Various industry players say the move to electric vehicles will drastically alter the corn-based ethanol market.

Electric vehicle surge to unplug ethanol demand

There will likely be a decline in fuel demand, but byproducts and demand for other alcohols could keep ethanol going

After shouldering some unusual market hits in recent years, the ethanol industry now faces new and more fundamental demand uncertainties as electric vehicles grow in popularity and capacity.  Some argue the sector will find new outlets for the plant-based fuels while others worry it will crumble beneath the collective weight of social, economic and environmental […] Read more

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U.S. oil industry seeks unusual alliance with Farm Belt against electric vehicle agenda

'We weren't born yesterday'

New York | Reuters — The U.S. oil industry is seeking to forge an alliance with the nation’s corn growers and biofuel producers to lobby against the Biden administration’s push for electric vehicles, but is so far meeting a cool reception, according to multiple sources familiar with the discussions. The effort marks an unusual attempt […] Read more

The Big River Resources ethanol plant at West Burlington, Iowa, about 120 km southwest of Davenport. (Steven Vaughn photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

Trump administration mulls industry-wide biofuel waiver

Comment period would end after Trump's exit

New York | Reuters — The Trump administration is considering requests from the oil refining industry and its backers for a sweeping nationwide waiver to exempt them from their obligations to blend biofuels, a measure they argue would help them weather the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic. U.S. President Donald Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency […] Read more

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U.S. Supreme Court agrees to hear biofuel waiver case

Reuters — The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday agreed to review a lower court ruling that severely limited the government’s powers to exempt small refineries from the nation’s biofuels law, rekindling a long-running dispute between the oil and corn industries. The decision came after appeals by refining companies that argued the 10th Circuit Court’s decision […] Read more

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Biden transition team holds talks with biofuel groups -sources

New York | Reuters – U.S. President-elect Joe Biden’s transition team has held calls with biofuel groups on topics including compliance with U.S. biofuel blending laws and Biden’s low-carbon climate vision, according to two sources familiar with the conversations. The discussions with biofuel trade groups as well as POET, a top company in the cellulosic […] Read more


Husky Energy’s ethanol plant at Minnedosa, Man., about 45 km north of Brandon. (HuskyGrain.com)

Husky, Cenovus shareholders approve merger deal

Cenovus to be Western Canada's biggest ethanol, DDGS producer

Reuters — Cenovus Energy’s $6.07 billion deal to buy Husky Energy was approved by the shareholders of the two companies on Tuesday, creating Canada’s No. 3 oil and gas producer in a rapidly consolidating industry. Cenovus said 93 per cent of shareholder votes were cast in favour of the merger at a special meeting, while […] Read more

Opinion: Biden’s victory a win for carbon pricing policy

Opinion: Biden’s victory a win for carbon pricing policy

Canada’s carbon pricing could help products get through a stiffer U.S. border

United States President-elect Joe Biden’s climate strategy will lay waste to the tired opposition some Canadians have to our country’s carbon pricing policy. Biden campaigned on aggressively combating climate change. When he becomes president in January, it is expected he will create investment in green technologies. Like Canada, the U.S. will soon be trying to […] Read more

Environment Minister Jonathan Wilkinson, with Infrastructure Minister Catherine McKenna (l) and Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault (r), speaks at the Dominion Arboretum in Ottawa on Dec. 11, 2020. (Photo: Reuters/Blair Gable)

New greening programs planned for ag alongside carbon tax hike

Carbon price to hit $170 per tonne by 2030

A new federal climate plan which further cranks up taxes on carbon emissions also includes pledges of new programs to help sink more carbon into farmland. The government on Friday released the sequel to its 2016 Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change — a “strengthened” climate plan, titled A Healthy Environment and a […] Read more


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U.S. fuel industry frazzled as EPA misses biofuel volumes deadline

COVID-19 fallout complicates process

New York | Reuters — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was set to miss a deadline Monday to announce how much renewable fuel the nation’s refiners must blend into their fuel mix next year, raising uncertainty in the fuel market and prompting one biofuel association to threaten to take the agency to court. Under federal […] Read more