World Perspectives

Biofuels Recent Biofuels Analysis

feed-grains soy-oilseeds softs

CFTC COT Report Analysis

The attached PDF offers graphical depiction and seasonal analysis of managed money and commercial traders' net position in key agricultural commodity markets. The data is, of course, taken from the CFTC's weekly Commitment of Traders report, using the futures only data. WPI recently completed a...

biofuel

Small Refinery Exemptions Under the RFS Back in the Spotlight

A recurring issue since 2016 under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) has been EPA’s administration of the small refinery exemption (SRE) program. A court decision in the 5th District Circuit Court brought that topic back to the forefront, and will add more complexity, volatility, and unce...

softs energy biofuel

CFTC COT Report Analysis

New: WPI has added softs (cocoa, coffee, cotton, and sugar) and selected energy futures (NYMEX natural gas, crude oil, RBOB gasoline, and Chicago ethanol) to this report. Consequently, the attached PDF offers graphical depiction and seasonal analysis of managed money and commercial traders' net...

softs energy biofuel

CFTC COT Report Analysis

New: WPI has added softs (cocoa, coffee, cotton, and sugar) and selected energy futures (NYMEX natural gas, crude oil, RBOB gasoline, and Chicago ethanol) to this report. Consequently, the attached PDF offers graphical depiction and seasonal analysis of managed money and commercial traders' net...

energy softs biofuel

CFTC COT Report Analysis

New: WPI has added softs (cocoa, coffee, cotton, and sugar) and selected energy futures (NYMEX natural gas, crude oil, RBOB gasoline, and Chicago ethanol) to this report. Consequently, the attached PDF offers graphical depiction and seasonal analysis of managed money and commercial traders' net...

softs energy biofuel

CFTC COT Report Analysis

New: WPI has added softs (cocoa, coffee, cotton, and sugar) and selected energy futures (NYMEX natural gas, crude oil, RBOB gasoline, and Chicago ethanol) to this report. Consequently, the attached PDF offers graphical depiction and seasonal analysis of managed money and commercial traders' net...

softs energy biofuel

CFTC COT Report Analysis

New: WPI has added softs (cocoa, coffee, cotton, and sugar) and selected energy futures (NYMEX natural gas, crude oil, RBOB gasoline, and Chicago ethanol) to this report. Consequently, the attached PDF offers graphical depiction and seasonal analysis of managed money and commercial traders' net...

biofuel energy

Renewable Diesel as “Regional Diesel”

In 2022, renewable diesel (RD) utilization (based on product supplied) surpassed biodiesel (BD) use. For Q1 of 2023, RD has extended the gap. This is not surprising given the rapid expansion of RD capacity in the past couple of years. What also was expected, but perhaps still slightly surprisi...

biofuel

EPA Effectively Clears the Board of Pending SREs, Projects Not Approving Future Petitions

The EPA announced on Friday that it denied 26 requests for “small refinery exemptions” (SREs) over the periods of 2016-2018 and 2021-2023. There are still two SRE petitions pending for the 2018 compliance year.  SRE’s have been a contentious issue for several years. SREs...

biofuel

Lawmakers Urge USTR to Take on Access to Brazil’s Ethanol Market

On 1 June, a bipartisan group of 21 members of the House of Representatives asked USTR to address Brazil’s treatment of U.S. ethanol, specifically a reinstatement of tariffs and access to Brazil’s carbon credit program for ethanol. Between the tariff and lack of access to the credit...

biofuel

Will EPA Flip Off the Switch for Electric Vehicles Under the RFS?

EPA is facing a 14 June deadline to finish the 2023-2025 required volume obligations (RVOs) under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). The date was set by consent decree with the courts. Recall, the proposed RVOs released in November 2022 included electric vehicles (EVs) as part of the overall vo...

energy biofuel

EPA’s E15 Waiver for 2023 in Effect Today

On 28 April, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) granted a waiver for the use of E15 during the 2023 summer driving season, which is 1 June - 15 September. This is under the same regulatory authority as was used in 2022 to address an emergency fuel situation.    The Clean Air Ac...

feed-grains soy-oilseeds wheat

Commentary: CBOT Ends Lower with Better Weather in Sight

The CBOT was lower again at mid-week with funds continuing to pare back long positions amid a light news day. The U.S. weather forecast has shifted to feature more favorable planting conditions for most of the Midwest and Northern Plains in the next few weeks, which helped pressure corn, soybea...

biofuel energy

Long Term Energy Outlook: Exporting Ethanol, Importing Biomass Based Diesel

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) recently released its Annual Energy Outlook (AEO) for 2023 – that report is the Department of Energy’s equivalent to USDA’s long term baseline projection. The USDA’s report forecasts out to 2032, while the AEO forecasts to...

biofuel

Ag as Energy Future

Global trade had a record year in 2022, growing 10 percent above the 2021 level. For the U.S., the growth just was in its major bulk commodities, wheat, corn and soybeans. Geopolitics has China redirecting its imports to South America, and food security concerns cause barriers in many countries...

