May Ethanol Production Rises

Ethanol production in May rose to 847,000 barrels per day, up from 832,000 barrels per day in April. For the month, 1,102,248,000 gallons of ethanol were produced.

Ethanol imports also rose slightly to 1,638,000 gallons in May, up from 1,512,000 gallons in April.

Source : Energy Information Administration

World Bank Concludes The Impact Of Biofuels On Food Prices Not As Large As Thought

The World Bank recently released a policy research working paper on the causes of the 2006 through 2008 commodity price boom. The paper concluded that the recent spike in food prices was largely due to energy prices.

This paper concludes that a stronger link between energy and non-energy commodity prices is likely to be the dominant influence on developments in commodity, and especially food, markets.

The paper also concluded that the role that biofuels played in the commodity price boom was not as large as once thought.

The paper also argues that the effect of biofuels on food prices has not been as large as originally thought, but that the use of commodities by financial investors (the so-called "financialization of commodities") may have been partly responsible for the 2007/08 spike.

The paper points out that biofuels account for such a small part of the overall production of grains and oilseeds that they are unlikely to have much of an impact on prices.

Clearly US maize‐based ethanol production, and (to a lesser extent) EU
biodiesel production) affected the corresponding market balances and land use in both US maize and EU oilseeds. Yet, worldwide, biofuels account for only about 1.5 percent of the area under grains/oilseeds. This raises serious doubts about claims that biofuels account for a big shift in global demand. Even though widespread perceptions about such a shift played a big role during the recent commodity price boom, it is striking that maize prices hardly moved during the first period of increase in US ethanol production, and oilseed prices dropped when the EU increased impressively its use of biodiesel. On the other hand, prices spiked while ethanol use was slowing down in the US and biodiesel use was stabilizing in the EU.

The findings of this paper are similar to the findings of several other studies that have been conducted in the past.

Placing the 2006/08 Commodity Price Boom into Perspective

Former Panda Ethanol Hereford Plant May Have An Interested Buyer

According to the Amarillo Globe-News, Murphy Oil has shown some interest in the former Panda Ethanol plant located in Hereford, TX.

Murphy discussed the idea of a property tax reduction with the Deaf Smith County Commissioner's Court on Monday.

"They haven't specifically asked for anything, but they were talking about a tax abatement," said County Judge Tom Simons. "They said they'd be back in touch. I expect a proposal or request at that time."

The 100 million gallon per year Hereford plant was originally planned to be completed in 2008 but was plagued by construction delays. The Panda Ethanol subsidiary that owned the plant filed for bankruptcy in January 2009. In April 2009 the plant was sold to a group of creditors for $25 million. The plant is in the final stages of completion.

Gilbarco Ethanol Blender Pumps Receive UL Certification

Following the June 24 announcement, UL has now extended the UL Listing to include Gilbarco Encore blenders with the flexible fuel option. These additional six models are among the first to be approved to blend mid-level ethanol/gasoline products containing up to 85% ethanol. A total of 22 Gilbarco dispenser configurations (blenders and MPDs) are now approved for use with fuels up to E85.

“Retailers want highly reliable dispensers that offer the ability to blend and dispense multiple products through each fueling position,” said Chad Johnson, marketing manager for Encore dispensers at Gilbarco Veeder-Root. “The Encore series flexible fuel dispensers help retailers meet demand for higher Ethanol fuel blends and offers the opportunity for blender of record tax incentives as well.”

The Encore S and Encore 300 dispenser models now UL Listed for use with E85 with the Flexible Fuel option include:

* X + 0 Blender (on the X hoses)
* X + 1 Blender (on the X hoses)
* Multi-Hose MPDs
* Single Hose MPD +1 (on the +1 hose)
* Blender dispenser +1 (on the +1 hose)
* Multi-Hose +1 Blender dispensers (on the +1 hose)

Source : Press Release

Gasoline Demand Falls 0.6% In The First Half Of 2010

The American Petroleum Institute (API) is reporting that gasoline deliveries in the first six months of 2010 were 0.6% lower than during the same period last year.

Reflecting the ongoing sluggish economic recovery, U.S. gasoline deliveries for the first half of 2010 averaged 8.88 million barrels per day, 0.6 percent lower than the corresponding period a year ago, according to the American Petroleum Institute’s Monthly Statistical Report for June.