terry, R-Neb., and Boswell, D-Iowa, recently introduced a bill that would provide federal loan guarantees for the massive $3.5 billion, 1,800-mile project guarantees that the project's backers say are critical to making it a reality.

Terry said the bill would extend to ethanol pipelines the same types of federal loan guarantees available to oil and gas pipeline projects.

“It's only fair,'' Terry said during a press conference with Boswell at Southwest Iowa Renewable Energy, a Bluffs ethanol producer.

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New Study Shows E20 Reduces Tailpipe Emissions and Has No Impact on Drivability

A newly-released Rochester Institute of Technology study shows that E20 — a blend of 20-percent ethanol with gasoline — has no measurable impact on vehicle drivability or durability, and lower tailpipe emissions compared to conventional gasoline. Growth Energy, the coalition of U.S. ethanol supporters, said today that this study proves the value of moving to higher blends of ethanol in the country's fuel supply.

The study was conducted by RIT's Center of Integrated Manufacturing Studies. Using a 10-vehicle fleet owned and operated by Monroe County, N.Y., researchers fueled the vehicles — all with older gasoline engines not specifically designed to burn ethanol blends — over the accumulation of at least 100,000 miles per vehicle. Researchers found that the fleet showed an average reduction of 23 percent for carbon monoxide and a 13 percent reduction for hydrocarbon emissions, with no measurable stress on vehicle operation or mechanics.

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Gilbarco Expands Standard Fuel Dispenser Warranty From E10 to E15

Gilbarco Veeder-Root has upgraded the warranty on its standard fuel dispensers to cover use of ethanol content up to E15. Gilbarco is the first supplier in the industry to announce this change for fuel dispensers that are under warranty in the field. These dispensers are currently Underwriters Laboratories (UL) approved for ethanol up to E10 under the UL 87 standard.

"We are pleased to lead the market with the expansion of our current warranty from E10 to E15, ensuring that our cutestomers are covered if the current E10 standard is broadened to E15," said Richard Browne, Vice-President Marketing, North America at Gilbarco Veeder-Root. "Our standard fuel dispenser models, currently UL listed to 10% ethanol, will now carry a warranty for up to 15% ethanol. This change is retroactive to Gilbarco® dispensers manufactured or commissioned in North America since April 1, 2008. Models include the Gilbarco Encore® and Legacy® series dispensers, as well as the Gasboy® Atlas® product line."

"Our customers can be confident that Gilbarco and Gasboy will honor warranty claims and otherwise support the dispensers they have recently purchased or are considering, should the blending standards change to E15," Browne said.

Gilbarco Veeder-Root is the industry's leader in alternative fuels dispensing technology with a full range of flexible fuel solutions. Earlier this month, the company obtained UL and National Conference on Weights and Measures approval for 19 Gilbarco Encore flexible fuel dispenser models for use with blends up to E25.

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Colorado Opens First Blender Pump Facility

The opening of Colorado's first ethanol blender pump celebrated with a grand opening event from 10 a.m. to noon on Thursday, April 8. E20, E40, and E85 was offered at the Stratton Equity Coop station at 515 Lincoln Street in Burlington, Colorado.

station sold 512 gallons of the blended fuels at 99-cents a gallon to drivers of flexible fuel vehicles. "It says a lot that the first blender pump is opening in Burlington and in the heart of corn country," said Rick Palkowitsh, who farms near the community. "As a farmer, I am excited we will be the first city in Colorado offering new technology to encourage the use of renewable fuels by motorists. This blender pump will give consumers more choices as to the type of fuel they choose." Palkowitsh also chairs Colorado Corn's Market Development Action Team.

Dan Slinger, general manager of Stratton Equity Co-op, is excited to have the first blender pump in Burlington. Many of the co-op’s members grow corn. “We’re marketing about three million bushels of our members’ corn that’s going into ethanol production,” said Slinger.

This event was sponsored by Stratton Equity Coop, Little John's Equipment Company, Growth Energy and Colorado Corn. Currently, there are more than 100 E85 pumps in Colorado.

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New Fuel Economy Standards May Benefit Ethanol

Today the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Energy (DOE) signed a joint final rule that establishes greenhouse gas emission standards and corporate fuel economy standards for light duty vehicles for model years 2012-2016. This National Fuel Efficiency Policy requires passenger cars and light trucks to get an overall average of 35.5 miles per gallon (mpg) by 2016 while cars are expected to average 39 mpg and trucks will be required to get 30 mpg. According to the current administration, this measure is expected to save 1.8 billion barrels of oil over the life of the program.

However, we could actually reduce oil imports and emissions even more under this program by using ethanol.

Let me explain. The easiest way to gain the improved fuel economy is through “engine downsizing,” in other words, using smaller engines. But the new smaller engine technologies will not mean less power, like in the past. According to Ethanol Boosting Systems, their technology enables gasoline engines to “reach their full potential” by utilizing performance enhancing properties of ethanol in conjunction with advances in direct injection (DI) and turbocharging.