biofuel

Temporary E15 Waiver Made a Difference in 2022

Ethanol blending rates increased in 2022 according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), especially during this summer. In April the Biden EPA issued a one-year emergency waiver to allow year-round E15 in part to reduce retail gasoline prices in response to supply chain disruptions, t...

biofuel

Another Look at the RVOs for Ethanol

On Friday 2 December, WPI broke down the proposed 2023 - 2025 required volume obligations (RVOs) under the Renewable Fuel Standard. The rule was 692 pages long, and away from the top line summary, there are a few other bits of information worth taking a second look at and putting into context w...

biofuel

Proposed RVOs: Canola Oil and Electric Vehicles are the Winners

The EPA released the proposed required volume obligations for 2023 through 2025 yesterday. Below is a summary of the proposed volumes by category. The top takeaways: In a separate proposed rule issued with the RVOs, EPA finalized an approved pathway for canola oil to be used in renewable die...

biofuel energy

American Petroleum Institute Backs Year-Round E15

The American Petroleum Institute (AP), the association of oil drilling, refining, and natural gas producing companies, joined this week in signing a letter to Congress backing a move to grant year-round use of E15. Other signatories to the letter included the Renewable Fuel Association (RFA), G...

biofuel

2023 Biofuel RVOs Delayed from Tomorrow Release

The EPA’s proposed required volume obligations (RVO) for 2023 will not be released tomorrow as was previously expected under the terms of a consent decree, which originally set a date of 16 September. That was later agreed by both parties to be extended to 16 November. Those parties inclu...

biofuel

King and Queen Pillage the Village

King corn is losing a battle with Queen soybeans, and this has activated the politicians for another round of support. Renewable diesel is projected to increase five-fold from 1 billion to 5 billion gallons by 2026. Almost $2.6 billion is being invested in increased soybean crush capacity to me...

biofuel energy

Future of the RFS 2023 and Beyond

2023 marks a major shift in the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). From the 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act until this year, the annual required volume obligations (RVOs) under the RFS were set by statute; that changes in 2023, and so could the mix of renewable fuels – or at least t...

biofuel

Proposed 2023 RVOs Coming in November

On 11 July, WPI reported that the 2023 required volume obligations (RVOs) were expected to come in mid-September; that was based on a proposed consent decree from EPA with the biofuels association Growth Energy who filed a complaint in April over EPA’s failure to promulgate a rule establi...

biofuel energy

60 Days Until RFS Reset: Things to Watch

In 2005 Congress passed the Energy Policy Act (EPA) which created the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) statutory schedule. The 2005 EPA was amended it in 2007 with the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) which expanded those categories. The bottom line is that renewable fuels were schedule...

feed-grains soy-oilseeds softs

CFTC COT Report Analysis

The attached PDF offers graphical depiction and seasonal analysis of managed money and commercial traders' net position in key agricultural commodity markets. The data is, of course, taken from the CFTC's weekly Commitment of Traders report, using the futures only data. WPI recently completed a...

biofuel

Small Refinery Exemptions Under the RFS Back in the Spotlight

A recurring issue since 2016 under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) has been EPA’s administration of the small refinery exemption (SRE) program. A court decision in the 5th District Circuit Court brought that topic back to the forefront, and will add more complexity, volatility, and unce...

softs energy biofuel

CFTC COT Report Analysis

New: WPI has added softs (cocoa, coffee, cotton, and sugar) and selected energy futures (NYMEX natural gas, crude oil, RBOB gasoline, and Chicago ethanol) to this report. Consequently, the attached PDF offers graphical depiction and seasonal analysis of managed money and commercial traders' net...

softs energy biofuel

CFTC COT Report Analysis

New: WPI has added softs (cocoa, coffee, cotton, and sugar) and selected energy futures (NYMEX natural gas, crude oil, RBOB gasoline, and Chicago ethanol) to this report. Consequently, the attached PDF offers graphical depiction and seasonal analysis of managed money and commercial traders' net...

energy softs biofuel

CFTC COT Report Analysis

New: WPI has added softs (cocoa, coffee, cotton, and sugar) and selected energy futures (NYMEX natural gas, crude oil, RBOB gasoline, and Chicago ethanol) to this report. Consequently, the attached PDF offers graphical depiction and seasonal analysis of managed money and commercial traders' net...

softs energy biofuel

CFTC COT Report Analysis

New: WPI has added softs (cocoa, coffee, cotton, and sugar) and selected energy futures (NYMEX natural gas, crude oil, RBOB gasoline, and Chicago ethanol) to this report. Consequently, the attached PDF offers graphical depiction and seasonal analysis of managed money and commercial traders' net...

softs energy biofuel

CFTC COT Report Analysis

New: WPI has added softs (cocoa, coffee, cotton, and sugar) and selected energy futures (NYMEX natural gas, crude oil, RBOB gasoline, and Chicago ethanol) to this report. Consequently, the attached PDF offers graphical depiction and seasonal analysis of managed money and commercial traders' net...

biofuel energy

Renewable Diesel as “Regional Diesel”

