Speaking to more than a thousand participants at the National Ethanol Conference – Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen declared that the ethanol industry is under siege and fighting back. He said the industry is fighting on three fronts – to defend the Renewable Fuel Standard, to promote E15 and to open new markets for American ethanol overseas. In this Battle for the Barrel American ethanol is engaged in – Dinneen said the stakes are high, our adversaries are well-funded and our challenges are legion.
Dinneen reported that the U.S. industry produced 13.3-billion gallons of high-quality, high-octane biofuels in 2012. He said that was despite obstacles in 2012 – including the worst drought in 50 years, falling gasoline demand, rising imports and a host of regulatory and commercial barriers to E15. Dinneen said that production of ethanol is helping to free the nation from its dependence on imported oil – displacing 465-million barrels of imported oil in 2012 and lessening the nation’s dependence on imports form more than 60-percent in 2005 to just 41-percent in 2012.
In addition – the U.S. ethanol industry supported 87-thousand direct jobs and 295-thousand indirect and induced jobs, added 43-billion dollars to the GDP, provided 30-billion dollars in household income to families, saved consumers between 78-cents and $1.09 per gallon and reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 48 to 60-percent compared directly to gasoline.
Source: NAFB News Service