Here is how their system works: The EBS approach uses controlled direct ethanol injection to add a very significant vaporization-enhanced On-Demand Octane BoostTM that essentially removes the knock limit on engine performance. The elimination of the knock constraint has been proven by systematic engine dynamometer tests. This allows a small gasoline engine to provide the same or higher torque as compared to a conventional engine of much larger size.

This downsizing, the company explains, when combined with the use of a high compression ratio enables gas engines to improve efficiency, aka fuel economy, by 25-30 percent. The ethanol blend deriving the best results is E85 and in conjunction with a 3-way catalytic converter for emission control, you achieve both goals: decreased emissions and increased fuel economy. In other words, octane matters and the highest octane level you can purchase today, is E85.

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Member Spotlight — Eddie’s Service Center

Eddie's Service Center is located on the north shore of Long Island, New York. Eddie's Service Center is a small, family owned and operated auto service center and fueling station that has been located at 743 E. Main St. in Kings Park, NY. They were past members of the NEVC and renewed their membership with Growth Energy Market Development.

The business was started in the 1970's by Edward Piotrowski Sr. His son, Eddie, joined the business while he was in high school. In 1979, Eddie Jr. became a partner in the business and continued to run the business after Ed Senior retired in 1992. His wife Jean works at the business taking care of the bookkeeping and accounting. He was later joined by his son, Eddie Jr. who worked through high school and college. He is now a NY City Fireman and continues to work in the business part time. An important member of the Eddie's team is the full time gas attendant, Haji, who has been working there for over 17 years.

Eddie's joined Growth Energy in order to become more educated on E85 fuel and to be able to be proactive in conserving energy and protecting the environment. "We feel that this is an important step for our business," noted Eddie. "Conservation and recycling are things we feel strongly about."

He went on, "We decided to offer E85 because we were undergoing tank replacement at our station. We felt it was a good time to re-evaluate the products we were offering. We had previously been selling kerosene, we decided to not continue with kerosene and introduce E85 instead. The greatest obstacle I see regarding E85 is consumer education. Many people are not aware that their vehicles can use E85. There is also the fear that something may go wrong with a vehicle because of the alternative fuel."

Eddie noted that the automobile manufacturers should educate the people who are purchasing the flex-fuel vehicles about the use and availability of the fuel, also consumer education is another challenge within the industry.

"Everyone who can use E-85 should be made aware of the environmental and cost benefits. The more it is used, the more popular it will become," he said

Many of the customers at Eddie's have been coming to the station for fuel and repairs for over 30 years and have known three generations of Eddie's.

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New and Renewed Growth Energy Market Development Members

Dara's Fast Lane Corporate
Don Bowles Corporation

Should you wish to join Growth Energy, contact marketdevelopment@growthenergy.org.

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New E85 and Blender Pump Stations

As of this publication, there are 2,127 E85 stations including 134 blender pumps. Below is a listing of those opened since our last publication.

If you know of an E85 station we do not have listed at http://www.e85refueling.com/, please contact us at marketdevelopment@growthenergy.org.

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Letters to Growth Energy

It would be useful to know in every newsletter what if any federal legislation is being proposed/enacted to mandate that every gas station shall carry E85 fuel.

Thaddeus

Thaddeus J. Kochanny

Thaddeus,

VEETC, Tariff and Cellulosic Ethanol Tax Credit

Congressmen Earl Pomeroy, D-N.D., and John Shimkus. R-Ill., introduced legislation that would extend the 45 cent a gallon VEETC and 54 cent a gallon tariff for five years. Both the VEETC and the tariff are set to expire at the end of this year. The bill would also extend the $1.01 cellulosic tax credit, which is set to expire at the end of 2012 for three years and the 10-cent a gallon small-producer tax credit, which is set to expire at the end of this year, for five years. Sen. Grassley will introduce similar legislation in late April or early May.

Blender Pumps

The legislative affairs team is working to get language included in upcoming legislation that would allow gas stations to receive a tax credit for installing blender pumps. Under current law, they can only receive the tax credit for installing E85 pumps. It is unlikely this tax credit will be included in the tax extenders package because the blender pump tax credit is a multiyear tax credit.

Thanks again for your question!

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Letters to Growth Energy

Please send comments, questions or suggestions to our Market Development Team and we will share them with our readers in our next FYI newsletter. Email questions, comments or suggestions to: marketdevelopment@growthenergy.org.

Events Calendar

To submit a Calendar item, email marketdevelopment@growthenergy.org.

GrowthEnergy represents the producers and supporters of ethanol who feed the world and fuel America in ways that achieve energy independence, improve economic well-being and create a healthier environment for all Americans now!