In 2022, renewable diesel (RD) utilization (based on product supplied) surpassed biodiesel (BD) use. For Q1 of 2023, RD has extended the gap. This is not surprising given the rapid expansion of RD capacity in the past couple of years. What also was expected, but perhaps still slightly surprisi...

biofuel

EPA Effectively Clears the Board of Pending SREs, Projects Not Approving Future Petitions

The EPA announced on Friday that it denied 26 requests for “small refinery exemptions” (SREs) over the periods of 2016-2018 and 2021-2023. There are still two SRE petitions pending for the 2018 compliance year.  SRE’s have been a contentious issue for several years. SREs...

biofuel

Lawmakers Urge USTR to Take on Access to Brazil’s Ethanol Market

On 1 June, a bipartisan group of 21 members of the House of Representatives asked USTR to address Brazil’s treatment of U.S. ethanol, specifically a reinstatement of tariffs and access to Brazil’s carbon credit program for ethanol. Between the tariff and lack of access to the credit...

biofuel

Will EPA Flip Off the Switch for Electric Vehicles Under the RFS?

EPA is facing a 14 June deadline to finish the 2023-2025 required volume obligations (RVOs) under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). The date was set by consent decree with the courts. Recall, the proposed RVOs released in November 2022 included electric vehicles (EVs) as part of the overall vo...

energy biofuel

EPA’s E15 Waiver for 2023 in Effect Today

On 28 April, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) granted a waiver for the use of E15 during the 2023 summer driving season, which is 1 June - 15 September. This is under the same regulatory authority as was used in 2022 to address an emergency fuel situation.    The Clean Air Ac...

feed-grains soy-oilseeds wheat

Commentary: CBOT Ends Lower with Better Weather in Sight

The CBOT was lower again at mid-week with funds continuing to pare back long positions amid a light news day. The U.S. weather forecast has shifted to feature more favorable planting conditions for most of the Midwest and Northern Plains in the next few weeks, which helped pressure corn, soybea...

biofuel energy

Long Term Energy Outlook: Exporting Ethanol, Importing Biomass Based Diesel

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) recently released its Annual Energy Outlook (AEO) for 2023 – that report is the Department of Energy’s equivalent to USDA’s long term baseline projection. The USDA’s report forecasts out to 2032, while the AEO forecasts to...

biofuel

Ag as Energy Future

Global trade had a record year in 2022, growing 10 percent above the 2021 level. For the U.S., the growth just was in its major bulk commodities, wheat, corn and soybeans. Geopolitics has China redirecting its imports to South America, and food security concerns cause barriers in many countries...

biofuel

Temporary E15 Waiver Made a Difference in 2022

Ethanol blending rates increased in 2022 according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), especially during this summer. In April the Biden EPA issued a one-year emergency waiver to allow year-round E15 in part to reduce retail gasoline prices in response to supply chain disruptions, t...

biofuel

Another Look at the RVOs for Ethanol

On Friday 2 December, WPI broke down the proposed 2023 - 2025 required volume obligations (RVOs) under the Renewable Fuel Standard. The rule was 692 pages long, and away from the top line summary, there are a few other bits of information worth taking a second look at and putting into context w...

biofuel

Proposed RVOs: Canola Oil and Electric Vehicles are the Winners

The EPA released the proposed required volume obligations for 2023 through 2025 yesterday. Below is a summary of the proposed volumes by category. The top takeaways: In a separate proposed rule issued with the RVOs, EPA finalized an approved pathway for canola oil to be used in renewable die...

biofuel energy

American Petroleum Institute Backs Year-Round E15

The American Petroleum Institute (AP), the association of oil drilling, refining, and natural gas producing companies, joined this week in signing a letter to Congress backing a move to grant year-round use of E15. Other signatories to the letter included the Renewable Fuel Association (RFA), G...

biofuel

2023 Biofuel RVOs Delayed from Tomorrow Release

The EPA’s proposed required volume obligations (RVO) for 2023 will not be released tomorrow as was previously expected under the terms of a consent decree, which originally set a date of 16 September. That was later agreed by both parties to be extended to 16 November. Those parties inclu...

biofuel

King and Queen Pillage the Village

King corn is losing a battle with Queen soybeans, and this has activated the politicians for another round of support. Renewable diesel is projected to increase five-fold from 1 billion to 5 billion gallons by 2026. Almost $2.6 billion is being invested in increased soybean crush capacity to me...

biofuel energy

Future of the RFS 2023 and Beyond

2023 marks a major shift in the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). From the 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act until this year, the annual required volume obligations (RVOs) under the RFS were set by statute; that changes in 2023, and so could the mix of renewable fuels – or at least t...

biofuel

Proposed 2023 RVOs Coming in November

On 11 July, WPI reported that the 2023 required volume obligations (RVOs) were expected to come in mid-September; that was based on a proposed consent decree from EPA with the biofuels association Growth Energy who filed a complaint in April over EPA’s failure to promulgate a rule establi...

biofuel energy

60 Days Until RFS Reset: Things to Watch

In 2005 Congress passed the Energy Policy Act (EPA) which created the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) statutory schedule. The 2005 EPA was amended it in 2007 with the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) which expanded those categories. The bottom line is that renewable fuels were schedule...

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