ASTM International released its new spec for 6-20% bio blended heating oil (BioHeat) this past March. The prior spec only covered blends of up to 5% - like those you can pull from many racks now.
Recent Posts
This week, Ethanol activists in Chicago used the 20th anniversary of the BP Oil Spill in the Gulf to push for approval of a pending mandate that would require self-serve stations with over 850,000 gallons in annual sales volumes to carry E15, given they had the proper infrastructure for the blend. They argued that companies will "keep on spilling" and that made it imperative that the push continue towards higher blended, "cleaner" ethanol.
Topics: Ethanol, EPA Mandate, Cellulosic Ethanol, RFS
Energy Infrastructure is one of the topics essentially absent from the Congressional agenda at the moment, with the exception of continuing efforts to pass a Keystone XL bill. As you recall, the last bill successfully passed the House and Senate, only to be vetoed by President. It ultimately died in the Senate where it lacked the votes to override said veto.
Topics: Oil & Energy Magazine, Energy Infrastructure, Congress
A Harvard University study has concluded that 15 billion cubic feet of natural gas escapes the aging pipelines in Boston - an amount that means we're losing $90 MILLION dollars worth of natural gas through leakage annually.
The problem with leakage, outside of the obvious environmental and health concerns, as well as the fact that consumers bear the cost of the leakage, is that this leakage is responsible for almost all of the methane emissions given off by the city. As we've discussed previously, methane has a 25 times larger impact on the environment than carbon, and for that reason it's been the focus of new proposed regulations from the Administration and the EPA.
Topics: natural gas, EPA Mandate, Fracking, methane
In November the EPA announed it would not be able to finalize on the RFS volumes for biofuels until 2015. The 2014 and 2015 volumes will be set soon,, in theory. But there has been a lot of stress out there in the industry over the fact that the delay will essentially mean refiners and producers need to be retroactively compliant with the volumes the EPA sets.
The biofuels industry is pushing for an increase in biofuel requirements, to 18.15 billion gallons. This is probably not happening, but the uncertainty overall has had a serious impact on bio producers, many of whom have scaled operations way back over 2014 as compared to 2013.
Topics: Biodiesel, EPA Mandate, EPA, RFS
The most recent AltWheels Fleet Day in Norwood was once again a great success. We've been part of AltWheels from the beginning, back when biodiesel was a niche product and who had ever even heard of ethanol gasoline?
Topics: natural gas, Biodiesel, Ethanol, environment, altwheels, electric vehicles
Today, the bill to approve the construction of the the Keystone XL pipeline hits the Senate, after the House approved Cassidy's legislation by 252-161 on Friday.
Topics: Energy Independence, Keystone XL, Energy Infrastructure, TransCanada, senate
How will the 2014 Midterm Election results cause a shift in the Energy Agenda?
Topics: US Crude Exports, EPA, Keystone XL, Carbon Emissions, Election Results
