Posted on 02/11/2013 10:18:20 AM PST by thackney
The persistent drought is taking a toll on producers of ethanol, with corn becoming so scarce that nearly two dozen ethanol plants have been forced to halt production.
The Renewable Fuels Association, an ethanol industry trade group, provided data to The Associated Press showing that 20 of the nation’s 211 ethanol plants have ceased production over the past year, including five in January. Most remain open, with workers spending time performing maintenance-type tasks. But ethanol production won’t likely resume until after 2013 corn is harvested in late August or September.
Industry experts don’t expect a shortage — millions of barrels are stockpiled and the remaining 191 plants are still producing. Still, there is growing concern about what happens if the drought lingers through another corn-growing season.
“There’s a lot of anxiety in the industry right now about the drought and a lot of folks watching the weather and hoping and praying this drought is going to break,” said Geoff Cooper, vice president for research and analysis for the Renewable Fuels Association.
(Excerpt) Read more at fuelfix.com ...
It depends on what your goal is. If your goal is energy independence it is a stupid idea since it consumes more fossil fuel energy in manufacturing it than it yields, HOWEVER; if your goal is to reward big campaign contributors and buy votes in corn producing states with an ongoing flow of taxpayer dollars then it's a resounding success.
Why is corn used over sugar... or anything else for that matter. Is there something that makes corn based ethanol superior or cheaper
The same reason corn syrup is used in processed food.
Then you have a green politician.
Here’s an idea to save some taxpayer dollars and reduce the national debt.
NO ETHANOL SUBSIDY......
Of course we need some other ideas to find billions more to save like......
SHUT DOWN THE EPA, SHUT DOWN OSHA, SHUT DOWN THE ENERGY DEPARTMENT, THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION.......
The only viable ethanol is from Brazil, where the use beets and sugar cane to make ethanol. Our corn farmer corporations like Archer Daniels Midland got something like a 40% tariff added to Brazilian ethanol to make it more expensive delivered to the US. They can grow things faster and cheaper in Brazil than we can here. That is why E85 cars are big sellers down there.
Ethel is not a bad fuel. Many cars ran on it originally. Formula 1 race cars burn ethanol. The problem with it is that it dissolves rubber fuel lines and it does not store as long as gasoline. It also tends to have water condensaton problems in colder temperatures below 40F. These are the worst in carburated engines. Water condenses in the bowl of the carburator and then will not run. Lastly, ethanol tends to gel over time, especially with temperature changes. When it gels it plugs up the jets in the carburator. All these things have been a boom to fuel stabilizer sales. Fuel stabilizer does extend the life of the fuel but now I drain and run dry all my carburated small engines if they are going to sit for more than a few weeks.
That ended more than a year ago. The mandate to use ethanol in fuel still remains but taxpayers no longer extra to put it in fuel.
Congress Ends Era Of Ethanol Subsidies
http://www.npr.org/2012/01/03/144605485/congress-ends-era-of-ethanol-subsidies
After Three Decades, Tax Credit for Ethanol Expires
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/02/business/energy-environment/after-three-decades-federal-tax-credit-for-ethanol-expires.html?_r=0
Two Cheers for Ethanol Subsidies Expiring—but Costly Mandate Remains
http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2012/01/ethanol-subsidies-expiring-but-the-costly-mandate-remains
WHAT??? You can't buy votes that way. And you can't bestow largesse on Archer Daniels Midlands executives and major stockholders with big gobs of the taxpayers' hard earned dollars
Like the US, Brazil mandates that ethanol is part of the gasoline fuel market.
Industry sources reported that Brazil’s federal government has decided to raise the minimum blending obligation for anhydrous fuel ethanol and gasoline to 25% vol. from 20% vol. from June 1, 2013.
http://ethanolbiofuels.agra-net.com/?p=568
The tariff was 54¢. It ended last year along with the ethanol subsidy for blenders. The two together nearly offset each other anyways.
US Ethanol Tariffs, Subsidies End; Brazil Likely to Continue Ethanol Imports
http://ictsd.org/i/news/bridgesweekly/123028/
For so many reasons. You don't eat your feedstock.
Subsidies to burn food was a fool’s errand to start with.
10% ethanol causes problems with small gas engines. Here in the Northeast we a little wind and snow this past weekend. The snow thrower I have stalled at least 6 times while trying to clear the driveway. If 15% ethanol was used the motor would have stopped.
Now What happens to a Boater navigating at Sea and runs into some choppy weather. Ethanol stalls the motor while under way there will be fatal consequences.
Stop burning food it is not meant to be used for fuel.
Corn starch is your feedstock? Seriously?
A “mandate” is just a subsidy by a different name.
While equally wrong, I see it as significantly different as only the users of the fuel are now forced to pay for it.
With the Tax Credit subsidy, you could drive a diesel truck and still be paying for ethanol via taxes.
No, ethanol is the least stupid option to fulfill a stupid mandate.
The stupid mandate is for an oxygenate in gasoline. Oxygenates make a difference in the CO emissions of only older gas engines with carbs and no feedback loop of O2 sensors in the exhaust system and a air mass sensor in the air intake.
The fuel system I’ve described above has been in most every car since 1986, as I recall, and in fuel injected, closed-loop systems, oxygenates (whether we’re talking about MTBE or ethanol) make no sense.
Still, the EPA persists in mandating them.
The smarter thing would be to remove the oxygenate mandate. Of the two more common oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol), I’ll take ethanol and keep our groundwaters uncontaminated.
Ethanol plants shut down. This is good news. Maybe we can find a way to keep them shut down.
as the energy report you gave us the link for demonstrates
the drought is NOT entirely to blame
production for biofuels has been exceeding comsumption (in the annual totals) since then end of 2007, and even in 2010, 2011 and 2012 only a few months demonstrate production levels lower than consumptions levels
time to end all ethanol subsidies of any kind and let it stand or fall on the sheer, and unpolitcized, economics of the marketplace
“The Renewable Fuels Association, an ethanol industry trade group, provided data to The Associated Press showing that 20 of the nation’s 211 ethanol plants have ceased production over the past year”
“20 of .... 211”, which is slightly less than 10% of the ethanol plants,
but guess what, production for 2012 while slightly less than for 2011, it was only 2.5% lower than 2011, not 10% lower, and it was still 2.5% higher than was consumption in 2012
there is neither a shortage of Ethanol or a shortage of Ethanol producers, drought or no drought
see the link below offered in an earlier post in this thread:
http://www.eia.gov/totalenergy/data/monthly/pdf/sec10_3.pdf
It’s Federal budget time and the ethanol-corn lobby has hired their friends in journalism to help make scapegoats of things like the drought for the industry shakeout they are going through - the poor dears.
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