Short Takes for April 25 in Biofuels

What Do I Absolutely Need to Know About…

Florida’s repeal of the state’s Renewable Fuel Standard. Bob Dinneen, CEO of the Renewable Fuels Association, and Tom Buis, CEO of Growth Energy said: “A pyrrhic victory for ethanol detractors. It substantively changes nothing because the state mandate was redundant. The federal Renewable Fuel Standard will still apply. The only result of this legislation? Florida has made it clear — biofuels and the valuable jobs that are created in the renewable fuels industry are no longer welcome in Florida.”

The MLP Parity Act (also known as Coons-Moran). It’s being re-introduced today in the House and Senate. As Raymond James energy analyst Pavel Molchanov points out, “The bill could cut cost of capital by 30-50%. MLPs are essentially business structures that are taxed as a partnership but trade like a C-corp. By utilizing this structure, cost of capital for renewable projects could fall meaningfully, potentially by 30-50%. The MLP Parity Act is a straightforward piece of legislation: it would simply expand the definition of “qualified” sources to encompass renewable and other emerging energy technologies. We don’t think that the bill would realistically come to a vote on a stand-alone basis. Rather, it would need to be attached to a “grand bargain”-esque package of comprehensive tax reform.”

POET Biorefining – Macon status. Yep, the plant has resumed producing ethanol and Dakota Gold distillers grain production and has now added Voilà™ corn oil to its product mix. The 45 million-gallon-per-year ethanol plant suspended operations on Feb. 1 due primarily to a lack of available corn from last year’s drought. During the down time, the plant began work on approximately $14 million in upgrades.